IAN MORRIS , Channel Director at Rubrik Australia and New Zealand , a cloud data management company , describes his management philosophy as leading with empathy , a flat hierarchy and always seeking to empower others . Morris outlines here how he is working with the channel ecosystem in Australia and New Zealand .

As Rubrik ’ s Australia and New Zealand channel director , my core responsibility is to serve our partners . Primarily , this centres around enabling them to build a profitable line of business which manifests in supporting them with training , certification , and enablement . By arming them with the tools and knowledge they need , they ’ re empowered to protect their customers ’ businesses with our best-in-breed Zero Trust Data Management solution .

The greatest challenge in this role is overturning the status quo of entrenched legacy solutions – particularly when it comes to backup solutions . Overcoming this comes down to communicating , educating , and motivating ; communicating the benefits of a next generation solution , educating partners and end-users of the critical role immutable backups play in recovering from the scourge of ransomware attacks , and motivating decision makers to disrupt their thinking with a zero-trust approach to data protection .

Can you explain how your company works with channel partners ?

As a 100 % channel organisation , our partners are the lifeblood of our business . Not only are they critical to our success , but – more importantly – they ’ re fundamental to the success of our shared customers . At Rubrik we understand that channel partners are a critical component of our customers ’ IT strategy , serving as trusted advisors who guide organisations through their Digital Transformation journeys . As such , we are always mindful to engage in lockstep with our partners throughout the entire sales process .

How do you ensure channel partners flourish in a highly competitive market ?

As the true cost of ransomware becomes increasingly clear to end users , the market for data protection and recovery solutions is more crowded and more competitive now than it has ever been .

Ensuring the success of our channel partners is front of mind throughout the entire sales process . For us , this process starts with partner selection .

At Rubrik , we take a ‘ quality over quantity ’ approach to our partner base and we ’ re selective in partner acquisition . To be clear , this doesn ’ t mean we only partner with the biggest organisations . We seek those with the skills , passion , and strategy to deliver truly outsized , transformative outcomes to our clients .

As part of this process , I always look to find a partner ’ s unique value proposition so we can zero-in on their strengths and elevate them above the static in the market .

Finally , with these foundations in place , we use a strategic Marketing Development Fund geared towards joint go-to-market strategies that align with the key buying cycles of our partners ’ target markets .

What are the latest trends you see emerging across the channel ?

Anything and everything that can be offered and consumed As-a-Service will be . This is a trend we ’ ve seen gain pace over the past few years , but as subscription services like Netflix and Spotify have become so ingrained and so second nature , this consumption model will become the norm . This is particularly the case as younger generations move into decision-making roles where they ’ ve barely known anything else .

Ian Morris , Channel Director , Rubrik Australia and New Zealand

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