Varonis Systems
Careers at Varonis Systems
Mission
Varonis Systems’ mission is to protect customers’ sensitive information from threats, automate time-consuming tasks, and extract valuable insights from their data.
Founding story
Yaki Faitelson and Ohad Korkus were storage experts in the professional services and systems integration divisions of NetVision and NetApp. In 2003 one of their clients, an oil and gas company, experienced a crisis – millions of dollars‘ worth of high resolution images disappeared from their file servers. They wanted to know if someone had deleted them and who had access.
Unfortunately, Faitelson and Korkus determined that no existing systems could answer these questions. They realized there was a need for a better way to track, visualize, analyze, and protect data. So in 2004 they founded Varonis Systems, a provider of a next generation data management and protection solutions. Its products would retrieve metadata contained within file systems.
The two used Dr. Jacob Goldberger, an expert in machine learning and statistical modeling, to guide them in designing and developing their solution. In 2005 they filed a patent, which was granted in 2006. That year they created the Intelligent Data Use (IDU) classification platform, designed to gather and analyze file data use. DatAdvantage, the first offering based on the platform, came out in 2006.
DatAdvantage enabled companies to monitor user behavior and file activity, as well as manage data access rights and data ownership. Because of its promise, in 2009 Varonis raised $15 million in venture capital funding. The next few years saw several enhancements, including features for detecting and uncovering data breaches. In 2014, it filed an initial public offering.
Business model of Varonis Systems
Customer Segments
Varonis Systems has a mass market business model, with no significant differentiation between customer groups. The company targets its offerings at organizations of all industries and sizes.
Value Proposition
Varonis Systems offers three primary value propositions: accessibility, convenience, and brand/status.
The company creates accessibility by providing a wide variety of options. It specializes in email and file systems that store valuable spreadsheets, presentations, word processing documents, video and audio files, and text. It also supports the following platforms: Windows, UNIX/Linux, SharePoint, Exchange, Office365, Active Directory/LDAP, EMC NAS, NetApp NAS, HP NAS, Hitachi NAS. Lastly, its software is used for a broad range of use cases, including governance and compliance, user behavior analytics, data security, search, archiving, and file synchronization and sharing.
The company offers convenience by making life simpler for customers. It allows clients to:
- Know whenever sensitive files and emails are opened, modified, moved, or deleted
- Analyze behavior across several platforms and trigger alerts on suspicious activity/data breaches
- Obtain full visibility on local/domain admins and identify accounts with unnecessary privileges
- Map permissions, automate reports, and manage audit trails to meet data requirements for SOX, HIPAA, PCI, GDPR, GLB, FERC/NERC, and other compliance standards
The company has established a strong brand due to its success. It has over 5,350 clients in over 70 countries worldwide. Prominent customers include Toyota, NASA, ING, L’Oreal, and EMC. Lastly, it has won many honors, including the following:
- Recognition as one of the fastest-growing tech companies in North America by Deloitte
- Info Security Product Guide’s Global Excellence Awards in the User Behavior Analytics category
- Recognition as Auditing/Reporting Solution of the Year at the Computing Security Awards
- Network Products Guide Award in the Bronze category
- Recognition as having “Most Innovative Insider Threat Detection Solution“ by Cyber Defense Magazine for its DatAdvantage product
Channels
Varonis Systems’ main channel is its network of channel partners, which primarily includes resellers and distributors. The company promotes its offerings through its website, social media pages, and participation in webinars, seminars, summits, and conferences.
Customer Relationships
Varonis Systems’ customer relationship is primarily of a personal assistance nature. The company assists customers in the following ways:
Support Services – The company provides phone and e-mail customer service through a team of technical specialists and engineers.
Training Services – The company provides customized instructor-led training programs in 4-hour blocks. They fall into three categories: Basic User Training, Administrator Training (consists of advanced instruction), and Remediation Training (includes role- and function-specific training).
Professional Services – The company provides a wide variety of professional services from a dedicated project manager and engineers, including risk assessments, project management, product installation, remediation, infrastructure design/planning, product migrations, and customizations.
Despite this orientation, there is a self-service component. The company’s website features useful resources such as white papers, data sheets, compliance briefs, research reports, videos, and answers to frequently asked questions. There is also a community element in the form of a forum.
Key Activities
Varonis Systems’ business model entails maintaining and updating its platform for customers.
Key Partners
Varonis Systems’ key partners are the resellers and distributors through which it sells its products and services. The company also works with “Technology Alliance Partners“, firms that integrate their solutions with its products in order to provide enhanced offerings for customers. Specific partners include CyberArk, ArcSight, LogRhythm, EMC Corporation, FireEye, ONTAP, Dell, Quantum, McAfee, RSA, HP, and Hitachi Data Systems.
Partner benefits include training and sales/marketing tools and access to a Partner Portal.
Key Resources
Varonis Systems’ main resource is its proprietary software platform, which serves over 5,350 clients. It depends on human resources in the form of engineers that maintain and update the platform, training employees that provide instruction, and customer service personnel that provide support.
It places a strong emphasis on intellectual property, with 34 issued patents and 41 pending patent applications in the U.S., and 10 issued and 61 applications pending for non-U.S. jurisdictions. Lastly, it has relied on funding from investors, raising $28.8 million from four investors as of February 2014.
Cost Structure
Varonis Systems has a value-driven structure, aiming to provide a premium proposition through significant personal service and frequent service enhancements. Its biggest cost driver is sales/marketing, a fixed cost.
Other major drivers are in the areas of research/development and administration, both fixed costs, and cost of revenues, a variable cost.
Revenue Streams
Varonis Systems has two revenue streams:
- Revenues generated from fees charged to license its software
- Revenues generated from fees charged for relevant maintenance and other services
