SUNNYVALE, Calif., Feb. 23, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- 8x8, Inc. (Nasdaq:EGHT), provider of innovative cloud communications and computing solutions, today announced that Don Trimble, vice president of channel development, and Matt Hutchinson, director of channel marketing, have been recognized as two of CRN Magazine's 2012 Channel Chiefs. This prestigious list of the most influential and powerful leaders in the IT channel recognizes those executives directly responsible for driving channel sales and growth within their organization, while evangelizing and defending the importance of the channel throughout the entire IT Industry.
"Matt and I are honored to receive this recognition from CRN for the cloud-centric channel initiative 8x8 began championing in 2011," said Trimble. "We'd like to see resellers and VARs embrace the shift that's occurring from premises-based systems to SaaS solutions and believe the program 8x8 has introduced offers the most compelling and lucrative path to success with this recurring revenue-based business model. We look forward to working closely with UBM in 2012 and beyond to broaden channel awareness and appreciation for this exciting opportunity."
Don Trimble joined 8x8 in February 2011 with more than 25 years of sales and channel experience for some of the largest IT companies in the world, including Cisco, Hewlett Packard, Polycom and 3Com. Matt Hutchinson, who joined 8x8 in October 2011, has over 20 years of IT channel sales and marketing experience with companies like Logitech, Hewlett Packard, Plantronics, Nortel and Lucent. While at 8x8, Trimble and Hutchinson have been focused on educating partners about the advantages and cost savings of cloud-based solutions from an end user perspective and the opportunities for adding ongoing incremental revenue by reselling these offerings.
"The 2012 Channel Chiefs list recognizes vendor executives dedicated to driving channel programs in the IT marketplace," said Kelley Damore, VP, Editorial Director, UBM Channel. "Our annual Channel Chiefs issue is a must-read for IT solution providers evaluating new vendors or looking to expand solution offerings. These are the people, the products and the programs that any savvy solution provider needs to know. We congratulate this year's Channel Chiefs for their stellar record of business innovation and applaud them for their continued dedication to the partner community."
For the tenth consecutive year, Channel Chiefs were selected by the CRN editorial team based on channel experience, program innovations, channel-driven revenue, and public support for the importance of IT channel sales. The 2012 Channel Chiefs list is featured in the February issue of CRN Magazine and can be available online at www.crn.com.
About 8x8, Inc.
8x8, Inc. (Nasdaq:EGHT) is a leading provider of cloud communications and computing solutions. With a portfolio of SaaS and IaaS solutions encompassing hosted communications, contact center, unified communications, video web conferencing, managed dedicated hosting, virtual private servers and more, 8x8 is uniquely positioned as a business' one-stop shop for everything cloud. 8x8 has been delivering cloud services since 2002 and has garnered a reputation for technological excellence and outstanding reliability, backed by a commitment to exceptional customer support. 8x8 customers include small to medium sized businesses, distributed enterprise organizations and government agencies. For additional information, visit www.8x8.com, or connect with 8x8 on Facebook and Twitter.
About UBM Channel
UBM Channel is the premier provider of IT channel-focused events, media, research, consulting, and sales and marketing services. With over 30 years of experience and engagement, UBM Channel has the unmatched channel expertise to execute integrated solutions for technology executives managing partner recruitment, enablement and go-to-market strategy in order to accelerate technology sales. UBM Channel is a UBM company. To learn more about UBM Channel, visit us at www.ubmchannel.com.