SASE and Zero Trust

CF: SASE and zero trust are two big themes here at Ignite. Can you talk a little bit about how partners can make the most of those opportunities and how Palo Alto Networks can help them with that?

KS: From a marketplace, SASE and zero trust have become boardroom-level conversations. So a lot of our partners, as they’re evolving their position within the customer, they need to elevate the conversations that they’re having. Zero trust right now is a conversation that every CIO and CISO is having about how they enhance the protection of their environment. So if our partner community wants to become a more valued partner to their end user, if we can train and enable them to have this discussion with confidence, they’re going to have a greater attach rate to that customer. They’ll be able to sell more services and they’ll be able to sell more overall with Palo Alto Networks.

For both SASE and zero trust, we’re in the early days, and the future and the growth is in front of us. So now is the time to train, enable and ensure our partners can deliver and understand the story with confidence, and wrap services around it. Palo Alto services that our partners deliver drive four times to five times the margin than a traditional resale transaction. So when we start looking at a blended margin or blended profitability, it really increases dramatically when they add services. So I think that would be the opportunity.