{"id":214547,"date":"2026-05-15T14:14:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T18:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/15\/optiv-refines-partner-program-as-ai-reshapes-cybersecurity\/"},"modified":"2026-05-15T14:20:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T18:20:08","slug":"optiv-refines-partner-program-as-ai-reshapes-cybersecurity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/15\/optiv-refines-partner-program-as-ai-reshapes-cybersecurity\/","title":{"rendered":"Optiv Refines Partner Program as AI Reshapes Cybersecurity"},"content":{"rendered":"

Optiv Refines Partner Program as AI Reshapes Cybersecurity<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.channelinsider.com\/security\/managed-services\/optivone-cybersecurity-partner-strategy\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Publish Date: 2026-05-15 14:14:00<\/a><\/p>\n

Source Domain: www.channelinsider.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Author: <\/a><\/p>\n

Using an unordered list, summarize the following article with between 4 and 8 key points. Channel Insider content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More John Hurley, chief revenue officer at Optiv, said the company\u2019s OptivOne partner program was designed to bring more transparency, predictability, and defined rules of engagement to a cybersecurity ecosystem he described as \u201chyper competitive.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis marketplace that we deal with today is very competitive, like hyper competitive,\u201d Hurley told Channel Insider. \u201cWhen you partner with somebody from an intentional perspective, you want them to know that you\u2019re gonna not ride the fence.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hurley said Optiv built the program with an eye toward the structure and clarity often found in OEM and ISV partner programs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

One major change was publishing partner levels and rules of engagement so vendors could better understand where they stood, what Optiv expected, and how the company would invest in the relationship.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted to be predictable and transparent to our partners,\u201d Hurley said. \u201cThey knew what they were getting when they partnered with Optiv.\u201d<\/p>\n

Emerging cyber vendors seek clearer channel paths<\/p>\n

The program also reflects the rapid entry of new cybersecurity vendors into the market, particularly as AI accelerates product development and acquisition activity.<\/p>\n

Hurley said Optiv\u2019s ecosystem includes more than 450 partners, ranging from major platform vendors to emerging cybersecurity startups. He noted that newer vendors can no longer be dismissed simply because they are early-stage.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t look past anybody anymore,\u201d Hurley said.<\/p>\n

That reality has changed how Optiv evaluates potential partners. Hurley said the company uses its portal to help onboard new vendors, allow established partners to update content and go-to-market materials, and give Optiv\u2019s sales teams better visibility into partner capabilities.<\/p>\n

Hurley pointed specifically to startup activity in Israel, saying the volume and quality of early-stage cybersecurity companies from the region remain notable.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe amount of early tech that\u2019s coming out of Israel is fascinating,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

For many of those startups, Hurley said Optiv can act as a market-entry partner before the company has fully built out its own channel or revenue infrastructure.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted to make ourselves an extension of their sales force,\u201d he said. \u201cThose players don\u2019t have a CRO. They don\u2019t have a channel chief. They don\u2019t have some of that infrastructure that would help them scale.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hurley said Optiv\u2019s partner work is ultimately tied to the company\u2019s role with enterprise security leaders.\u00a0<\/p>\n

CISOs are inundated with outreach from vendors, SDRs, and emerging technology providers, making it harder to determine which tools are relevant to their environment. To Hurley, Optiv fill sa critical role in sorting through the onslaught of new solutions to act as much more than a product procurement partner.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe sit in a very unique position as an advisor to a CISO,\u201d Hurley said.<\/p>\n

That advisory role, he added, is not generic. Optiv evaluates technologies against an invidivual customer\u2019s current cybersecurity maturity, existing stack, and business needs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to meet our client in the part of the journey in cyber that they\u2019re in,\u201d Hurley said.<\/p>\n

For potential vendor partners, that means technical readiness alone is not enough. Optiv also evaluates whether a company is prepared to work through the channel.<\/p>\n

\u201cAre they channel-ready? \u2026 That\u2019s really, really important,\u201d Hurley said. \u201cWe do give them very concrete feedback, and in some cases, coaching, in some cases, advice on what they need to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

AI and acquisitions reshape cybersecurity partnerships<\/p>\n

Hurley said cybersecurity vendors are increasingly pursuing acquisitions as AI changes product roadmaps and forces companies to place earlier bets on where customer needs are headed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe days of everybody growing organically are slowing,\u201d he said. \u201cI think more acquisitions are going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Inside Optiv, Hurley said AI is also shaping how the company thinks about its own sales organization and internal systems. But as a cybersecurity company, Optiv is taking a measured approach.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to be one of those ones that\u2019s going to be a little bit more conservative on the guardrail side,\u201d Hurley said, \u201cbecause we have to protect our clients.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, Hurley said he is excited about the opportunity to scale through AI, and thinks the channel is a crucial sales motion for much of the security industry today and moving forward.
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