Co-authored by Steve Benvenuto

It may only be August, but in Cisco time it's the start of a brand-spanking-new (fiscal) year. As with any changing of calendars, it's the perfect time to take a step back and re-evaluate our priorities.

The security market represents a huge opportunity for you as a partner-the Total Addressable Market in the Americas alone is$17.0B. And areas like cloud security are growing by 33%, according to Gartner.

We're seeing partners sell more and more of Cisco's portfolio with added services. We need you by our side now more than ever to capture the market transitions and invest in these growth areas for security:

1. Start with the platform:SecureX

Haven't heard about it? SecureX is our simplified platform experience that connects Cisco's integrated security portfolio to our customers' existing infrastructure to unify visibility, enable automation, and strengthen your security. Customers have been quickly adopting SecureX since it became generally available back in June.

Join our virtual event SecureX Activate -Partner Insights Forum on September 23 for all the information you need to get your customers activated today.

2. Let's getSASE

Gartner has documented a shift in the market calling it Secure Access Service Edge (SASE, a.k.a. "sassy"). It's the convergence of networking and security services in the cloud to securely connect any user or device to any application with the best experience.

Cisco Umbrella SIG Essentials package is a key component of our SASE strategy. Learn more about how to sell it and generate new business.

3. EmbraceZero Trustor Bust

Zero Trust continues to be a conversation happening with our customers to ensure only the right users and devices gain access. As organizations move to a longer-term remote work strategy, Zero Trust security is more relevant than ever.

For Cisco, our Zero Trust model spans across the workplace, workforce, and workloads. We've been named a leader in the Forrester Wave? as validation of our multi-year zero-trust vision and strategy.

4. Stay ahead withBreach Defense

Customers need to simplify their security operations across web, email, and endpoint to protect and respond to the latest threats.

A great partner success example with breach defense comes from Logicalis. They helped a medical device manufacturer with a suite of Cisco solutions bundled into a Security Choice EA. Logicalis then added on the Managed Detection and Response (MDR) service to advance the customers' security operations capabilities further.

"It was not only a point-in-time win," said Ron Temske, Vice President -Cybersecurity Network and Workplace Solutions at Logicalis, "but now Logicalis and Cisco have become the go-to partner for all their security needs. We're looking forward to providing this offering to more customers this year."

Get Started Now

Now that we're aligned on the priorities, here are some ways to put them into practice:

• Take advantage of our Small Business sales motion, designed to help small businesses strengthen their cyber security simply and dramatically.
• Show customers the value of Cisco Secure solutions and provide lead pipeline for follow-up by offering free trials to your customers.
• Drive demand generation with activities such as Threat Hunting Workshops. We have some other helpful tips for improving your security marketing.
• As always, we offer competitive discounts and incentives to increase your profitability selling Cisco Security.

And a hot tip: bookmark The Source ebook to stay up-to-date on partner news throughout the year.

For Cisco and our partners, the security vision is clear-to empower the world to reach its full potential, securely. Here's to a new year!