CompTIA: Make New Processes Part of the 'Security Mix'
-
CompTIA: Make New Processes Part of the 'Security Mix'
Risk analysis, compliance management and cloud provider evaluation must be "part of the security mix," CompTIA said. Customer education also needs attention. -
Big Sellers in Security
38% of respondents said firewalls are their biggest seller, while 20% rank antivirus at the top of their list. Only 9% report that security information and event management (SIEM) solutions are their biggest revenue producer. -
Reliance on Vendor Reputation
Only 1 in 10 channel partners rely primarily on the strength of their own services or innovation when making a sale, and instead depend on the strength of vendor products. -
Balancing Act
About one-third of all channel companies balance vendor reputation and value-added services in their messaging. -
Security Product Offerings
Product offerings include standard firewall (69%), email antivirus (68%), server antivirus (66%), disk/file encryption (63%) and desktop antivirus (63%). -
Security Service Offerings
Top security services include risk management (67%), backup/BCDR (business continuity and disaster recovery) (62%), mobile security (61%), compliance management (61%), corporate policy help (61%) and security education (61%). -
Security Skills Gaps
42% of businesses cited some level of skill gaps; 4% believe major gaps exist today. -
Adding Talent
42% of businesses with skills gaps have hired new talent recently. Others have partnered with other channel firms (57%) and employed training (68%). -
Training and Partnering
At large companies, training and partnering (both tied at 52%) rank as the number one way to close the skills gap. Midsize (67%) and small companies (85%) rely on training to build skills. -
Open Dialogue
Channel companies initiate security discussions 51% of the time, with talking points such as a change in IT operations (64%), new knowledge (59%), news of a major breach (54%), new threats (46%), breach within peers (43%) and cost of breaches (26%). -
Stakeholder Engagement
62% of respondents said IT is involved in security discussions, followed by the involvement of the CEO (51%), finance (29%), sales (27%) and marketing (22%).
What Partners Need to Know About HP, Inc. 
MSPs Face Big Cybersecurity Talent Gap 
Why Tech Companies Are Eager to Invest in 5G 
The Problem With Partner Referral Programs 
Microsoft Taps Channel for Digital Business 
New Technologies Will Fuel Channel Opportunities 
Channel's Transition to the Cloud Requires More Time 
Microsoft's Cloud Channel Begins to Mature 
Defining MSPs' Goals, Challenges and Tools 
Why Metrics Matter to the Channel Successful channel partners will focus on three key areas—processes, skills and products—to ensure that they are well-positioned for new opportunities in enterprise security, according to a new CompTIA survey of 400 IT channel professionals. This translates into having the right expertise, resources, skills and mix of security tools beyond firewalls and antivirus software to engage in continuous security conversations with their existing and potential customers. The study, Security in the IT Channel, finds that a security offering is more than a simple production installation and is an ongoing process, thanks to new technology models that are changing how companies address security. "Security products alone aren't enough," said Seth Robinson, senior director, technology analysis, CompTIA. "New processes—risk analysis, compliance management and cloud provider evaluation—must be part of the security mix. Education of end users, the weakest link in the security chain, also requires greater emphasis." Channel Insider examines key takeaways from the study that offer insight into why channel partners must be more proactive in customer education as well as training and service management.