Strategic Alliance with Kyndryl

Hi, my name is Jeff Rubens. I'm a global alliance manager for Cloudflare. We're here at RSA in San Francisco this year where organizations from around the world are descending on San Francisco to learn all about security. I'm joined today by Jeff Gats, VP of Global Strategic Alliance from Kindrel. And Kindrel and Cloudflare have entered into a partnership a couple years years ago. And just recently, you named Cloudflare a global strategic alliance partner. You know, I'd love to learn from you just why you decided to do that. And the value of becoming a partner with Kindle. Sure. So Jeff, first of all, thanks for having us here at RSA and in San Francisco. When we pick a technology partner to become a global strategic alliance, we're not doing that just because I like you or because it's nice or fun, because you guys are solving a problem or set a specific problem. for our customers. One of the big things to know about kendols, we don't make anything, right? I mean, we have got people, we make our platform, we call bridge, but we don't create the technology in the same way that a company like yours does. So we look at what problems our customers are trying to solve, and then we approach that through what we call the three A's. So we've got an account focus, advanced delivery, and alliances. And if you saw like the way our CEO Martin Schroeder talks about it, alliances are first. But when you look at that, obviously it starts and stops with our customers. And then advanced deliveries about optimization, how do we get better mean time to resolution, mean time to repair, meet the SLAs and SLOs that we're driving. And then again, our alliance is we cannot do what we do without you guys. So when we looked at cloud flare through both a network and a security perspective, you guys really solve problems in a way that nobody else does with the way that you have your magic when, the way you approach security policy and where you apply it, the way you approach sassy as a vendor, you know, single stack vendor solution. It's just, it's different, it's unique. And if we look at where the world is going, right? And we'll talk about this and I think a little bit later through this conversation, but where the world's going, I think Cloudflare has an outsized opportunity to really help the world navigate some of these extraordinary changes that we're going through. Great answer, I really appreciate the partnership too. Yeah, same. Yeah. So I know that you have a networking background, obviously extensive background throughout technology. You know, how are you seeing things changed? Especially we're here at RSA talking about security. We also come from the networking background too. So, you know what's happening in the marketplace? My point of view is we're seeing a rapid convergence of security and networking. I'm curious, A, what's your perspective on that? And B, how does Kendra help organizations in that kind of community? Well, I think you have to start from my personal perspective. You've got to start with where do the applications right? The thing about what, you know, how companies run their businesses, it's really centered around the application. That is what provides the service, whether it's to an end user customer, an internal client, whatever it is. Those applications, as we know, have been on premise, being repatriated to the cloud, hybrid cloud motions. Those are all things that they're going through. So when we look at that convergence of where applications live, and then how those applications are consumed, we have to look at a hybrid cloud motion. So we know that data is versus the internet, right? We know that's transversing, hopefully, your solutions. You guys touch 20 % if I remember right of all the network traffic in the world. So we know that you're carrying that traffic through your points of presence. And so as that traverses with more and more going across SaaS applications like Office 365, privately hosted, we look at modernization around mainframe applications, those sorts of things, what we're changing is the dynamic of what is that in user experience. Whatever that is, is it secure? Is it responsive, right? Think about go to a web page. We all use this analogy. It takes longer than about three nanoseconds, our ADHD kicks in. We're like, up, this company's terrible amount, right? So that performance is so important. And so as customers look to go through this transformation, it's critical that we provide that SLA of experience, but more importantly, moving forward, it is the SLA of security. We know that the world is changing significantly around security. because of generative AI, because of nation -state actors, because of cyber criminal activity. And as we look at that motion, there is no, well, nobody's building an unsecured network to start, but we know these actors are becoming more sophisticated over time, right? And we've got federal and socks that are all skilling up, but that is an arms race that's almost impossible to truly win in this day and age. So where we apply security, it has to be ubiquitous. What touches everything? The network touches everything. So I don't think you can really change. You can't interchange, is it network or security? It is network security. So this concept of zero -trust network assurance is where the world is going to. And that's a hard thing. Because as you touch policy, as you talk to CISOs and CIOs, those are big motions for them, and none of it's a light switch. So how we approach a customer in that conversation is where are you at? Have you had somebody come look look into integer policy. Do you know where your blind spots are? Are you up to date on the latest capabilities that are available to you? And then whether it's, if you look at the way we go to market with our customers, we have a consultative motion through Kindle Consult, we do manage services, we'll do walk in, take over outsourcing, and if there's nothing on the market, we'll do a co -creation and what's called Canville Vital. But what we're gonna do is just meet you where you are. That could be an assessment, maybe you're not ready for managed services, maybe you are. We'll help you through that