Lineups Announced for CompTIA Breakaway 2012 Power Panels

Strong mix of vendor and distributor channel chiefs set to speak; media panel on cloud computing added

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Jun 05, 2012, 09:00 ET

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill., June 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- A top-flight lineup of executives from leading information technology (IT) vendors and distributors has been added to the program for Breakaway 2012, the IT channel's premier annual education event, CompTIA, the non-profit association for IT industry, announced today.

Registration is open for the Breakaway 2012, scheduled for July 30 through Aug. 2 at the ARIA Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.

"The power panel sessions are always a highlight at Breakaway, producing keen insights into where our industry is headed and spirited give-and-take between vendors, distributors and their channel partners," said Kelly Ricker, senior vice president, education and events, CompTIA. "Given the rapid change we're seeing in the IT landscape, through cloud computing, mobility and other trends, this year's session should be especially thought-provoking."

Scheduled to participate in this year's Channel Chief Power Panel are Ken Archer, Americas vice president, channels and alliances, technology services business, Hewlett-Packard; Janet Schijns, vice president, vertical industry solutions and channels, Verizon Enterprise Solutions; Doug Smith, vice president, partner strategy and operations, VMware; and Raja Sundaram, vice president, worldwide services partner organization, Cisco. Joe Panettieri, executive vice president and co-founder of Nine Lives Media, will moderate the panel.

The IT Channel Chiefs Panel is scheduled for 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 1.

A second power panel will examine "The Role of Distribution in the New Channel." Scheduled to participate in this program are Tim FitzGerald, vice president, cloud solutions, Avnet Technology Solutions; Joe Quaglia, senior vice president, U.S. marketing, Tech Data Corporation; Bob Stegner, senior vice president, marketing, North America, Synnex; and Brian Wiser, senior vice president, specialty solutions division, Ingram Micro. Beth Vanni, vice president, Partner-Path, will moderate the distributor panel, set for noon on Wednesday, Aug. 1.

New this year at Breakaway 2012 is a panel of IT industry and business journalists who will share their perspectives on the cloud computing market. Scheduled to participate in the session titled "Cutting through the Fog of the Cloud" are Caron Carlson, editor, FierceCIO; Greg Gillespie, editor-in-chief, Health Data Management; Joe McKendrick, contributing editor to Forbes, Database Trends & Applications and ZDNet; Linda Tucci, senior news writer, CIO/IT Strategy Media Group; and Larry Walsh, channel, security and IT services prognosticator, Channelnomics. The media panel is scheduled for 10:45 a.m. on Tuesday, July 31.

All CompTIA members receive free unlimited registration to Breakaway 2012. Non-members pay just $250 to attend the conference and receive a full, one-year CompTIA membership. Visit CompTIA Breakaway 2012 for more information.

About CompTIA

CompTIA is the voice of the world's information technology (IT) industry. Its members are the companies at the forefront of innovation; and the professionals responsible for maximizing the benefits organizations receive from their investments in technology. For more information, visit www.comptia.org or follow CompTIA at www.facebook.com/CompTIA and twitter.com/comptia.

SOURCE CompTIA