CRN Security Roundtable: What Kind Of Solution Provider Would You Start?

The cybersecurity industry’s top channel minds said they’d focus on protecting new technologies like IoT, DevSecOps, Kubernetes and 5G if starting a solution provider business of their own today.

The Solution Provider Of Tomorrow

The cybersecurity industry’s top channel minds said they’d focus on protecting emerging technologies like the Internet of Things, DevSecOps, Kubernetes and 5G if they were starting a solution provider business of their own today. A channel business focused around predictive forensics capabilities also got a ringing endorsement from one of the industry’s top channel chiefs.

“When there’s a need in the market, there’ll be budget and there’ll be a profitability model there,” said Karl Soderlund, Palo Alto Networks’ senior vice president of worldwide channel sales. “And as long as there’s an area for people to have a successful livelihood, people will invest.”

Soderlund joined top channel executives from Bitdefender, Check Point Software Technologies, Fortinet and McAfee at a CRN Roundtable titled: “Security: Where To Place Your Bets In 2020.” From eschewing legacy products and a broadline approach to embracing managed security services and high-valuation technologies, here are the types of solution provider businesses security channel chiefs would start.

Managed Security And DevSecOps

A solution provider business centered around managed security services with a focus on DevSecOps would be the ideal arrangement for Jon Bove, Fortinet’s vice president of channel sales. Bove said his channel business would probably look at taking a platform-based approach to the market.

Security, Kubernetes and IoT

A channel business focused on security, Kubernetes and the Internet of Things (IoT) would be well-positioned to address where the market is going rather than where the market has been, according to Frank Rauch, Check Point’s head of worldwide channel sales. Rauch said he would be interested in delivering these capabilities entirely as a service or as a combination of products and services.

Internet of Things

A solution provider hyper-focused on IoT would be able to meet the needs of customers better than one taking a broadline approach, according to Karl Soderlund, Palo Alto Networks’ senior vice president of worldwide channel sales. Soderlund said he believes there’s going to be a tremendous amount of momentum and energy around IoT from a security perspective.

Soderlund said he expects there’s going to be incredible valuations around the IoT marketplace.

IT Forensics

A solution provider business focused on the forensic piece of the pie would be able to deliver the most useful insights to customers, said Ken McCray, McAfee’s head of Americas channel sales and operations. Attempting to answer questions around why and how certain events occurred will give clients an advantage in the marketplace and the ability to anticipate what’s going to happen next, McCray said.

Unique differentiators for solution providers in the forensics business include being ahead of the game and capable of predicting what’s going to happen next, according to McCray. Just having those prognostication abilities would really set a channel partner apart, McCray said.

Protecting 5G Networks

A channel partner delivering managed services around security, IoT, mobility and 5G would be well-situated to address an explosion of opportunities in the market, according to Joe Sykora, Bitdefender’s vice president of global sales and channels.

5G is going to change the attack surface, and Sykora said whoever comes up with the best solution to protect the next generation of wireless communication technology will be in a fantastic position. If Sykora were a service provider, he said he would definitely build a monthly managed service around that.