motion. and really help to secure it in the, in, when where you're at in your transformation today, but it starts and stops with how are your customers consuming the service? What are those applications? Where do they live? And then do you have the network and security policies in place? They're going to allow you to create that experience and that security that's really required in this day and age and quite frankly, just expected. Yeah, fair enough. I think, you know, the reason why I think the partnership works so well is obviously cloud flare is a great technology and solution. I think customers are saying, okay, how do we get there from here, right? I guess, in your opinion, being in technology for a long time is our company's ready to make that change, right? Are they ready to modernize the network in the way? Well, I think that's one of those things where whether you're ready or not, you have to start. So what are the big things that are coming in the industry? So now we can call this a real conversation, generative AI. We know it's coming, right? And you guys are doing really cool stuff up at the edge around your partnership with NVIDIA, like a lot of us have. But generative AI, whether it's even half the promise, is going to be incredibly transformative. So as we look at that change on generative AI, how much of that is going across the network, what is the new attack surface or a threat surface that you're really dealing with? How are you going to control APIs that are being consumed? How you get control, who has access to what applications? What cloud is it going to? Where are those connections coming from? There is some basic blocking and tackling and there's then the really advanced stuff. So having a commonality around network transformation that gives you that visibility that gives you that control. Simple things like DDoS and CDN are being, you guys are obviously experts at, right? Are so important and just those are the basic things. So you get more advanced and like where do you apply security policy? What is your endpoint device management look like? All those things come part of it, the EDR XDR component. But that is just such a critical element. So, to really answer your question, customers may or may not be ready, but that change is coming for them. Sure. So, whether they're ready to go start doing transformation now, or we just have to help figure out what path the customers on, those are the conversations we're having. So, whether, quite frankly, whether it's something like Dora or HIPAA compliance or FedRAM compliance, or something like generative AI, there are external pressures on the customer. I think the only other area you could really talk about that transformation coming from the sustainability. That's probably the other kind of vector depending on what area of the world you're in, let me really drive some of that motion as well in terms of network modernization. Sure. You know, let's run with that because we're both in global roles and we can travel around. Sure. And you know, depending on what region you are in this world, you know, there are different priorities of driving the change. You know, specifically, we've been talking a lot about sustainability, which you just brought up and Europe tends to be be a little more forward thinking there. Okay, let's not buy something and throw it out every three to five years, but traditionally it's kind of been the model as far as network and security is concerned is I bought a piece of equipment, I've installed it three years later, you know, it's out of compliance, I got to buy a new one and obviously just not sustainable. So, you know, maybe just talk a little bit about what you're seeing drive change as far as mindset of security and network. Yeah, and I think there's kind of a couple answers that question. First of all, I think all companies are becoming global companies, right? Because most companies transact through their web portal, or they're on the, on marketplace, or whatever it is, right? So they're all global to some capacity. There's unfortunately true very, only a few very true local companies that maybe not fall into this realm. But everybody today cares about kind of what's happening, you know, how are you impacting the earth? How does your supply chain look like? like whether you're advanced in this topic or really basic sustainability matters to really all of us, right? And so you look at the tech debt that most of these companies have, right? They've got routers that are five years old and we know that that's basically like running a dirty diesel engine right at this point, right? It's like it's really, it's really ugly. Then you get into the sort of these mid market enterprise, large enterprise customers, they're tech debts in the billions of dollars and we know that that transformation can have an outside impact on energy consumption consumption, supply chain dynamics, right? So how is it sourced? Is the new stuff more sustainable? Is it recycled? All those things that are important in the type one, type two and type three kind of sustainability metric. And so, you know, that's really driving, whether it's from a board perspective, whether it's just good corporate citizenship, whatever it is, we see that as a driving factor. It's going to hit every company a little bit differently, but we know that sustainability matters deeply to a lot of folks. So that's a really important your guys is saying ability story, I love, right? I mean, you go show numbers that make, you know, you go, oh, well, I should just do that. Right? Yeah. So, you know, it's just an incredibly powerful story on how you do it because the way you approach your solution is being very, you know, purely cloud native and the way that you solve for connectivity and security. And so to me, that's a conversation that's, you know, if you're going to go solve connectivity for Office 365, every conversation should have sustainability in it with with our customers because they have to check that box. We have to check that box. And so that's a really great way to do that for all of us. Appreciate it. And outside of being a global steward and just being a good fellow citizen, are you seeing