Leading Insight: CEO Joyce Mullen on AI, Innovation, and Future Growth

In an exclusive interview, Joyce Mullen, CEO of Insight Enterprises, shares her experiences and vision for the company's future. She reflects on her journey from Dell to Insight, detailing how the company has evolved into a "Solutions Integrator" by offering a unique combination of hardware, software, and services. Joyce also discusses the company's growth strategies, including its expansion into India, focus on new-age technologies like AI and cloud, and commitment to fostering a positive work culture that drives employee engagement and business success.

Excerpts:

DQ: What new service offerings have you introduced globally, and specifically in India?

Joyce: Our offerings have expanded across our heritage with strong OEM relationships like HP, Dell, and NetApp. We’ve always had deployment and management services in those environments. Recently, we’ve focused on improving our multi-cloud, hybrid cloud, on-prem, and public cloud capabilities. Our expertise in Microsoft has always been strong, but we’ve also ramped up with Google Cloud by acquiring SADA, the top Google partner in the world, last December.

We’ve also added ServiceNow capabilities through acquisitions and improved our Microsoft and AWS offerings through both acquisitions and organic investments. We’ve really built out our cloud and data capabilities because they are the most complicated for clients to navigate. There are so many options out there, and clients depend on us to help them make the right decisions. In the last two years, we’ve been focused on generative AI. We don’t build large language models, but we help clients train them, ensure proper governance and privacy protocols, and set up their data architecture so they can use AI effectively.

DQ: What sets Insight apart in such a competitive marketplace?

Joyce:  First, we have long-standing relationships with our clients, so we deeply understand their businesses. Secondly, we have specialized expertise in areas like Microsoft, ServiceNow, Google Cloud, AWS, and modern work solutions. Our focus on specialized knowledge is a key differentiator from other resellers and systems integrators. While many of the big systems integrators focus on generalists, we provide specialized skills and services for mid-sized companies—Fortune 300 and below.

Another key differentiator is our ability to break down projects into modular pieces, delivering fast results that allow our clients to reinvest in their next initiatives quickly. This approach has been crucial in helping us stand out from the competition.

DQ: Can you elaborate on how Insight integrates AI and IoT into its solutions for a better customer experience?

Joyce: AI is now integrated into every layer—software, hardware, chipsets, etc. Our main value comes from ensuring that clients have the right data infrastructure in place to get the most out of their AI initiatives. AI is only as good as the data you feed it, so making sure the data layer is properly set up is critical. We also help clients determine the right cloud infrastructure, whether it's public, private, or hybrid cloud, and choose the right chipsets for cost-effective and high-performance results. We’ve also been helping clients create their own retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) systems, where they can essentially write macros to direct AI solutions. Internally, we practice this ourselves before implementing it for clients.

DQ: What’s Insight’s approach to acquisitions, and how are they contributing to your growth strategy?

Joyce: We’ve been very deliberate in acquiring companies that strengthen our capabilities in fast-growing areas like cloud, data, AI, edge, and security. For example, acquiring SADA has greatly enhanced our multi-cloud capabilities, and our acquisition of Hanu has bolstered our Azure expertise. We’ve also acquired companies in Europe, like Amdaris, to expand our application integration capabilities. Acquisitions like these are helping us address the most pressing needs of our clients and driving growth.

DQ: How is Insight expanding its presence in India, and what’s your hiring strategy for the region?

Joyce: India is an incredible source of talent, especially in technical skills and development. We’ve been expanding our footprint here through hubs in Noida, Gurugram, Bangalore, Trivandrum, Pune, and soon in Hyderabad. During COVID, we hired people no matter where they were located, and this helped us realize the untapped potential in India. We’re focused on developing talent here, particularly in cloud, data, AI, edge, and security, areas where our clients need the most help.

We’ve also established programs like Cloud Academy to train recent graduates and those transitioning their careers. This focus on skill development ensures that we can build a strong, capable workforce in India.

DQ: Insight is known for having a strong work culture. How do you prioritize maintaining a positive environment?

Joyce: Our purpose at Insight is to accelerate transformation by unleashing the power of people and technology. Our core values—hunger, heart, and harmony—are deeply ingrained in everything we do. We reinforce these values through recognition, promotions, and hiring decisions. Respect for our teammates is crucial because engaged employees deliver better results for our clients, which ultimately leads to better returns for our shareholders. It’s a virtuous cycle, and it all starts with ensuring that our people feel valued and respected.

DQ: Where do you see Insight Enterprises in the next five years?

Joyce: We’ve just launched our 2030 strategy work plan, which focuses on creating a new category in the industry: "solutions integrator." This approach combines hardware, software, and services to deliver integrated outcomes for clients. The concept has resonated well with our customers and competitors. While we still have work to do to ensure consistent client experiences and high levels of engagement among our teammates, I’m confident that we’re on track to become the leading solutions integrator globally.