AppDirect's Emanuel Bertolin Named a 2025 Channel Futures Influencer

AppDirect's Chief Revenue Officer Emanuel Bertolin, also known by many as Bert, has been recognized as a 2025 Channel Futures Influencer. This prestigious accolade highlights Bert's significant contributions to the channel and his visionary leadership in the tech industry. Here’s a closer look at Bert’s journey, his achievements, and his vision for the future.

From developing marketplaces to leading go-to-market teams

Bert's journey into the channel began when he joined AppDirect after his previous company, which specialized in developing marketplaces and eCommerce solutions, was acquired by AppDirect. Over the years, Bert has taken on the challenge of leading our AppDirect go-to-market teams, including sales, account management, business development, and the AppDirect Capital program. A major focus of Bert’s work has been enabling the advisor community, an integral part of the broader sourcing ecosystem for businesses looking to procure technology.

"A huge part of my team’s work is enabling the advisor community, and it’s been an amazing journey watching how the channel has evolved in just a few short years."

The essence of the channel: Relationships

When Bert was asked what he appreciates the most about the channel, he singled out the relationships that are built within it.

“The North American channel is a powerful network of relationships that drives incredible value to all members of the value chain. While the tools tech advisors use give them a competitive advantage, their relationships are their core strength.”

Bert also said he's excited about the rapid evolution of technology—especially the possibilities created by AI—and the benefits it continues to bring to advisors.

"While the tools tech advisors use give them a competitive advantage, their relationships are their core strength."

2024—A year of phenomenal achievements for AppDirect and the advisor community

The Channel Futures Influencer program honors outstanding achievements in the previous year. 2024 was a remarkable year, and Bert pointed to three standout accomplishments.

1. Analyst recognition—One was AppDirect being named a Leader in The Forrester Wave™: Marketplace Development Platforms report for Q4 2024. “This is a game-changer for our advisors, who we believe can without question confidently say they’re selling from the greatest catalog of solutions out there on the best marketplace platform available,” he said, noting that AppDirect scored the highest in both the current offering and strategy categories, and achieved the highest possible scores in 25 criteria.

2. Strategic acquisitions—Bert also pointed to the company’s strategic acquisitions of Firstbase, vCom, and Builtfirst as initiatives that are expanding the already-vast AppDirect catalog of offerings and opening new revenue streams and growth opportunities for advisors.

3. Engaging events—And finally our events: "Thrive, our flagship conference, was a game-changer," said Bert. “Attendees continue to rave about the direct impact Thrive has had on achieving their business goals. In real terms, participants saw an average 43% revenue boost from their participation at Thrive." He also pointed to the Emerging Technology Sales Workshops, newly launched in 2024, as a resounding success, consistently selling out and enabling advisors to explore new categories.

What's in store for 2025

This year, Bert’s focus is on equipping advisors for success. "This includes encouraging advisors to view every customer discussion as a multi-category opportunity, integrating new products from our 2024 acquisitions seamlessly into the advisor experience, and leveraging new technologies like AI to stay competitive."

Bert noted the growing importance of advisors in helping businesses make the right choices and navigate today’s technology landscape. “With 73% of all IT deals now going through advisors, the emergence of so many new technologies like AI, and shifting buyer behavior towards online marketplaces, the need for the channel to adapt has never been greater.” He also emphasized the importance of providing tools that give advisors a competitive edge and enable them to add value at every stage of the customer buying cycle.

"A key part of that strategy is encouraging advisors to view every customer discussion as a multi-category opportunity. In concrete terms, we’ve seen that for every category our advisors add to their portfolio, it translates to a 2x-3x increase in sales for them."

About Channel Futures Influencers recognition

2025 Channel Influencers join an illustrious group of individuals who significantly impact the way today’s most innovative IT and connectivity solutions go to market, are sold, delivered to customers, and supported. These executives selected by Channel Futures have distinguished themselves through their unwavering support of the partner community, forging deep and trusted relationships across the ecosystem. In selecting this year’s Influencers, Channel Futures’ editors considered the organization’s partner growth, channel innovation, and the individual’s commitment to the indirect sales channel, along with the standing each person has among their peers.

“Channel Futures is proud to identify a whole new class of movers and shakers who are having a profound impact on the way the channel does business,” said Craig Galbraith, editorial director for Channel Futures. “As the majority of businesses seeking technology solutions rely on channel partners to help them evolve and grow, the Influencers on this list are at the core of the industry today.”

Bert’s recognition as a 2025 Channel Futures Influencer is a testament to his dedication and the innovative spirit of AppDirect. We’re excited to see what 2025 brings for our advisors, the company, and our team at AppDirect under Bert’s leadership, and we look forward to another exceptional year.

Stay tuned for more updates and insights from the team at AppDirect.

About Channel Futures

Channel Futures, part of Informa TechTarget, is the premier destination for the information technology and communications industry, providing news and information, analysis, and connections for the entire channel ecosystem.

For more information, read our press release.