AMD’s Premium Partner Golden Systems Middle East and regional distributor Asbis Enterprise, which is also the vendor’s master distributor in Africa have both re-affirmed their commitment to AMD and the channel despite Kadir stepping down in an abrupt move.
Hesham Tantawi, VP at Asbis Enterprise, META said he expects the departure of Kadir to have no impact or disruption with the vendor’s channel relationships with distributors and resellers in the region. Tantawi added that it is business as usual for Asbis and the company has continued to work with AMD ME’s channel manager in the region. “I don’t believe this will have a huge or any effect on channel partners because a GM normally focuses on high level management issues and channel matters are normally handled by a channel manager,” he said.
Tantawi explained that Kadir’s role was very much focused on building strategic relationships at corporate level and in this region in particular maintaining and strengthening relations with the GCC governments and the public sector.
Tantawi said that although no official announcement has been made, Asbis management has been in touch with AMD’s European director Andrew Buxton who has assured the company that nothing will change in the Middle East region.
Ehsan Hashemi, COO at Golden Systems Middle East added that despite the exit of Kadir, the company will continue to work with AMD in growing the business in the region. Hashemi said that Golden Systems has worked with AMD from the time the vendor established its regional head office here in Dubai and will continue to do so now and in future.
Hashemi added that although Kadir has left AMD, he must be commended for having done a yeoman’s job in creating a strong channel support team on the ground that led to more visibility for AMD in the Middle East channel. “AMD today has channel support people on the ground because of the initiatives and channel programmes that were rolled out under Kadir’s tenure,” he said.
Hashemi said he is content the foundation that has been laid by AMD in the region will help channel partners to grow with the vendor in the region. “We don’t see any changes in our relationship with AMD going forward,” he said. “Even when a new successor is announced, we don’t foresee AMD taking a different strategy to the one that the company has at the moment in the Middle East.”
Kadir stepped down last week in a sudden move barely a year of him having joined AMD to run its Middle East operations for a second time.
Following the sudden removal of Dr Gaith Kadir as regional GM at AMD Middle East, Turkey and Africa, the vendor?s regional distributors have rallied behind the chip maker and expect business to continue as usual.
