5 Companies That Came To Win This Week

For the week ending Aug. 11, CRN takes a look at the companies that brought their ‘A’ game to the channel including Check Point Software Technologies, Dell Technologies, Rubrik, Cegeka and Resilience.

The Week Ending Aug. 11

Topping this week’s Came to Win list is Check Point Software Technologies for its move to acquire Perimeter 81, a leading startup in the SASE arena.

Also making the list are Dell Technologies for its shift to a partner-first sales strategy for its storage products. Rubrik is here for a savvy deal to buy cloud data security provider Laminar, as is Belgium-based Cegeka for its move to acquire Computer Task Group. And cyber risk platform provider Resilience makes the list for its impressive $100 million funding round at a time when venture capital has become very scarce.

Check Point To Buy Perimeter 81 For $490M To Create ‘Premier SASE Platform’

Check Point Software Technologies tops this week’s Came to Win roundup with its $490 million deal to buy Perimeter 81, a startup developer of secure access service edge technology, in a bid to create a market-leading SASE platform.

Check Point said it will integrate Perimeter 81’s capabilities into its Infinity architecture to create a unified system across the network, cloud and remote users, powered by threat prevention technology. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of September.

Perimeter 81 takes an innovative approach to Security Services Edge that combines cloud and on-device protection. The company offers a suite of capabilities, including Zero Trust Access, full mesh connectivity between users, branches and applications. That, according to the company, allows remote users to benefit from fast and secure internet browsing everywhere they go while also addressing cloud privacy violations.

“With the advent of hybrid work and the rise of cloud transformation, the demand for security services that expand beyond the network perimeter is increasing,” said Check Point CEO Gil Shwed (pictured) in a statement. “By leveraging Perimeter 81´s capabilities and integrating them into the Check Point Infinity platform we continue with our vision to deliver the best security through comprehensive, collaborative and consolidated solutions.”

Dell Unveils Partner-First Strategy For Storage, Pays Sales Reps More To Go Through Channel

This week Dell Technologies said that effective immediately, the company’s direct sales representatives would earn more money if they sell Dell storage products through the channel than taking that same business direct.

Bill Scannell, Dell president of global sales and customer operations, said the new partner-first strategy for storage products is “the biggest change ever” to the company’s go-to-market efforts. The new approach “opens the floodgates” by encouraging sales reps to work with partners on sales deals, the executive said.

Included in the new program are PowerMax, PowerFlex, PowerStore and PowerScale systems, as well as converged and hyperconverged systems and security storage products.

The strategic change wasn’t necessarily good news for everyone as the company confirmed that it plans to cut some jobs among its core sales teams as it adopted the new sales compensation plan and partner-led go-to-market strategy.

But Dell partners told CRN that they saw the changes as providing more opportunities for the channel to double down on Dell and drive sales growth.

Rubrik To Acquire Cloud Data Startup Laminar

Returning to the topic of strategic acquisitions, Rubrik this week announced a deal to buy Laminar, a startup in the cloud security space that develops a data security platform for public cloud environments and cloud-based data warehouses.

Rubrik, in a statement, touted Laminar’s capabilities for improving visibility into data located within cloud environments and said the addition of Laminar’s technology to the Rubrik data security platform will “create the industry’s first complete cyber posture and cyber recovery offering of its kind.”

Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

Laminar’s platform supports AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud, as well as Snowflake and Google’s BigQuery data warehouse. Key data security capabilities include posture management – critical for enforcing policy and protecting sensitive data – as well as for access governance, threat monitoring and threat response.

In April, Laminar added support for Google Cloud and Snowflake to its data security posture management (DSPM) offering, making it “the first cloud-native data security platform to support all major cloud service providers and data warehouse environments,” the company said at the time. That was followed up in June with a built-in data security offering for AWS that “automatically installs, configures and integrates with native AWS Cloud Foundational Services across multiple domains,” the company said.

Cegeka Plans To Acquire Computer Task Group In Major Digital Transformation Play

Completing a trifecta of acquisition deals in this week’s 5 Came to Win list, IT solution provider Cegeka struck a deal to acquire Computer Task Group (CTG) in a move to create a global digital IT services provider.

Cegeka is paying $10.50 per share for Amherst, N.Y.-based CTG, putting the total implied equity value of the deal at about $170 million. CTG, a provider of digital IT solutions and services, is No. 82 on the CRN 2023 Solution Provider 500.

Cegeka, based in Hasselt, Belgium, offers integration, data, application and infrastructure services and solutions with operations across Europe and the U.S. With the CTG acquisition the company expects to expand beyond its current status as a leading solution provider in Europe to become a leading global provider of IT digital transformation services.

“This merger is a logical next step in the continuous growth journey of Cegeka,” Cegeka CEO Stijn Bijnens said in a statement. “In CTG, we find a partner that complements our customer and service portfolio and strengthens our capabilities and knowledge.”

Cyber Risk Startup Resilience Raises $100M In Latest Funding Round

Cyber risk platform developer Resilience raised $100 million in a Series D equity financing round this week that brings the company’s total funding to $225 million.

The San Francisco-based company said it will use the additional financing to boost sales and marketing efforts to accelerate adoption of the Resilience platform, with particular emphasis on expansion in Europe.

The impressive funding haul comes at a time when venture capital – especially for startups – has become markedly difficult to obtain following a slowdown that began in early 2022. Crunchbase recently reported that in the second quarter of 2023 North America venture dollar volume was down 50 percent from the second quarter of 2022 – which was itself down significantly from prior quarters.

Resilience helps businesses and organizations address security risks from both the IT and financial perspectives. The company’s AI-based Resilience Solution platform provides the ability to assess, measure and manage cyber risks and take steps – including implementing cybersecurity systems and policies and purchasing insurance – to mitigate those risks.

The latest funding round was led by Intact Ventures, an affiliate of Resilience’s primary capacity provider, Intact Insurance’s underwriting companies. Also participating in the round were Lightspeed Venture Partners, General Catalyst, and Founders Fund. Earlier investors included CRV and Shield Capital.