Rod Lazarus heads up new Ingram Micro Australia cyber security practice

New Ingram Micro Australia cyber security leader, Rod Lazarus

Ingram Micro Australia has hired former Cisco Systems head of cyber security services Rod Lazarus as the new general manager for its cyber security practice. 

Lazarus takes on the newly created role not long after the distributor signalled its intention to build a dedicated cyber security team late last year.

He will be tasked with leading and building a dedicated cyber security practice, focusing on supporting channel partners beyond volume sales of standard cybersecurity products such as firewall and endpoint protection, and instead delivering custom solutions to meet specific needs.

Prior to joining Ingram, Lazarus spent five years as the head of cyber security services for Cisco Systems and maintains more than 17 years experience across both vendor and reseller landscapes. 

Ingram Micro head of advanced solutions Brett Armstrong said Lazarus will build a cohesive team in support of resellers, empowering them to build and deliver optimal, integrated solutions in the market. 

He pointed out that even though Ingram has offered cyber security skills through its portfolio of multiple vendors in the space, the expertise has been dispersed.

“Under Rod’s leadership, we’re creating a focused team which will draw on our Singapore Centre of Excellence, and work across vendors for the creation of effective go-to -market strategies as well as scalable and repeatable services for rapid delivery to end users,” he said. 

Armstrong said Ingram will be making additional hires, including solution architects, security consultants, product managers and deep domain sales experts.

“The result of the cybersecurity team is that partners can provide quality security solutions with confidence, which put end user interests at the centre. With Rod’s proven capability in creating and leading teams, our resellers can look forward to accessing in-demand solutions to rapidly address customer demand,” he said. 

“A decade ago, we had silos of information and big walls to keep attackers out. Today, data and applications are shifting into the cloud, with a major acceleration through the COVID pandemic.

“That means a considerably expanded threat surface, and along with the shift, we’ve also seen the emergence of new vendors and solutions which resellers need to take cognizance of. If you’re not talking security as part of every customer engagement, you’re not having the right conversation.”