Zscaler Aims For Bigger Reliance On Partners In Push For $5B ARR
June 16, 2023 – Published on CRN
Zscaler is rolling out numerous changes meant to enable the cybersecurity vendor to rely more heavily on channel partners as it seeks to accelerate its growth and reach $5 billion in annual recurring revenue, executives said this week.
In interviews with CRN—and during a partner summit Thursday at the company’s Zenith Live conference in Las Vegas—Zscaler executives outlined a number of new investments along with an overhaul to its sales process, all of which aim to bring much more of a channel-focused strategy for driving its next phase of growth.
The company also touted the massive opportunities available for partners in helping customers to shift from traditional network security technologies, such as firewalls and VPNs, to Zscaler tools that can help enable a zero trust security posture.
“Up until now, our partners have been very important, but it’s almost been a complementary relationship,” said Karl Soderlund, senior vice president for worldwide partners and alliances at Zscaler, in an interview with CRN. “Moving forward, there will be full interlock between our sales force and the partner community to the point that we’re retraining our entire global sales organization on how to engage [the channel] and how to be better partners to our partner community.”
Peter Ballas, director of sales for New York and New Jersey at GuidePoint Security, No. 52 on CRN’s Solution Provider 500 for 2023, also said he’s seen Zscaler become “much more collaborative.”
“I have seen a notable shift in the way that they have approached us,” Ballas said. “I’ve been at GuidePoint for five years, and I think that the relationships have never been stronger with Zscaler.”
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