TechSelect Members Hit Miami Beach To Discuss Strengthening Economy, Hot Technologies

TechSelect—Tech Data’s (NASDAQ:TECD) community of IT resellers supporting the technology solutions needs of small and medium businesses (SMBs) nationwide—today kicked off its Spring Partner Conference in Miami Beach. Over the next four days, TechSelect members will engage one another, leading vendors, industry experts and Tech Data executives to develop strategies to capitalize on improving market conditions and the IT solutions increasingly in demand among SMBs.

"The message we’re hearing from the TechSelect community is that our members are focused on one thing: returning to growth in 2010,” said Tech Data Senior Vice President, U.S. Sales Pete Peterson. "After weathering one of the most challenging economies the technology industry has ever seen, our more than 400 TechSelect members once again demonstrated why they are among the strongest IT resellers in the channel. As we kick off this week’s conference, the TechSelect community is intently focused on taking advantage of new growth opportunities. Tech Data has responded with a Partner Conference loaded with discussions on hot technologies, peer-to-peer engagement and business-building workshops.”

Focused On Growth

The TechSelect Spring Partner Conference features boardroom sessions, roundtables and workshops to help members focus on current market opportunities, as well as to position their businesses for future growth, including:

• Virtualization – From the data center to the desktop to the cloud, the community will explore the broader potential of this technology
• Digital Signage – TechSelect members will learn about digital signage hardware and software, and profitable business models for bringing these solutions to market
• Electronic Health Records – Vendors teaming with Tech Data’s Healthcare SBU will discuss the growing demand for electronic health records (EHR) and other healthcare IT solutions
• Cloud Computing – TechSelect members will learn how the delivery of IT solutions via the cloud creates new opportunities for their businesses
• Managed Services – TechSelect members with established managed services practices will discuss improving their profitability and what new services they can add to their offerings

Among keynote speakers are the former CEO of Southwest Airlines, Howard Putnam, who will share his principles of leadership, and former Miami Dolphin Nick Buoniconti, who will discuss his life and career.

"There is no better resource for resellers looking to strengthen and grow their businesses than the TechSelect community,” said President of SLPowers and TechSelect Advisory Council President Rory Sanchez. "For SLPowers, and many other members of the community, the partnerships we’ve built through TechSelect have been key to our success. Looking ahead to the rest of 2010 and beyond, those partnerships will be even more critical as we work together to make the most of new growth opportunities.”

Peer-To-Peer

TechSelect is continuing its PeerSelect Groups, which were introduced to the community last fall. These groups will meet daily throughout the conference, providing an open forum for members to discuss best practices and strategies on a broad range of business and technology topics.

Vendor Engagement

TechSelect members also will have the opportunity to meet with industry-leading hardware and software vendors to learn about their latest solutions and channel programs. Vendors attending this week’s conference include Acer, Adobe, Avaya, Brother, Check Point, Cisco, DYMO, Eaton, Fortinet, HP, IBM, Lenovo, Lexmark, LG, Microsoft, Sony, Symantec, Trend Micro, Toshiba and VMware.

TechSelect Gives Back

TechSelect is continuing its host-city charitable program this year. This week, TechSelect will make a donation to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Miami to help provide high school graduates entering college with complete computing solutions, including notebooks, software and wireless networking.

To learn more about TechSelect, call 800-237-8931, ext. 84529, or visit www.techselect.com.

About Tech Data

Tech Data Corporation (NASDAQ GS: TECD) is one of the world’s largest distributors of technology products from leading IT hardware and software producers. Tech Data serves more than 125,000 IT solution providers in over 100 countries. Every day, these resellers depend on Tech Data to cost-effectively support the technology needs of end users, including small and medium businesses (SMB), large enterprises and government agencies. Ranked 109^th on the FORTUNE 500(R), Tech Data generated $22.1 billion in net sales for its fiscal year ended January 31, 2010. To learn more, visit www.techdata.com.