Q) In Sept 2012, Cyberoam split from its parent company- Elite Core Pvt Ltd. Can you please throw some light on the development?
– Cyberoam is still the 100% subsidiary of Elite Core. Our customers were finding it confusing between the brand name and the parent company. Also, our partners gave us a feedback that having a separate identity will have a positive impact on the brand. With the intention of avoiding confusion and create a separate brand name, we registered another company Cyberoam Technologies Pvt Ltd. Mr. Hemal is the MD of this company also.
Q) UTM has become a commoditized technology. What is your take on this?
– I don’t agree on this completely. The concept varies from segment to segment. For SOHO and SMBs, yes UTM has become a commoditized technology. But for SMEs, we have to understand their requirements, what customers’ want to buy, what are their bottlenecks etc. Enterprise businesses are facing several challenges with convergence of IT and network ecosystem. This includes explosion of device and apps and exposure to advanced malware and other cyber threats due to business networks becoming more open on account of trends such as virtualization, cloud, BYOD etc. Cyberoam has evolved its UTM solutions to meet customers’ evolving needs and growing impact of IT on business networks.
Q) How do you think your enterprise channel partners should pitch Cyberoam to execute profitable business deals?
– Cyberoam is a company that has been working continuously to increase awareness amongst the customers. We are a company with 14 sub-distribution centers which helps to increase the presence of the company. We enjoy significant reach and representation across various regions including tier 1 to tier 3 cities.
Our partners receive constant empowerment and latest industry know-how to address emerging security needs and business challenges of customers and are hence able to pitch Cyberoam effectively for a wide range of customers from SMBs to enterprise businesses. Moreover, we have a very rigorous Partner Program that provides various levels of association such as Gold, Platinum etc. We enable partners to enrich their learning curve and advance to the next level by providing various measures and support. It also remains relevant to mention that we are the first network security vendor to get ISO 20000 certification for post sales customer support.
Moreover, Cyberoam conducts maximum number of partner and channel events in network security domain and invests proactive focus on innovative partner engagement activities. This includes road shows, dealer meets, thought leadership summits, training & certification programs etc. We recently conducted a conference meet targeting CIOs; the event aimed at increasing our brand awareness amongst enterprise customers.
Q) How focused is Cyberoam on Government projects?
-The Company has always maintained a strong focus on government sector being an indigenous innovator of next generation network security solutions. Moreover, we also share a strategic pact with NICSI, which is among the key procurement arms under the Ministry of Communications and IT. With a view to ensuring steadfast focus on government business, Cyberoam has a dedicated industry veteran to cater to growing demand of government organizations. We are also empanelled with many PSUs like NEEPCO. The company is also registered with DGS&D which is mandatory for being eligible for selection in Defense Establishments.
Q) What are the USPs of Cyberoam in UTM market?
– Firstly it is our presence with National distributors, sub-distributors at 14 cities across the country that allows us to offer unmatched pre-sales and post sales support. Secondly, our innovations such as NG series range of UTMs remain another differentiator. NG series has received tremendous response from the industry and customers since it integrates a wide range of next-generation security features and supports gigabit throughputs for faster network performance. With this NG Series has already emerged as the fastest UTMs for SOHO and SMB and making in-roads in enterprise segment as well. Also by bringing advanced capabilities such as Web Application Firewall (WAF), Outbound Spam protection and more on-appliance features, Cyberoam commits better value for money and greater RoI to customers. Thirdly, our Global Support Management Centre provides ISO 20000 certified customer service through multiple support channels.
Above all, our motivated and talented pool of 450+ experienced professionals remains our key strength.
Q) With so many players in UTM market, do you think this market is becoming saturated?
– UTM market has reached its inflexion point. Maintaining leadership and relevance to customers requires a vision for evolving customer needs, changing threats landscape and how IT is changing everything. Cyberoam has successfully demonstrated its capability and scaled its UTMs for this paradigm shift. This way, we continue to be amongst the top two network security players in the country even as several other players still scramble to cope up with changing game of network security in the UTM domain.
Q) With virtualization and cloud gain across enterprise, what will be Cyberoam’s approach in this aspect?
When it comes to cloud we have divided our customers in to SMB/ SOHO and Enterprise level purely on the basis of their requirement. Enterprise customers mostly go for private cloud. For these set of customers, we have virtual UTMs that offer evolved security for virtualized networks.
For SOHO or SMB customers, who tend to opt for public cloud, our Virtual UTMs are available as a service too. Eg. Customers on Amazon can leverage Cyberoam solution for securing their cloud. With Cyberoam’s virtual central management console, our partners can manage security for their customers, from anywhere.
Q) With competition increasing in this segment, service in addition will play an important role in maintain the brand name of the company. Please comment.
Indeed service remains a key differentiator. As already mentioned, our Global Support Management Centre provides ISO 20000 certified customer service and post sales support. Cyberoam became the first network security company and the only UTM vendor to achieve this feat, demonstrating its commitment to ensure highest level of customer service.
