Cybersecurity vendor Imperva goes ‘channel-first’ in Australia

Cybersecurity vendor Imperva will be transacting all business in Australia through channel partners, apart from “a couple of large legacy direct customers,” according to a statement from Nextgen, the vendor’s local distributor.

The expansion of this model to Australia follows its success in China, Japan and Southeast Asia for the company.

Imperva said that its investment in the channel-first strategy is a fundamental element in maintaining global momentum. 

In addition, the vendor appointed a new global vice president of strategic growth in March, Micheal McCullough who moved to the role following 8 years at Akamai.

The company also recently named George Lee as its new vice president for APJ.

“Fully incorporating Australia into Imperva’s growing international channel business is a significant change and we are focused on smoothly transitioning direct relationships to ensure it’s a win-win for both the customer and partner,” said McCollough. 

“Our partnership with NEXTGEN in Australia will be an important factor in the velocity and success of this process.”

Stuart Wilson, Imperva APAC Area VP of financial services sales, will be responsible for driving the move, supported by additional hires in Australia and the changes made to its partner program in 2019.

“Our Channel Program has gone through a tremendous amount of improvement since its launch in 2019,” Wilson said. 

“This initiative is a major milestone in the maturity of our channel go-to-market, which we are continuously enriching with improved access for deal registration, rebates, marketing development funds and training and enablement.

“We’re excited by the prospect of the expanded partnership with NEXTGEN on this next phase of our growth trajectory in Australia.”

Nextgen cyber security business unit manager Gabe Marzano added, “We share the enthusiasm. Imperva solutions are an ideal fit for NEXTGEN's advanced enterprise software strategy. 

“As cybersecurity continues to be a critical focus in IT with many new entrants, we’re excited to deepen the Imperva engagement in the region to provide a best-in-class solution to manage this challenging environment.”