Robert Newburn, head of information security and managed services at Trustmarque said, “What the conference last week really demonstrated was just how far the Sophos complete security solutions have matured and how Sophos has taken its acquisitions of the past year and integrated them well and quickly. More importantly, we were able to see that Sophos has a wide-ranging, ongoing product roadmap that will keep it at the cutting edge of IT security. Sophos has always had a very customer-centric approach and the conference also gave me the confidence that together with Sophos, we will continue to be able to deliver the best value to our customers and to keep them secure."
Alan Bonner, CEO at Pinnacle Technology Group plc said, “I was really impressed by all we heard at the Sophos partner conference, from the strength of the company’s vision and complete security strategy to the clear focus Sophos puts on helping its partners succeed. What really stood out for me was that it was not all about what we as partners can do for Sophos, but instead about everything that Sophos is doing to deliver value for both partners and customers alike.”
James Vyvyan, Sophos’s director of channel sales UK & I said, “Our partners are vital to the success of our business so bringing them together in this way is key to ensuring that everyone understands our complete security strategy and solutions and the value they can deliver to our partners’ own business. Sophos has always invested in its partner community. This year we have made a further step change in the way we work with our partners, to ensure that the complete security solutions we provide are meeting their needs as well as those of customers and that we are the security vendor of choice."
He continued, “We were delighted to be able to recognise the efforts of so many of our partners at the conference in Barcelona. This year, the race for Partner of the Year developed into a very close contest between two partners, ten-time previous winners Foursys and Softcat. Between them they accounted for almost 20 percent of the total UK business last year. Given our focus last year on new customer business, Softcat just stole the award for Partner of the Year. They really excelled last year, contributing almost 10 percent of all net new business in the UK. Softcat also gained the award for Corporate Partner of the Year for continuing to deliver in the corporate space, building strong relationships with the team at Sophos and a strong new business pipeline, particularly in mobile and encryption.”
Dave Simpson, Softcat’s commercial director said, “We were delighted to win both the Partner of the Year award and Corporate Partner award. Last year was a fantastically successful year for us with Sophos, and we saw particular success with their mobile security and encryption products as demand for strong security solutions continued to grow in these areas. Our success is also founded on the close, positive relationships we enjoy at every level within Sophos.”
Foursys retained the title of Public Sector Partner of the Year, continuing to surpass expectation overall but particularly in the public sector. Their success is due to their very clear understanding of the public sector’s challenges and requirements, and their ability to adapt their own technical and consultancy services to the customer’s needs.
Trustmarque was awarded New Business Partner of the Year for the second year running.
Robert Newburn, head of information security and managed services at Trustmarque said, “We’re extremely pleased to have won the new business award for a second year. It’s testament to the strong strategic partnership existing between Trustmarque and Sophos and to the work we have achieved over the past few years. Looking forward, the combination of our new managed service delivering Sophos’s Mobile Device Management solution, and Sophos’s new complete security suites, gives me confidence that, while we have had great success over the past few years, next year will be even better.”
Small Business Partner of the Year went to Utilize for their deep understanding of Sophos solutions and proactivity with new customers, with Liam Roberts from Utilize picking up the individual contributor award. The best new partner award was picked up by Evolve North.
Sophos’ North America partner conference takes place this week, 21-13 May in Las Vegas, followed by the Asia Pacific conference, which will be held 11-13 July in Pattaya, Thailand.
Mike McGuinness, senior vice president of worldwide sales and field operations at Sophos said, “Our partners are the driving force behind our success and the annual partner conferences are an opportunity for Sophos senior leaders and channel teams to interact directly with them. We’re excited to bring together our partners for these interactive events and to empower them with complete security solutions to further grow their businesses.”