Whether an MSP dabbles in cybersecurity or specializes in it, it’s a heavy lift. Managing risk for one SMB can be exhausting, let alone for dozens or hundreds. It takes strong vendor relationships for channel pros to focus on doing what they do best: improve client efficiency with technology.
Enter Vicarius, a cybersecurity company that’s not just offering vulnerability management services, they’re redefining the concept of a channel partnership. ChannelPro spoke to their vice president of sales, Eyal Worthalter, who has the kind of deep industry experience needed to understand what it takes for IT services companies to thrive.
“There’s a huge opportunity for MSPs to go beyond networking, firewalls, antivirus and go deeper into security. That’s where we can help,” he said.
Breaking into the U.S. MSP market
Eyal Worthalter
Vicarius celebrated securing Series B funding last year, helping the organization establish a significant presence in the North American IT market. Despite their international success, the U.S. presents unique challenges. Worthalter’s approach? Direct, meaningful engagement with the channel ecosystem and significant investments in time, resources, and personnel.
“We’re proud of our full-fledged partner program, MDF, discounts, training, etc. But we go beyond the basics. We’ve built our own partner portal infrastructure. It connects to our CRM for deal registrations and also offers asset management. So, an MSP can manage all of their tenants and assets directly from the portal and it’s baked into the product,” he shared.
In Worthalter’s view, customer retention is a shared responsibility. Vicarius’ goal is to fully support every sales opportunity once it closes, with a solution architect assigned the moment that registration occurs. Its technical resources provide hands-on assistance with planning and implementation. Its customer success engineers play a critical role in ensuring project success and also helping the MSP to instill confidence in the end users.
Leading in both approach and technology
One of Vicarius’ standout offerings is its unified approach to vulnerability management, encompassing assessment, prioritization, and remediation. This end-to-end solution not only streamlines operations for MSPs but also offers a compelling, budget-conscious value proposition to end customers.
“When it comes to assessing risk, we take a unified approach. That way, our MSP partners can approach their client and say, hey, we found a million problems. But out of those million issues, here are the few that we need to focus on. We’ll patch all of those vulnerabilities in order. It’s great for the end customer because it not only lowers the overall cost, but it’s also much easier,” he said.
Worthalter connected that to Vicarius’ commitment to adopting cutting-edge technology, including AI.
“We came up with vuln_GPT last year, which is like ChatGPT for remediation. It helps you write scripts and submit them to us for validation. It’s a free tool, accessible through our website, with automation and machine-learning capabilities built right in.
The important thing is continuous improvement, and AI allows for that. If a policy or compliance requirement says something should be checked or patched every Tuesday, these kinds of tools can learn what needs to be done,” he noted.
But the future is human
Throughout the conversation, Worthalter was candid about the hurdles MSPs face, from standing out in a saturated market to the lack of talented engineers looking for jobs. Yet, he remains optimistic, buoyed by a stronger overall economy, more high quality technology options, and the growing importance of strategic security consulting.
To capitalize on those opportunities, it takes human connection. One key way that Vicarius demonstrates its commitment to education and networking is through event sponsorship, including its support for ChannelPro LIVE: Chicago.
Meeting the right people, including vendors, face-to-face can have a transformative impact on the future of a small business. “That’s the value of these kind of events. MSPs can take time out of their day to network and find out about what’s new and exciting in the industry,” he concluded.
Images: iStock
