Proofpoint Launches Revamped Partner Program Amid Data Security Push
Security
News
Kyle
Alspach
The
company
has
simplified
its
program
for
channel
partners
as
it
looks
to
drive
awareness
about
its
offerings
beyond
email
security,
such
as
information
protection
and
compliance.
Channel
Chief
Joe
Sykora
|
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Proofpoint
unveiled
a
new
channel
program
Wednesday
that
aims
to
offer
a
simplified
structure
to
partners
along
with
enhanced
incentives
and
training,
as
the
company
looks
to
work
with
more
solution
providers
on
areas
beyond
its
widely
used
email
security
offering.
Additional
key
areas
where
Proofpoint
is
looking
to
drive
increased
awareness
among
partners
and
customers
include
information
protection
—
with
data
security
solutions
such
as
data
loss
prevention
(DLP)
and
cloud
access
security
broker
(CASB)
—
and
compliance
solutions
including
archiving
and
e-discovery.
[Related:
New
Proofpoint
CEO
Ashan
Willy
Pushes
Information
Protection]
“When
I
talk
to
partners
across
the
world,
the
first
thing
they
say
is,
‘Email
protection
—
you’re
the
best,’”
said
Joe
Sykora,
senior
vice
president
for
global
channel
and
partner
sales
at
Proofpoint.
“That’s
great
—
but
we
do
so
much
more.”
For
instance,
many
don’t
realize
that
Proofpoint
is
also
among
the
world’s
largest
providers
of
integrated
information
protection,
which
includes
DLP,
he
told
CRN.
To
help
accelerate
its
work
with
partners
in
that
area,
Proofpoint
last
year
introduced
an
Information
Protection
specialization
as
part
of
its
channel
program.
And
now,
Proofpoint
is
revamping
the
overall
structure
of
its
program
to
make
it
easier
for
resellers
and
other
partners
to
work
with
the
company,
Sykora
said.
The
new
program,
Proofpoint
Element,
switches
to
a
two-tier
structure
from
the
prior
metal-based
program
structure.
The
two
tiers
are
“Core”
for
partners
that
can
meet
minimum
program
requirements,
and
“Elite”
for
partners
that
are
willing
to
make
a
larger
investment
in
training
and
meet
higher
revenue
goals.
Partners
that
qualify
for
the
Elite
tier
will
receive
higher
discounts
and
marketing
funds
as
well
as
a
dedicated
channel
account
manager,
Proofpoint
said.
Within
the
Elite
tier,
partners
can
also
achieve
two
specializations
—
Information
Protection
and
Security
Awareness
Training.
“We
want
to
make
it
simple
for
people
to
understand
this
is
more
than
just
a
revenue
goal-type
program.
And
there’s
a
lot
that
they
have
to
do
around
training,
labs,”
Sykora
said.
“Of
course,
we
do
like
to
look
at
revenues
as
well,
but
that’s
not
the
only
metric.
And
that’s
what
partners
want.”
Other
updates
to
the
Proofpoint
channel
program
include
expanded
and
refreshed
training
through
the
company’s
partner
portal,
as
well
as
new
opportunities
for
hands-on
training
through
planned
road
show
stops
in
U.S.
cities.
Additional
benefits
include
dedicated
marketing
support,
access
to
labs
and
support
for
partners
that
are
looking
to
build
managed
services
around
Proofpoint’s
offerings,
Sykora
said.
A
‘Purposeful
Approach’
Proofpoint’s
updates
to
its
channel
program
are
highly
welcome,
according
to
Janel
Schalk,
practice
director
of
security
enablement
and
sales
at
Trace3,
No.
36
on
CRN’s
2022
Solution
Provider
500.
In
particular,
she
pointed
to
the
new
program’s
discount
structure,
additional
labs
access
and
the
refreshed
partner
portal
—
which
makes
it
easy
to
understand
“the
nuances
of
our
partner
status.”
Schalk
joined
Proofpoint’s
partner
advisory
board
late
near
the
end
of
2022,
and
said
it’s
clear
that
the
latest
updates
to
the
partner
program
have
taken
into
account
“all
of
that
feedback
that
we
as
channel
partners
have
been
providing.”
“I’m
seeing
that
follow-through,”
she
told
CRN.
“I
really
like
the
purposeful
approach
that
Proofpoint
is
taking.”
Ultimately,
working
with
“a
channel-friendly
vendor
like
Proofpoint
is
great
—
it
drives
business
and
it
makes
the
product
more
competitive,
because
they’re
constantly
getting
that
feedback
from
their
partners,”
Schalk
said.
Building
Out
The
Platform
Proofpoint,
which
went
private
in
August
2021
through
its
$12.3
billion
acquisition
by
Thoma
Bravo,
has
also
continued
to
expand
its
offerings
including
with
the
acquisition
of
identity
threat
detection
provider
Illusive
in
December.
That
has
added
a
key
missing
piece
to
the
company’s
information
protection
platform
by
bringing
in
“the
identity
piece
in
the
middle
of
the
attack
chain,”
Sykora
said.
“Integrating
that
into
our
total
solution
really
rounds
out
the
total
package.”
With
all
of
the
company’s
offerings,
he
said,
a
growing
number
of
partners
are
now
“building
complete
practices
around
us.”
“When
I
talk
to
some
of
the
largest
partners
on
the
planet
today,
we’re
in
their
top
four
or
top
five.
Sometimes
we’re
one
or
two,”
Sykora
said.
“Historically,
our
heritage
is
definitely
around
email
protection.
We
do
have
a
pretty
large
install
base
of
email
protection,
and
a
lot
of
partners
to
do
that,”
he
said.
“But
what
we’ve
seen
is
a
lot
of
cross-selling
and
upselling.
Typically,
when
it’s
time
for
them
to
do
their
check-ins
and
the
health
checks
that
we
do,
we
can
talk
about,
’Did
you
know
we
have
security
awareness
training?
Did
you
know
we
have
information
protection?’”
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