government regulations drive that? Because going in front of a customer and saying, hey, we should be all be more sustainable, right? Which is great, nice to have. But are we seeing government regulations drive decision making within the corporate enterprise. Yeah, we know that that's true, right? So, as you mentioned in Europe, it's more so. We see some of those laws really, you know, sitting within different state, local and federal governments. For instance, we have to be in the Great City, California. We know that they're driving some legislation around sustainability and those sorts of things. And it can be as simple as a great example of how Apple was pushed to have a common connector just to reduce waste, right? Yeah, right. So, it doesn't really matter. It could be very micro in terms of its, this connector and you're being unsustainable and it would be bigger. What is your global footprint? What is your carbon offset? How much energy you're using? How much of that is from a sustainable source. So yes, I'm seeing it from a local, regional and federal level around the world. Great. So we talked about the future proofing of the network. We have to get ready. All these, we have AI coming, which can be generating revenue in the future. We have more distributed employees and applications in the cloud, those are driving change. Sustainability is another one. Is there anything else that you might think of that's really, as you're talking to customers or other partners or even Cloudflare that have been driving change? That's a good question. Because I mean, there's the big ones in the other spot. Yeah, I know that's good. There's big ones that are small ones. I think the other piece is the way that individual industries are responding to just macroeconomic conditions. And so you look at just where the cost of money has been, right? So we had a lot of doing leases or you had, you know, these sort of in very interesting consumption models. And as the cost of money is risen, we certainly see a move back to more, you know, traditional cap -ex and other types of solutions. But every company is trying to really be good stewards of their working capital. So we are seeing customers really look at, and I think this is very true, but with the cost of money, I'm seeing maybe an outsized effect. they're being really diligent with how they're spending their money and the value of it. So single source, our full stack vendors or integrated vendor solutions are a big part of it. So I say that's the thing is we see customers consolidating spend as much as they can around that and then making sure that's a good return on investment. So we talked about those big triggers from an application, where do they live, securing those generative AI, but they're also looking at how am I going to really do that? And a good example is the way the Kindle approach this as we spun off from old code. We didn't want to be everything to everybody. We didn't want to have 800 tools. So we looked at CDN. We looked at DDoS. We looked at things like magic, and from you guys. And said, where does it make sense? How do we consolidate our spend? And we chose to use Cloudflare as part of Customer Zero. You go out to www .kindole .com. And if you watch very closely, you'll see Cloudflare come up sometimes. Just in there's a DDoS attack or something like that going on. So, you know, we looked at the value of what you provided and then consolidating our spend and that's what a lot of customer customers are doing for us. It's just being better stewards and trying to get more with less, which we're all asked to do all the time. Great. And I think you hit on where I was going or what I was thinking. Yes. The consolidation. So, what I'm sitting in front of customers and talking to CIOs or CIOs, most of the time these days are not saying, how do I become more secure, they're saying, how do I decrease the complexity in my environment? Because we're coming from this day and age of, you know, there's a leak in the dam, just go put your finger in it, and we got used to buying point to point solutions. And as we sit here at RSA and we walk that floor and there's thousands of vendors out there and you think about they all might be within that stack within the IT stack of a company. And I think what I'm seeing more and more, which is great for to help collapse that you use that word collapses, take out the complexity. Obviously, we never want to trade off security and performance for each other. But I think that's one of the things I think, Kindle does a great job is upfront consulting and then let us help you get there from here. How do we make the environment less complex while maintaining that level of security? Yeah, I think I heard a funny anecdote this morning as a matter of fact at a customer meeting and we were talking about You could walk out on the RSA floor, close your eyes, grab 15 partners. You could solve probably any problem for about 30 days. Sure. Right? Yeah. But could you do it for longer than 30 days? So the way you guys approach it as more of a service, if you will, where you have those policies, those capabilities, it's constantly updated. You have that portal, that collapse, right? That single pane of glass to look at all those pieces. That's what's really important anymore. Right? It's, you know, do you have the ability to keep your finger on the pulse? Can you monitor drift? within an environment in terms of what you're trying to accomplish and can you stay within the SLAS allows to deliver those outcomes we talked about at the beginning of the conversation. That's great. Well, I think we covered it. I feel good. I feel good. I really appreciate the time. Is there anything else that you need one share? No, I, you know, Jeff, I think, you know, as we talk about our partnership, the thing I'm most excited about is this is whatever more recent partnerships. And there's just a tremendous amount we can do for our customers. So I'm excited to bring this conversation out to our us from where it helps solve their problems, deliver those outcomes, and show the world how it's done. Well, we appreciate the partnership too, Jeff, and look forward to what's next. All right, but appreciate you.