Barracuda names ANZ winners of 2026 partner awards

Barracuda has named the Australian and New Zealand winners of its 2026 Barracuda Partner Awards.

The programme recognises organisations and individuals for customer and business performance over the past year across Barracuda's regional channel network.

Winthrop Australia was named Partner of the Year, while Alliance Business Technologies took MSP Partner of the Year. Synnex Australia received Distributor of the Year, and Swapnil Jain of NEXTGEN Distribution was named Distributor Champion of the Year.

Other winners were Datacom Systems for Email Security Partner of the Year, Accucom Systems Integration for Collaboration Partner of the Year, and Cymax for the Compliance & Risk Leadership Award. GPK Group won the Technical Excellence Award, and NetStrategy took the XDR / Managed Security Services Partner award.

The recognition comes as Barracuda expands its work with channel partners in Australia and New Zealand, where managed service providers, resellers, value-added resellers, distributors, and hybrid partners make up a large part of its route to market.

Dan McLean, Country Manager for Australia and New Zealand at Barracuda, linked the awards to the company's broader partner strategy in the region.

"Our partners are at the heart of our growth across Australia and New Zealand, and these awards recognise the important role they play in helping customers build stronger cyber resilience," said Dan McLean, Country Manager for Australia and New Zealand at Barracuda.

"We are seeing tremendous momentum across the local channel, with partners continuing to invest in their capabilities and find new ways to deliver value to customers. Our focus is on giving them the expertise, tools, and opportunities they need to grow their businesses while delivering better security outcomes," McLean said.

Regional focus

Barracuda has continued to add resources and programmes for partners in the two markets. That includes a strategic alliance with CyberCert, which certifies the SMB1001 cyber security standard, aimed at giving managed service providers and small to medium-sized businesses a path to certification.

It has also updated its Partner Success Program with additional marketing support, changes to its partner portal, more training and certification through the Barracuda Mastery Program, and new initiatives intended to raise partner visibility in the market.

Those changes reflect a broader effort to refresh its partner model as competition intensifies among cyber security vendors for influence over service providers and resellers serving smaller businesses.

Synnex Australia said the distribution award reflected the work of its teams and its relationship with Barracuda.

"This recognition reflects the strength of our partnership with Barracuda and the dedication of our teams in supporting partners, creating new opportunities, and helping customers access innovative security solutions. Together, we've built strong momentum, and we're excited to continue growing our partnership and creating new opportunities for mutual success," said Deniz Kilicci, Product Director at Synnex Australia.

Alliance Business Technologies pointed to demand for managed security services as customers face a more complex cyber risk environment.

"As an MSP, our focus is on delivering security outcomes that are effective, scalable, and sustainable for customers. Barracuda's platform has enabled us to expand our managed security services, strengthen cyber resilience across our customer base, and create long-term value. We're proud to receive this recognition and remain committed to helping organisations navigate an increasingly complex threat landscape," said Troy Radloff, General Manager at Alliance Business Technologies.

Winthrop Australia said the award reflected its focus on customer problems and long-term business growth.

"Our approach has always been centred on helping customers solve real security challenges while enabling sustainable growth for our business and partners. Being recognised by Barracuda for our performance and customer impact is a proud achievement for the entire Winthrop Australia team and reinforces the value of staying focused on long-term outcomes," said Brett Armstrong, Executive General Manager at Winthrop Australia.

Swapnil Jain of NEXTGEN Distribution said channel performance depended on joint work across vendors, distributors, and partners.

"Success in the channel is built on strong relationships, trusted partnerships, and a shared commitment to helping partners grow. No one achieves an award like this alone. It is the result of collaboration, shared goals, and the dedication of people across both organisations who work every day to support partners and drive growth. I'm proud to represent an incredible team and grateful to Barracuda for the recognition, as well as to the partners who continue to place their trust in us," said Swapnil Jain, Senior Vendor Manager, ANZ at NEXTGEN Distribution.