By Chinenye Anuforo
Sophos, a cybersecurity solutions provider, has appointed Chris Bell the Senior Vice President of Global Channel, Alliances, and Corporate Development. The strategic move highlights Sophos’s commitment to a “channel-first” approach and aims to enhance its global partner experience.
Bell, who joins Sophos following its acquisition of Secureworks where he served as Chief Strategy Officer, brings over two decades of technology industry experience, including nearly a decade in cybersecurity and channel development. In his new role, Bell will spearhead the evolution of Sophos’s global channel strategy, focusing on expanding reach, empowering partners, and driving growth.
Key priorities for Bell include: Enhancing the Sophos partner experience, continuing innovation for MSPs and MSSPs, fuel partner growth, increasing Sophos’ market reach as well as expanding routes to market.
“Partners need adaptable strategies that prioritize flexibility to stay ahead of the increasingly complex threat landscape,” said Bell. “Unifying Sophos’ and Secureworks’ portfolios presents a unique opportunity to accelerate a future-ready channel program that arms partners with the technology, services, insights, and enablement needed to protect customers and fuel long-term growth.”
Sophos aims to equip its partners to better address evolving security challenges by aligning closely with their needs and fostering an open ecosystem.
“Evolving our channel business to consistently deliver excellent customer outcomes is at the core of our partner go-to-market approach,” said Torjus Gylstorff, Chief Revenue Officer at Sophos. “We are thrilled to have Chris’ strategic vision and deep channel and cybersecurity expertise to shape Sophos’ channel strategy and build programs to empower partners to scale their security business.”
Sophos has been recognised as a Champion in the Canalys Global Cybersecurity Leadership Matrix 2025 and received a 5-Star Award in the 2025 CRN Partner Program Guide, marking its 12th consecutive year receiving this honor. These accolades highlight Sophos’s commitment to channel excellence and partner value.
Following the acquisition of Secureworks, Sophos stands as a leading pure-play cybersecurity vendor of managed detection and response services, serving over 28,000 global customers. The company continues to enhance partner support through initiatives like Sophos Partner Care and Sophos Customer Success, ensuring efficient onboarding, retention, and growth.