Who Is Ruba Borno? Get to Know AWS’ New Global Channel Chief
AWS on Monday named Doug Yeum’s replacement. Learn more about Ruba Borno and her experience leading up to now.
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New AWS channel chief Ruba Borno, 40, holds a Ph.D. and a Master of Science in electrical engineering from the University of Michigan. She earned the title of Intel Ph.D. Fellow during her graduate studies.
Borno started her technology career with distinction. At the University of Michigan, she was awarded the Marian Sarah Parker Prize for Most Outstanding Woman Graduate Student in the College of Engineering. And her research was featured in outlets including Wired, Business Week, New Scientist, CNN Money and more, according to her LinkedIn profile.
Borno didn’t have an easy journey to success. As a Palestinian living in Kuwait in 1990, when Saddam Hussein invaded, Borno was considered stateless. That was a problem because one of her sisters was born in the United States and Hussein had declared that American citizens could be shot on sight or captured, as Borno related this past summer to Stan McChrystal, founder and CEO of McChrystal Group.
The U.S. Embassy called Borno’s parents and gave them three days to move to America. The family, whose assets had been frozen, had little choice but to leave everything behind and start over in a new country.
“My family story and my personal story, it’s absolutely the core of what motivates me every single day,” Borno said. “And I don’t shy away from talking about it because I think it’s important for everyone to know what motivates them. You know, we’ve got a lot of challenges in life, and if you know what motivates you, it keeps you going when times get tough.”
Therefore, Borno told McChrystal, “I do believe that if you’ve got the opportunity and you’ve got the capability, then you have a responsibility to achieve your potential. And so that really pushed me to always take it as far as I could go. … [W]hat my parents gave up for me in seeing our potential and giving everything up to help us realize it, I want to pay that forward.”
Because of her experience, Borno values a certain approach to leadership. It starts with empathy, she told Stan McChrystal in June.
“One, do you understand where people are coming from?” Borno said.
Next, she added, comes emotional intelligence.
“So, are you self-aware and aware of how others also view you?”
The last piece? Resilience.
“Can you keep going when the going gets tough, which is, frankly, how everything is these days, especially with all of the challenges and the volatility that we currently have thrown at us,” Borno said. “So, I think, no matter the age, industry, grade, public sector, private sector, I think all leaders need those three attributes of empathy, emotional intelligence and resilience. And I think those are the three I’ve drawn on the most as I’ve kind of evolved from a chief of staff role to, you know, leading a larger organization now.”
Borno has done a lot in a relatively short time. She has worked in consulting and project leadership, continues to serve as a board member, participates in the World Economic Forum, and has helmed a variety of initiatives at Cisco.
Borno started her consulting and project career at Boston Consulting Group. She spent almost seven years there, largely advising global executives about strategic transformation, post-merger integration, growth and more.
She then moved over to Cisco, where she was tasked with challenging the status quo as vice president of growth initiatives and chief of staff to CEO Chuck Robbins.
“I was at the time, the first outsider that Chuck had brought into his leadership team,” Borno told Stan McChrystal. “And here I am, an outsider. I was the only millennial on the leadership team. And I’m coming in, to question what we’re doing and also work with the executive leadership team on developing the transformation of the company.”
Since then, with recurring revenue at last making up a more significant portion of Cisco’s business, Borno moved into customer experience and managed services roles at Cisco. Meanwhile, she also sits as a board member for Experian and takes part in the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders program.
Borno has proven her capabilities in different roles over the years. She now takes on arguably one of the biggest and most important titles in the channel sector. As head of AWS’ global channel partner program, she’ll have a lot of input to consider from partners of all stripes, as well as key AWS stakeholders. As of Dec. 6, she’ll be in charge of any changes and additions. At least one industry observer hopes Borno will spend time in front of partners independent of scripted AWS events. Her predecessor, Doug Yeum, did not do much of that, likely to AWS’ detriment.
“Engaging the community in the watering holes they frequent – [for example], the 5,000 agents and MSPs at CP Expo … – would have paid dividends and the new leader should take special note,” Jay McBain, principal analyst — channels, partnerships and ecosystem, at Forrester, told Channel Futures last week.
Borno has proven her capabilities in different roles over the years. She now takes on arguably one of the biggest and most important titles in the channel sector. As head of AWS’ global channel partner program, she’ll have a lot of input to consider from partners of all stripes, as well as key AWS stakeholders. As of Dec. 6, she’ll be in charge of any changes and additions. At least one industry observer hopes Borno will spend time in front of partners independent of scripted AWS events. Her predecessor, Doug Yeum, did not do much of that, likely to AWS’ detriment.
“Engaging the community in the watering holes they frequent – [for example], the 5,000 agents and MSPs at CP Expo … – would have paid dividends and the new leader should take special note,” Jay McBain, principal analyst — channels, partnerships and ecosystem, at Forrester, told Channel Futures last week.
Ruba Borno will step in as vice president of worldwide channels and alliances at Amazon Web Services on Dec. 6. She replaces Doug Yeum, who’s leaving after just more than two years to move to a retail business within Amazon. Borno comes to AWS from Cisco, where she served as the CEO’s chief of staff and led managed services efforts.
Borno may well rank among the youngest channel chiefs in history. At only age 40, she boasts a remarkable resume. That’s not to mention a unique history that positions her well for top leadership. Learn more about Ruba Borno in the slideshow above that highlights her academic, corporate and personal experience.
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