WatchGuard adds key executives to bolster global leadership

WatchGuard Technologies has announced the addition of three new executives to its sales and global marketing senior leadership team.

The hires include Derek Maggiacomo as vice president of Americas sales, Rich Workman as vice president of global renewals sales, and Karen Ray as global vice president of field and partner marketing. All three positions are based in the United States.

Derek Maggiacomo joins WatchGuard from SonicWall, where he led the North America sales team.

He brings over 20 years of experience in the networking and security industry. During his career, he has focused on enabling partners to succeed, managing complex relationships, and recruiting new partners. Maggiacomo expressed his enthusiasm for joining WatchGuard, stating: "WatchGuard is well-known for its commitment to partners, and I look forward to bringing my experience and passion for the channel to the WatchGuard team. I couldn’t be more impressed with this smart and innovative team, and with the power and maturity of WatchGuard’s Unified Security Platform. It is exactly what MSPs need to expand their cybersecurity services business and gain more market share."

Rich Workman will take on the role of global vice president of renewals sales. He comes from Sophos, where he spent 15 years in various sales leadership roles. His expertise lies in developing and implementing strategies that empower managed service providers (MSPs) and managed security service providers (MSSPs) to drive rapid sales growth.

On his new role at WatchGuard, Workman remarked, "I’m thoroughly impressed by WatchGuard’s unwavering and long-term commitment to the channel, particularly in how the company has truly brought simplified enterprise-grade cybersecurity to MSPs. Many companies aspire to simplify security, but WatchGuard has dedicated the resources and commitment to do it."

Karen Ray, the new global vice president of field and partner marketing, has over 20 years of experience in field and partner marketing, and demand generation. She previously held senior roles at Juniper Networks and Ingram Micro. In her new role, Ray seeks to strengthen strategic alliances and partnerships. Commenting on her move to WatchGuard, Ray said, “At other companies, the channel can often become an afterthought, but not at WatchGuard. It’s refreshing to join a company where everyone has such a deep understanding of the channel. The WatchGuard team knows what drives MSPs and how to enable their businesses to grow and thrive.”

Prakash Panjwani, CEO of WatchGuard Technologies, outlined the importance of these strategic hires, noting that WatchGuard's focus on MSPs is critical to their business model.

"WatchGuard’s focus on MSPs across every part of our business—from how we architect our products and services, to the people and programs in place for ensuring partner enablement and success—is a major draw for both retaining existing partners and employees and bringing in new ones."

"This group of new hires, a dynamic group of channel veterans, brings a wealth of expertise in cybersecurity, partner management, and sales discipline. Most importantly, they share WatchGuard’s partner-first mentality. I’m thrilled to welcome these channel leaders to WatchGuard, who will help both our company and our partners continue to achieve sustainable growth now and in the future," he added.

HoJin Kim, senior vice president and chief revenue officer at WatchGuard, also emphasised Derek Maggiacomo’s addition to the Americas leadership team. "Derek will officially join WatchGuard in August, bolstering an already powerful Americas leadership team. Chris Wachel, regional vice president of North America, and Richard Fortes, regional vice president of Latin America, have spent 6 and 10 years, respectively, building strong relationships with partners across the region, and together with Derek are primed to take WatchGuard’s Americas business to the next level," said Kim.