A closer look at the benefits of being a Barracuda cloud partner

Barracuda is committed to helping our partners embrace the public cloud, both by providing them with enterprise-grade cloud-ready security solutions and by offering a robust cloud partner program.

Barracuda Channel Partner Program - Advanced Security Cloud Competency was recently recognized in CRN’s 2020 Cloud Partner Programs Guide. This annual list identifies industry-leading cloud technology vendors with innovative partner programs that empower and accelerate the growth of solution providers’ cloud initiatives.

To give you an inside perspective on Barracuda’s cloud partner program, we spoke with Alden Spraggins, Public Cloud Channel Manager, Americas.  

Q&A with Alden Spraggins, Public Cloud Channel Manager, Americas

What are some of the benefits for partners participating in our cloud program?

Barracuda invests a significant amount of time and resources toward our public cloud partnerships. We lean heavily on our efforts to develop solutions that are purposely built for public cloud security and consumption. This helps to easily remove a blocker for many customers migrating to the public cloud while leading our partners to build security offerings around these same customers that are in desperate need of cloud adoption frameworks. Our public cloud channel relies on us to build their services around security they know will work in cloud environments, but they can also depend on us to incentivize them on continuous consumption. These activities drive accelerated activity toward the respective public cloud marketplaces while giving our services-led partners a secure and efficient public cloud practice. 

What are the most important ways we're helping our cloud partners succeed?

As our partners focus on the benefits of migrating workloads and building new in the public cloud, we can help them succeed by showcasing scenarios that the platforms are demanding. While we remain focused on delivering solutions that help customers succeed in their journey to the public cloud, we are equally determined to develop consumable sales plays that speak to the cloud platforms and the channel. For example, the growth of Windows Virtual Desktop during COVID-19 has allowed our partners to identify security challenges that are accelerated due to the rapid adoption of Azure services. This allows us to drive partner and services activity that is directly associated with the sales and business outcomes that are promoted through the public cloud marketplaces.

Is there anything that we do for partners that you wish more of them would take advantage of?

I would really like all of our partners to take advantage of the Marketplace benefits that Azure and AWS provide. In many instances, Barracuda and the cloud platforms can help incentivize the partner based on Marketplace activity. This is huge because if you can show a consistent practice of consumption and services, you will certainly be rewarded. On top of that, there are various marketing benefits and different credits that AWS and Azure freely provide to drive Marketplace activity.

What are the biggest opportunities for our cloud partners?

I think this is a great moment for our cloud partners to be trusted advisors for customers that weren’t expecting their public cloud adoption to come this quickly. You have customers of all sizes being pushed into multiple scenarios that demand the need for growth and scalability that only the cloud can provide. Barracuda welcomes this opportunity because it allows our cloud partners to enhance security and delivery of modern workplaces, applications, and infrastructure. This encourages our cloud partners to gain services during multiple touchpoints of a customer’s journey to the public cloud.

What are some of your goals for the cloud partner program?

I really want this to be an elite program for consulting and services partners to drive security while their customers are constantly consuming more public cloud resources. We have successfully onboarded both Azure Expert MSPs and AWS Security Competency Partners, and we’ve made an earnest effort to develop our go-to-market strategies based on what works well for their practice. I want people to recognize that becoming our cloud partner not only gives them access to cloud-ready solutions but provides a lucrative opportunity to build services that matter most to cloud consumers. In the coming months, we will be focusing heavily on which business outcomes are aligned to specific industries and how our cloud partners can develop offerings around that.