The rise of cybercrimes in recent years has become a significant concern for everyone. The growing sophistication of cybercriminals, coupled with the increasing number of attack vectors, has made it crucial for organizations to implement robust security measures. In this landscape, Sophos is playing a vital role by providing cutting-edge security solutions to various organizations across India. Sophos recognizes the evolving nature of cyber threats and offers a comprehensive suite of security solutions that help organizations stay one step ahead of cybercriminals. To get more insights about evolving cyber landscape, Rajeev Ranjan, Editor, Digital Terminal recently had an exclusive chat with Sunil Sharma, Managing Director - Sales, Sophos India and SAARC. Go through the detailed conversation below:
Rajeev: What are the biggest challenges for CIOs and CSOs in current cybersecurity landscape?
Sunil: The most significant challenge they currently face is being understaffed, which hampers their ability to fulfill their objectives. For instance, the cyber security tools deployed in their organization generate numerous alerts, leaving them uncertain about how to effectively review all alerts and devise an action plan swiftly. Consequently, they seek someone who can assume this responsibility on their behalf and provide round-the-clock protection, a major concern for them. An alarming 51% of individuals in IT-related cyber-security roles report experiencing significant burnout. Moreover, they have identified that a majority of their challenges and issues originate internally within the organization. Consequently, their focus must center on educating their personnel and organization users extensively to address these concerns proactively.
Rajeev: Please tell about your cutting-edge security solutions like MDR and XDR that help organizations to prevent sophisticated cyberattacks.
Sunil: I am so proud that today we are protecting 5,40,000 organizations globally. Our solution which is Managed Detection and Response (MDR), is able to provide protection to more than 16,000 organizations. Today, I’m so proud that with our MDR offerings, in comparison to any competition offerings, we take care of the third-party vendors’ integration with the products which are being deployed at the customer’s place. Even if the customer has bought traditional cyber security tools in the past and they want to go ahead with Sophos MDR, then the best part is that they just need to go for the connector along with MDR solution. We are able to provide integration to their traditional cyber security tools which could be from any competition vendor and that is the best thing what we do in comparison to our competition today.
Rajeev: Sophos has been conducting a lot of partner events so what is your strategy behind these initiatives?
Sunil: In India, our business relies entirely on Channel Partners as we do 100% of our business through them, making it crucial for us to educate and empower them through various channel events. These events serve as platforms to equip our partners with the necessary knowledge and resources to effectively address their customers' pain points. Our goal is to fully enable our partners so that they can confidently engage with their customers, educating them about our cutting-edge solutions.
When customers interact with our partners, they experience an extension of Sophos, as our partners are well-informed and capable of providing the best-in-class solutions tailored to their specific needs. This seamless collaboration ensures that customers receive top-notch service and support, reinforcing our commitment to delivering excellence at every level of our business operations.
Rajeev: How do you see the growth opportunities for channel partners in the smaller cities?
Sunil: For partners in Class B and C cities, this presents a fantastic opportunity. We take immense pride in having our direct sales representatives established in almost all of these cities. Even if any partners have not been involved in cybersecurity sales before, now is the perfect time to venture into this market, given its exponential growth.
The impressive 35% growth we achieved last year serves as proof of the potential growth available to our partners. We are committed to empowering them, ensuring they possess the competence to engage in compelling conversations with their customers and seamlessly deploy cybersecurity solutions on the customers' end.
Our approach is centered on providing a genuine partnership to our valued partners, offering them access to cutting-edge technology, invaluable sales experience, seamless deployment capabilities, and comprehensive support services. This collaborative effort ensures our partners' success in the burgeoning cybersecurity market.
