Value-added tech distributor Westcon-Comstor Southern Africa has appointed Rakesh Parbhoo as CEO of WestconGroup SA, effective 1 August 2017.

Parbhoo will replace Guy Whitcroft, who held a 12-month contract to fulfill the role of interim CEO of the company for the last year.

"We are pleased to welcome Rakesh to the ranks of WestconGroup in the region and believe his extensive knowledge of the changing face of IT within the African landscape, will prove to be an asset to the company," states Jeremy Butt, EVP for EMEA at Westcon-Comstor. "Furthermore we would like to thank Guy Whitcroft who stepped into the role of interim CEO role at short notice just on a year ago. Guy has made a truly positive contribution to the business and has helped us plot our growth trajectory in the region during his tenure at the Southern African office."

In a statement issued by Westcon-Comstor Southern Africa, the company says Parbhoo is currently the Chief Information Officer for Dimension Data Middle East & Africa and is responsible for Dimension Data MEA's information systems strategy to support its business objectives and goals.

"Originally joining Dimension Data in 1998 as a product manager, Rakesh has subsequently held a number of positions in sales and services management. In 2006 he was appointed Managing Director for Dimension Data East Africa following the purchase of an existing business. He transformed the business into one of East Africa's leading IT services companies. Subsequent to this he was appointed as the Executive for Emerging Markets, responsible for Dimension Data's operations outside of South Africa, across Middle East & Africa," the statement reads.

Parbhoo graduated with a B.Com degree majoring in insurance, risk management and information systems from the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa, in 1997. He subsequently completed a Management Development Programme through Manchester Business School, and was selected for the Global Leadership Development Programme through the Gordon Institute of Business Science.

"Rakesh will be tasked with leading the local executive team while exploring new opportunities within the Southern African distribution landscape. In addition, we believe his knowledge of the market, his passion for technology and services, will help us to continue to transform the face of distribution within the region," ends Butt.

In December 2016 the company spoke of the integration of Polycom telepresence video and voice solutions into its offering, and the benefit to resellers across Southern Africa.

Westcon-Comstor's UC and Collaboration Solutions Practice will roll this offering out and believes it will enhance the uptake of Unified communications -as-a-Service (UcaaS) within the region.