SonicWall Grabs Cisco's DiLullo to Head Sales

Security vendor SonicWall Inc. this week collared John DiLullo, a former channel executive at Cisco Systems Inc., to head its sales as the company looks to steer a broader product line and a more focused channel.

SonicWall sought DiLullo, who was Cisco's former vice president of worldwide distribution, to help the company direct its sales operation after it acquired Lasso Logic, a data backup vendor, and enKoo, a VPN (virtual private network) developer, last month, said Matthew Medeiros, SonicWall's president and chief executive officer.

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DiLullo's early tasks will be to integrate more than 1,000 new resellers into SonicWall's 5,000-partner channel program, develop a coherent sales strategies across a broader product line and boost European sales from 30 percent to 50 percent, DiLullo and Medeiros said. SonicWall is 100 percent channel.

"The breadth of offerings and the portfolio was changing, and we needed to enhance the executive team to support that," Medeiros said. "We can no longer operate under the premise that everything is a firewall. There is a great opportunity for early success, but how do we compete in the longer term, with different platforms and training and offerings? … [DiLullo] has the experience with a broader product line and the skills to support it."

With the acquisition of Lasso and enKoo, SonicWall is positioning itself to provide a fuller solution, Medeiros said.

The effort will be focused around educating the various VARs in the new technology offerings and how they complement solutions and sales. Among Lasso's 500 partners, about 125 were already SonicWall partners and 400 of enKoo's 1,000 partners also sold SonicWall, Medeiros said.

"We ask resellers, 'Where are you making money?'" he said. "And next to security, backup and recovery and remote security are always number two and three. These are complementary solutions geared to our channel already." DiLullo said he finds SonicWall attractive because of its strong position in the SMB (small and midsize business) market.

"I've been in the business for quite a while, and if you're in the channel long enough, you start to hear who is making waves and winning accolades," he said. "This company is an unbelievable channel opportunity. They have an unwavering commitment to the SMB, the fastest-growing segment of market. It was really irresistible."

DiLullo said there is also opportunity in Europe, where the typical enterprise is built more like a U.S. SMB.

Cisco did not respond to inquiries concerning DiLullo's replacement.