Check Point UK boss looking for channel growth

Check Point Software has indicated that its recently appointed UK head is a fan of the channel and is keen to grow the volume of business the security player does with partners.

The firm has announced that Adam Bradley, a security industry veteran with spells at Sophos, Appsense and Forecepoint on his CV, as regional director for UK and Ireland. He takes the reins at a time when security is considered by many channel customers to be their top priority and levels of spending are expected to be high as customers reach out for support in securing hybrid work environments.

According to its own research, UK companies experienced, on average, 399 cyber attacks per week last year, which was a 103% increase from 2020.

Earlier this month, Check Point launched its SMB Security Suite, which armed its channel with a package that includes a firewall, cloud email protection, and endpoint and mobile security. It is available in four options to appeal to a range of customer needs.

Thorsten Freitag, vice-president of sales in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) at Check Point Software, said Bradley would be tasked with growing sales across UK&I, a big part of which would involve relationships with the firm’s network of 300-plus channel partners.

“Adam will lead the growth of the UK&I team and drive further engagement with customers and channel partners, ensuring that they all get the best out of Check Point,” he said.

The security player has also reached out to former NHS Scotland chief information security officer (CISO) Deryck Mitchelson to join the company, in the position of field CISO and C-suite advisor EMEA.

Mitchelson will be tasked with building executive-level relationships to get a clearer picture of the challenges that customers want the vendor to help solve.

“Our strategic direction is built around companies deserving the best security, and both Adam and Deryck will use their deep knowledge and expertise to advise entities about the best security strategies required for their digital transformation,” said Freitag.

In terms of the Check Point channel, it’s been almost a year since the firm rolled out its last major partner programme enhancements. The vendor has been adding more depth to its global partner programme, which was introduced at the start of 2020, and last April introduced a professional services programme and expanded its lead generation campaigns.