IBM Christens Its 2025 Class Of Champions

February 10, 2025 Alex Woodie

Big Blue has declared a new roster of IBM Champions, those heroes among us who display expertise in technical subject matters, are tireless advocates of IBM platforms, and otherwise exhibit excellence in their work. Members of the IBM i ecosystem, as usual, are well represented in the program, even if the platform doesn’t have its own category. IBM also refreshed the badges it distributes as part of the related IBM Rising Champion Advocacy program.

A quick check of the 2025 IBM Champion web page shows there are 1,035 IBM Champions around the world in this, the 17th year of the program. That is down a tad from the 1,155 members that made up the 2024 class of IBM Champions, which was a 40 percent increase from the previous year.

Out of the 1,035 IBM Champions, there are 232 IBM Champions in the IBM Power group, which is one of 10 categories available (the other are AI, Automation, Data, Security, Quantum, Sustainability, Cloud, IBM Z & LinuxONE, and Storage). And out of the 232 IBM Champions for Power, there are 132 IBM Champions with IBM i connections, according to a spreadsheet that IBM shared with IT Jungle.

Many of these IBM Champions for Power with an IBM i sub-group were accepted to the IBM Champion with other expertise, such as Cloud and Storage. (In any case, IBM should probably make IBM i its own category, considering the uniqueness of this platform and the cohesion of the community. It also has the benefit of being easier to write and say than “IBM Champions for Power with an IBM i sub-group.”)

What an IBM Champion might look like.

For the record, the geographic split has 67 IBM Champions for Power with an IBM i subgroup (dare we call them IBM i Champions?) in the EMEA region, followed by 51 in the Americas, five in APAC, and eight in Japan (which gets its own geo at IBM).

IBM Champions for Power with an IBM i subgroup took to the social media airwaves to share the good news.

“I am honored to be selected as a returning IBM Champion for 2025!” Justin Haase, the director and senior manager of managed services at CDW, wrote on LinkedIn. “One of my favorite things to do is to talk about IBM Power and share with our customers and potential customers all CDW can deliver for them with our world-class Managed Services offerings. Everyone’s sick of hearing my corny-yet-oddly-satisfying catchphrase, but I’m going to write it again anyway: if we can reach it, we can run it.”

“I’m thrilled to receive the news that I’ve been recognized as an IBM Champion once again in 2025,” Josh Patterson, a solutions architect at managed service provider Lightedge, said on LinkedIn. “This is fantastic news to kick off the year! I’m excited to contribute to the IBM i community and help make a positive impact.”

“I feel honored and grateful to be an IBM Champion for another year,” Simon Hutchinson, founder of RPGPGM.com, wrote on LinkedIn. “Thank you for everyone who works in the program at IBM for this. And congratulations to all the new and recurring Champions!”

“Living among us is an epic cast of individuals from all walks of life, united through acts of dedication, advocacy, and an unbridled passion for technology,” writes Caracal Keithrafferty, a business development representative at ERP software company Friedman Corp. and secretary of the Wisconsin Midrange Computer Professional Association (WMCPA), in a LinkedIn post.

“You may have heard of them – the IBM Champions,” he continues. These fine people include developers, ISVs, volunteers, and many more. Well, today they are adding one more to their ranks. It is with the utmost joy and gratitude that I join the IBM Champions!”

What do IBM Champions get that mere midrange mortals don’t? You can start with total admiration of their peers and everlasting glory. But the perks go beyond that – IBM Champions also get the ear of IBM i CTO and Chief Architect Steve Will.

“Many IBM Champions are my go-to advisors when I want to understand how IBM i clients will react to a new idea, or how they will want things to work,” Will, who is also a Distinguished Engineer, wrote on LinkedIn. “If you qualify as an IBM Champion in the IBM i world, you have opinions I want to hear.”

IBM also debuted some of the first badges as part of its IBM Rising Champion Advocacy.

“We are very excited about all nominations and renewals we received for 2025,” wrote IBMer Libby Ingrassia. “Our selection committees and program team have been hard at work receiving and reviewing and quantifying all the completed advocacy activities! And that’s why you’re seeing all the buzz online lately about badges!”

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