"Konica Minolta Australia is firmly set on growing its IT and services capabilities. This is both in acknowledgement of the rapid DX acceleration brought on by the operating environment of the past two years and the recognition that this will be the growth area of the future. This means now is the time to appoint a chief strategy officer to lead this evolution of the business. Ted has a wealth of knowledge and capability in driving this type of change in Konica Minolta, and in IT services more broadly, making him an invaluable addition to the team," said Konica Minolta Australia managing director Yohei Konaka.

Garner was most recently president of IT Weapons, the national IT services division of Konica Minolta Canada. He founded IT Weapons in 2000, and it was acquired by Konica Minolta in 2015.

He previously served as vice president of professional services at MAS after starting his career as a network architect at Spar Aerospace.

Garner holds an honours degree in computer engineering and technology from Seneca College (Canada).

"From an early age, the customer-first approach was instilled in me and I have carried this throughout my career. An important part of my role will be to help take Konica Minolta Australia into the future through the development of its business strategy that is also aligned with the company's vision and culture," said Garner.

"This includes looking at partnerships with vendors from a local and global perspective as well as resellers, dealers, and potential distributors for alignment. I look forward to inspiring and motivating the team to advance from a sales organisation to a true technology service provider. I also look forward to cultivating an environment that continues to foster innovation, cybersafety, and of course growth."