Tanium touts new 'channel-friendly' headcount

End-point security firm promises to make 'a lot more noise' as it courts the channel for its enterprise push

Tanium has assembled a new-look EMEA team by plucking talent from other channel-centric organisations.

The end-point security firm raised $100m (£75m) in funding earlier this year and revealed to CRN in June its channel plans, including to build deeper channel ties with enterprise VARs.

The firm offers a platform designed to connect all end-points within a large enterprise and provide network visibility and management "within 15 seconds". It also provides a range of detection and incident response offerings that integrate into the platform.

With its fresh funding and renewed channel push, Tanium has now added a channel-savvy headcount to bring those factors together.

"We have had a threefold increase in headcount across EMEA and we have hired some top-class talent into the business from channel-friendly organisations," John Taylor, VP EMEA channels at Tanium, who has recently joined from Good Technology, told CRN.

"These are organisations that know how to embed and work with the channel. As such, these people know how to use the channel and because of that, the channel can leverage off this expertise within Tanium.

"Channel partners are dealing with people who know how to run an enterprise-class sale with an enterprise-class channel. We are trying to get the DNA right in the business in terms of hiring enterprise-class sales professionals and leaders."

Taylor said that due to the nature of Tanium's platform, its channel partners need to be "technologists" in order to convey the offering to end users.

"We aim at the top end of enterprises and we are focused on 10,000 end-points and above. People like Computacenter are now on board with us, but our product also has an appeal with the small boutiques. It is not a mass recruitment programme - we want to go deeper with fewer partners so we can have meaningful dialogue."

Taylor claimed that because Tanium offers a "platform rather than a product", it is more accommodating and attractive to a channel partner.

"Once what that core platform delivers is understood, then the channel's opportunity to sell and add modules with an increasing value to their customer is increased," added Taylor.

"You should expect us to be making a lot more noise moving forward and we are going to win a lot of business and get some good footprint sales with some big organisations."

Mark Wayland, a veteran of Salesforce, joined Tanium as chief revenue officer in June and said there will be continued investment in hiring the best team possible in EMEA.

"That recruitment will be on a sales, marketing and channel front. What you will hear from us in the marketplace is a continuing stream of stories from customers in terms of the results they get from our platform."