Anthony Daniel promoted to WatchGuard managing director, Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands

He plans to invest in local partner enablement and deliver value to the channel community.

Anthony Daniel has been promoted to managing director at WatchGuard for Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands where he will oversee channel partner development, channel and distribution strategy, and revenue growth across the region.

Daniel, previously the regional director for the same region, has been working at the company since 2021.

He told CRN Australia that his focus is strengthening the company’s presence across the region by investing in local partner enablement and delivering value where it’s needed most.

“That includes supporting key industry verticals through our channel and driving adoption of our unified security platform — particularly in managed detection and response (MDR) and network detection and response (NDR), where demand is growing for precise and powerful security services designed to fit all organisations’ operational needs,” he said.

“We’re also focused on scaling in regions like the Pacific Islands, where there’s a clear need for more direct and localised support.”

Some of the challenges Daniel has identified in the market include the cybersecurity skills gap, increased compliance pressures, and more sophisticated threats.

“In ANZ, many are grappling with growing customer expectations around alignment to frameworks like the ACSC Essential Eight — not just in government, but increasingly across sectors like finance, education, and healthcare,” he explained.

However, Daniel noted these challenges also create opportunities.

“There’s strong demand for managed detection and response, and a clear shift toward simplified, integrated platforms from providers that show up for MSPs,” he said.

“Our 100 percent channel model removes vendor competition and is built to help partners scale — with unified solutions that enable them to deliver more value, more efficiently, to their customers.”

Daniel highlighted the strength of WatchGuard’s partner community.

“It’s a genuine ecosystem built on shared outcomes, trust, and long-term collaboration, and tailormade to help MSPs build their businesses,” he said.

“As a 100 percent channel-led business, we’re fully aligned with our partners and committed to helping them grow and succeed.”

To ensure partner success, Daniel said WatchGuard is focused on showing up for their partners every single day.

“We’re ensuring partner success by being present — in-market, accessible, and responsive to what our partners need,” he said.

“That means staying closely connected across ANZ and the Pacific Islands, and delivering local enablement through roadshows, bootcamps, and tailored go-to-market support.

“We’re also aligning our sales and technical teams more closely with partners to support co-selling and delivery. It’s all about removing friction, simplifying engagement, and helping partners grow with confidence in a complex market.”

Commenting on Daniel’s promotion, Sylvain Lejeune, vice president of sales, APJ, WatchGuard said, “Across the APJ region, we’ve seen strong and consistent growth driven by the success of our channel-first strategy, and the ANZ region has been a standout performer under the leadership of Anthony Daniel.

“We have deepened relationships with our partners and continued to deliver innovative, unified cybersecurity solutions.

“As we look to the future, we remain fully committed to supporting our channel community by expanding our local presence, investing in partner enablement, and delivering the resources and solutions they need to protect customers and grow their businesses.”

Recently the company acquired CyGlass, which brings WatchGuard advanced network detection and response (NDR) capabilities, and ActZero, which expanded WatchGuard’s managed detection and response (MDR) offering.

Daniel noted that the company’s focus is to simply growth together with its partners.

“With a 100 percent channel commitment, an adaptable security platform, and people that show up for partners across ANZ and the Pacific Islands, we’re here to help our channel community succeed consistently, confidently, and for the long term.

“We see our partners as an extension of our team, and that means continuously finding new, meaningful ways to support them at every step.”