Crayon promotes Joel Ramirez and Tovia Va'aelua into Asia roles

Joel Ramirez and Tovia Va'aelua (Crayon)

Crayon has added two channel leaders in Asia Pacific, with Joel Ramirez appointed as senior commercial director for channel, and Tovia Va’aelua promoted to vice president of sales in Technology for Good, both with a regional remit.

“I am pleased to welcome Joel to Crayon, and congratulate Tovia on his promotion,” said Rhonda Robati, EVP of Asia Pacific.

“As part of our customer- and partner-first approach, we are committed to bringing the best support and value to our partners. With Joel and Tovia’s exceptional talent, we will further deliver a 360-degree support model and expertise to empower our partners to achieve their goals.”

Reporting to Warren Nolan, senior vice president of channel and strategy, Ramirez will be responsible for leading both the channel sales division and technology advisory group in the region, with a focus on collaborating with partners, providing thought leadership and championing Crayon and Rhipe’s partners to help grow their businesses.

“I was once a partner myself, so I have unique experience that enables me to understand partners’ pain points, and help to find solutions for the best outcomes,” said Ramirez. “I look forward to connecting with our incredibly talented global team, to collaborate and provide the best solutions to our partners, while building meaningful relationships across the region.”

With an IT career spanning more than two decades, Ramirez will bring along experience from his days as an IT reseller and creating an ERP implementation company that became publicly listed. Prior to joining Crayon, he co-founded the tech software company Wiise.com, which was sold to KPMG in partnership with Microsoft.

“Joel exemplifies what we want out of our Crayon and Rhipe combined organisation," Robati added.

"We know we are better together as one team for our partners, as together we offer the opportunity to automate and optimise in the cloud, accelerate product development, and scale to meet global demands. We know Joel will voice our partner’s needs to cater better for them and support their growth.”

Meanwhile, Va’aelua joined the company in 2018 as the country manager of Rhipe in New Zealand and was responsible for spearheading the technology advisory group practice.

He will begin his new role in January 2023, reporting to Robati, and will focus on supporting the growth of partners with social impact through technology, and scale Crayon’s global Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) strategy across Asia Pacific.

“We want to support our partners in all streams," Robati said. "As Crayon advocates for technology as a driver for the greater good, this is a significant area of the business that shows our global commitment to sustainable development. I am sure Tovia will be exceptional in supporting this often-underserved community of partners."

Va’aelua revealed his anticipation of the new role and the important part he will play in helping partners to understand how incorporating social good strategies can make their businesses “more profitable and sustainable” at the same time.

“Being part of Crayon has been one of the most enjoyable experiences of my professional journey to date,” said Va’aelua.

“Combining my passion for social good with the incredible work we deliver through the Tech for Social Impact program and our global ESG initiatives will help Crayon best support our customers and partners in achieving their ESG goals, and become a leader in sustainable technology.”