Palo Alto Networks Nabs Former Riverbed Sales Leader To Lead Channel Charge

Palo Alto Networks has nabbed channel sales veteran David Peranich to lead the security vendor’s channel charge as Mark Anderson becomes the new president of the company.

The Santa Clara, Calif.-based vendor named Peranich, formerly of Riverbed Technology, as its new executive vice present of worldwide sales during its annual sales kickoff event Monday, a gathering of the company’s entire sales organization and more than 800 channel partners.

Jon Jensen, vice president of sales at Draper, Utah-based Red Sky Solutions, a solution provider and Palo Alto Networks partner, said Peranich brings a ’tremendous amount of experience’ to the table that will drive channel growth at Palo Alto Networks.

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’We look forward to the thought leadership, operational focus, discipline and global relationships Dave brings to our most strategic vendor,’ said Jensen, who previously worked with Peranich at Riverbed.

Peranich is responsible for Palo Alto Networks’ sales and channel organization's go-to-market strategy. While at Riverbed, he held positions including senior vice president of worldwide sales, channel chief and president of worldwide field operations.

In a statement, Peranich said, ’With our natively integrated and highly automated next-generation security platform, the company has delivered unprecedented growth to date, and I look forward to leading the sales and channel organization as we expand our global reach and redefine security in the digital age."

Peranich, who also held leadership roles at Oracle and Siebel Systems, is replacing Anderson, who was promoted to president of Palo Alto Networks.

’We went through an extensive search process to find the right leader for our sales organization who can provide maximum focus as we scale, and Dave is the ideal addition to the team,’ said Anderson in a statement. ’I am proud to take on the role of president and excited to lead our go-to-market success.’

Anderson has been with Palo Alto for four years, with executive experience at F5 Networks and Lucent Technologies, according to his LinkedIn profile.

As president, Anderson will be responsible for the company’s sales, go-to-market strategy, customer support and business development. He will report directly to Chairman and CEO Mark McLaughlin.