Cobalt® Digital, designer and manufacturer of award-winning edge devices for live video production and master control, and a founding partner of openGear®, has strengthened its international sales team with the addition of Berend Blokzijl as Director of Sales for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), effective as of February 1. The announcement was made by Suzana Brady, SVP of Worldwide Sales and Marketing, who noted that Blokzijl’s appointment aligns with Cobalt’s global growth initiative having expanded the company in January by adding a representative office in Beijing.
“We’re delighted to welcome Berend to the Cobalt team as we grow the company worldwide,” said Brady. “His vast experience and knowledge of the industry and our technology as it relates to the EMEA region is a huge asset to the company and a tremendous benefit to our customers. We look forward to Berend’s input and contributions as our platform evolves to accommodate technological advances in diverse geographical areas and market segments.”
Blokzijl who will report to Brady, will be responsible for managing Cobalt’s sales operation and expanding the company’s presence in the EMEA regions. He joins Bob Nicholas, Cobalt’s VP of Sales for Asia Pacific and Southeast Asia, on the international front as Nicholas leverages his deep knowledge of APAC to focus on the demands of the countries that comprise that rapidly growing market.
Based in The Netherlands, Blokzijl has over 25 years’ experience working in the broadcast and satellite industries, as well as IT and telecoms, winning large accounts and building sales channels across EMEA and APAC. Prior to joining Cobalt, he held the position of Senior Sales Manager at BFE Studio und Medien Systeme GmbH where he was responsible for building a global partner network. Previously he served as Regional Director EMEA South at International Datacasting Corporation (IDC), a Canadian manufacturer of satellite up-link equipment and receivers.
“I’m excited to join the Cobalt team and to accelerate growth across EMEA,” explained Blokzijl. “Cobalt is a well-respected organization with high-quality solutions, and I look forward to working closely with the team to design and implement a sales strategy that will expand our customer base, increase market share and continue to create strong relationships.”
Blokzijl, a veteran officer of the Dutch Merchant Navy, has an engineering degree in Navigation and holds certificates in Business Administration from the Rotterdam Polytechnic. His multilingual talents include fluent English, native Dutch, conversational German as well as basic French and Spanish.
He can be reached by email at berend.blokzijl@cobaltdigital.com, by telephone at +31 6 1311 7886 and on SKYPE at berend.blokzijl1.
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About Cobalt Digital
Cobalt Digital Inc. designs and manufactures award-winning edge devices that help live video production and master control clients transition to IP, 4K, HDR, the cloud, and beyond. As a founding partner in the openGear® initiative and proud member of SMPTE, Cobalt also offers a best-of-breed interoperability platform that simplifies technological adoption. Distributed through a worldwide network of dealers, system integrators, and other partners, Cobalt Digital products are backed with a five-year warranty. Learn more at www.cobaltdigital.com.
