CHANNEL CHIEF
Learning from the team
At LogMeIn, Gerald Byrne believes in continuously learning
from his team members and hires those whose skillsets he
can learn from. By Arun Shankar.
I do not have
all the answers
and there is
always room for
developing
new skills.
Gerald Byrne, EMEA
Channel Sales
Director, LogMeIn.
A
s the EMEA Channel Sales
Director for LogMeIn, Gerald
Byrne’s current role entails
developing and executing the company’s
channel strategy for the region. It is also
his responsibility to build and maintain
partnerships across the region, as well
as ensuring that customers in the region
have the chance to choose from LogMeIn’s
array of solutions.
The challenging part for him is that
traditionally LogMeIn has been a direct
company, but the channel can provide
more efficient ways to reach customers.
So, part of Byrne’s role is to show how the
business can benefit from working with
partners and how profitable it can be.
For Byrne, the best thing about this role
is the process of fostering and building new
relationships with partners across the EMEA
region. It is also very rewarding for him to
work with the team at LogMeIn dedicated to
growing these relationships because there is
so much to learn along the way.
“My proudest career achievement
to date would be taking a business and
growing it three-fold within two years,
and at the same time cultivating a culture
of hard work and accountability, and
developing the individual careers of a forty-
member team, so much so that several of
them still keep in touch with me. The bond
you develop with people along the way is
extremely crucial to succeeding,” explains
Byrne, about his best moments.
For someone like Byrne, with his
extensive history of customer-focused
roles and experience working in
marketing and operational roles, the
technology industry is a constantly
evolving industry. “That ever-changing
environment keeps you on your toes and
it keeps you engaged. It is also extremely
interesting how customers in this industry
differ from country to country and from
region to region while understanding how
to cater to their specific requirements and
needs,” he elaborates.
His management philosophy is to try
and hire people that will improve the
skillset that he can learn from. “I do not
have all the answers and there is always
room for developing new skills. That is
what I look for in the people I hire. The
more information you have at hand, the
better the decisions you will make, and
having a strong team around you can help
you achieve that,” he summarises.
Byrne strives to be inclusive, open,
upfront and honest. “I have managed and
led a number of large businesses and my
experience is that working together is more
likely to achieve a positive outcome than
working as individuals,” he points out.
The culture a leader creates feeds into an
organisation and it is very rewarding helping
others grow and develop their careers, feels
Byrne. “That is something I always try to
incorporate in my working style.”
While there are many proven methods
of dealing with stress, he still finds that
there are good and bad days. To destress,
Byrne finds cooking and exercise to be
great. However, he finds it difficult to
detach from the stress of work, because
the further you climb up the leadership
chain, the more pressure you put on
yourself to succeed.
But the balance between work and
personal life is essential. Byrne has two
young children, aged five and eight. His
interests are in reading and music.
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