CRN Channel Awards - Finalist Q&A with Tim Goodwin, Director International Channel Partnerships at Rapid7

Tim Goodwin talks being a finalist at this year's CRN Channel Awards

What would you say is your company’s proudest achievement over the past year?

Our biggest achievement this year is the strong momentum behind our new PACT programme, launched in February.

By consolidating everything into one dynamic framework, we can now support distributors, SIs, resellers, MSSPs, and service delivery partners with a clear, consistent, and predictable experience.

PACT gives every partner a clear understanding of how we work with them, the benefits they receive, and what they can expect as the relationship grows. It also makes it easy to see how deepening their partnership with Rapid7 translates into greater engagement, rewards, and opportunities.

Our new Partner Training Academy has also been a standout success. Designed to give partners practical skills and technical expertise, it has already seen more than 2,000 learners enrolled. Sixty percent have completed multiple certifications, and together, partners have earned more than 3,700 certifications, and that number continues to rise.

What have been the biggest challenges of 2025 so far and how have you overcome them? How have your people helped with that?

Economic uncertainty has lengthened cybersecurity sales cycles. Unlike the eager buying of 2021, customers now evaluate solutions carefully, expecting partners to offer deep product knowledge, accurate information, and full support throughout the journey.

Add on top of this, enterprises are trimming down their security tools, with 70% of organisations looking to consolidate to a maximum of three vendors. Customers want platforms that align with their organisation’s desired outcomes, can flexibly adapt to future needs, and enable teams to demonstrate value back to the business and the board.

Failure to respond quickly or meet these expectations often results in lost opportunities. That’s why vendor support and a structured approach are critical from the outset.

Our new partner programme solves this by offering a structured, scalable foundation for learning, with online platforms, guided content, certifications, and rewards. Tailored delivery ensures partners get the technical or go-to-market training they need, while freeing in-person time for strategic discussions. This combination of structure and flexibility strengthens partnerships and drives meaningful growth.

How do you think the industry has changed over the past year, and what changes do you think it still needs to make?

Sales enablement is often being mistaken for product training. Many organisations believe the best way to prepare their sales teams is to arm them with technical details and product roadmaps.

In today’s cybersecurity market where buying cycles are lengthening and regulations add pressure; the real differentiator isn’t product knowledge but the ability to understand and communicate partner capabilities.

Effective sales enablement goes beyond product training to empower teams with the skills and insights to connect customer challenges with partner-driven outcomes.

For too long, vendors have expected sales teams to lead with features rather than outcomes. Customers don’t buy AI, CTEM, or any other acronym, they buy solutions to their challenges.

Sales teams need to understand how partners translate these technologies into values such as reduced risk, regulatory alignment, or operational efficiency. By shifting focus to partner capabilities, vendors can unlock faster cycles, greater trust, and stronger ecosystem value.

What do you see as the main opportunities for the industry in the coming year? How do you plan to capitalise on those opportunities?

In the year ahead, the channel will become increasingly strategic, driven by partnerships that align technology with measurable business outcomes. While many sales teams know product features, they often struggle to translate those capabilities into real-world results that matter across industries.

As a result, organisations will rethink enablement. Instead of memorising product roadmaps, reps will be trained to understand which partners excel in specific verticals and how to articulate tangible customer impact.

The winners in 2026 will be sales teams that can match the right partner to the right customer challenge and clearly communicate the combined solution’s value. Enablement will be measured by the ability to deliver compelling, customer-relevant outcomes that cut through a crowded cybersecurity market.

At Rapid7, we’re capitalising on this by providing both the technology our partners want while enabling them to deliver the services their end customers need. Through ongoing dialogue with partners, we ensure that customers receive both the tools and the support required to progress from where they are today to where they aim to be."