Clearswift restructures team for channel focus

Security software vendor, Clearswift, has restructured its sales team to place a stronger emphasis on its channel partners.

As part of the process, it has hired Chris Barton as its new regional channel manager covering Asia-Pacific operations.

“We’re restructuring the sales team for a better focus on the channel,” Clearswift regional director APAC, Phil Vasic, said. “My inside sales team will basically become an extension of the channel team, which they have been doing, but not in a structured formalised fashion.

“The channel wants to know who their person is and where they have to go.”

Barton will be based in Sydney and will be tasked with expanding the vendor’s breadth and depth of partner relationships. Clearswift is distributed in the Australian market by Distribution Central.

He will also be responsible for strategic channel planning and strategy, and will work closely with Clearswift’s channel to help create opportunities in the region.

Barton previously worked for Websense as its regional sales manager in New Zealand. He has also worked at SonicWall and Sophos.

Vasic said the channel role was previously spilt between several people.

“It perhaps didn’t have the focus that channel business requires,” he said. “It’s a regional role, but we’ll focus more on A/NZ where 90 per cent of revenues derive from.”

Vasic said he would look to add some more partners to its network and drive more programs around the areas of consulting and professional services.

“We’re going to be very aggressive in the market place,” Vasic said. “We’ll come out with some new channel promotions to help drive growth. We’ll leverage our key areas of differentiation.

“The only way we’re going to continue to grow the business is through scale and our channel.”