Commvault, a global leader in enterprise data protection and information management, today announced that CRN, a brand of The Channel Company, has named Ralph Nimergood, vice president of Worldwide Channels & Alliances, to its exclusive list of 2016 Most Influential Channel Chiefs.

The executives in this annual list are drawn from the larger pool of Channel Chief honorees each year and represent the cream of the IT channel crop - the most influential of the industry's top leaders. This distinguished group of managers is recognized for outstanding achievement in driving growth and revenue in their organizations, as well as extraordinary leadership in the channel as a whole.

"Ralph plays a key role in building our strategic partner ecosystem," said Ron Miiller, senior vice president of Worldwide Sales. "The advancements he has been able to accomplish over the past year have been crucial to the overall success of our channel program and Commvault's growing channel brand. Ralph's efforts focused on expanding our existing PartnerAdvantage program to include Worldwide Service Advantage and Customer Support specializations, and adding a solution specific focus, as well as orchestrating additional channel sales, marketing and programmatic resources."

All Channel Chief honorees are selected by CRN's editorial staff on the basis of their professional achievements, standing in the industry, dedication to the channel partner community and strategies for driving future growth and innovation. Each of the 2016 Channel Chiefs has demonstrated loyalty and ongoing support for the channel by consistently promoting, defending and executing outstanding partner programs. However, only 50 of these were selected for the Most Influential list, each singled out for his or her prominent role in guiding and shaping the IT channel itself.

"We are honored to present the 2016 lineup of CRN Most Influential Channel Chiefs, comprised of outstanding executives who move our entire industry forward by cultivating exemplary partner programs and executing cutting-edge business strategy," said Robert Faletra, CEO, The Channel Company. "They represent an extraordinary group of individuals who lead by example and serve as both invaluable advocates and innovators of the IT channel. We applaud their incredible strides and look forward to following their accomplishments in the coming year."

In the past year, Nimergood's team has launched "solution sets" and alliance plays into the channel, redefined the partner reward structure to increase earning opportunities, formalized and expanded Commvault's Corporate Strategic Alliances function within the Worldwide Partner organization and launched investments into partner marketing and partner enablement. Nimergood was able to accomplish all of these and more while continuing to invest heavily in process simplification and systems to advance Commvault's ease of doing business in a "partner-first" selling motion.

"Being included in CRN's list of Channel Chiefs for two years in a row is a humbling accomplishment, made even sweeter with the recognition as a Most Influential Channel Chief this year," said Nimergood. "Our mission as a team is to build the best partner eco-system so that our customers derive the full benefit of Commvault solutions from enabled, committed and capable partners.  I feel we have made great strides towards delivering against our partner brand promise through our expanded route to market focus, including the addition of a strong and growing Alliance Partner solution portfolio. The channel remains at the center of Commvault's growth strategy, so this recognition is a win for our entire team and by extension our valued partner community."