Greg Milkovich is a self-described ‘wily old veteran of the IT industry,’ although he quickly assures he’s actually ‘not that old.’

However, since he began his career as an IT marketer 13 years ago, the world has seen so many changes, it indeed seems like light years away. For one, there has been the widespread adoption of notebook computers, a trend that Milkovich himself predicted and championed as VP sales and marketing for NEC Corporation in Canada, and then VP sales of NEC North America. (Milkovich was most recently VP, partner at Integrated mar.com, a Richmond Hill, Ont.-based IT-focused marketing services and publishing company.)

Now at Samsung, where he will oversee the monitor, printer and optical and hard disk drive businesses, Milkovich is eager to push society closer to digital convergence. ‘When you look at telecommunications, IT technology or consumer electronic products, the merging of those technologies and how society will use them is certainly something I’m very excited about,’ he says.

Strategy lured Milkovich away from his high-tech world for a quick chat about the challenges he faces in extending Samsung’s success to the corporate world, among other things.

What have been the most significant trends in the IT industry?

What we’ve really seen is a huge stress on ROI – that was probably the biggest thing that came into my short tenure at Integrated mar.com. The interesting thing about electronic communications is that it’s totally trackable, and you can measure your marketing spend effectively.

There’s also a huge trend away from CRT to LCD technology. And price points have come [down] enough to make [the latter] very justifiable. But there will be a global shortage of 15- and 17-inch LCD panels. Certainly the entire industry is aware that it will have implications in the new year – there will most likely be cost increases.

What are the biggest challenges you face?

Samsung is one of the top five fastest growing brands in the world right now. We have tremendous momentum and we’re going to continue to invest and ensure that people understand the technology leadership that Samsung brings to the table.

In IT, we’ve done a tremendous job on the consumer side. Samsung has 26% of the LCD market. But now we have to have an equally strong push into corporate. So it will mean educating the consumer on the breadth of product and technology benefits we can deliver. For instance, we’re not known as a printer company, and you’ll see a lot of work being done to educate and raise awareness around Samsung in certain categories such as printers.

How has the consumer changed over the years?

The consumer has become very educated and certainly that knowledge base has meant not as much work in terms of evangelizing technology, but it’s a question now of delivering a product that meets their needs. So meeting consumer’s needs, not only from a specification perspective but also from a cosmetic perspective, is a winning combination.

What work are you most proud of?

During my time at NEC, we really introduced the Canadian marketplace to mobility technology, and that’s something I’m very proud of. Today you finally see that notebook products have surpassed PCs in terms of revenue dollars for the first time. I think Samsung may have a place to play in that market at some point.

What do you hope to achieve in your new role?

I hope to achieve similar success in the corporate LCD market segment, as we have in what we call our system integrator and retail markets. The corporate space will be a huge focus for us in the new year, as will be establishing Samsung as a leading printer provider. We want to put a stake in the ground around that. It’s a significant challenge, but we’ll come at it with a strong set of tools, in terms of brand equity, manufacturing prowess, and research and development investment.

What’s your favourite tech toy?

I haven’t got it yet, but the camera phone. I like the entertaining nature of communicating visually, and I think it’s a strong precursor of what’s to come in respect to the Internet and mobility products.