Okta, the leading independent identity provider, has strengthened its APJ leadership team and reaffirmed its commitment to its partner ecosystem with the appointment of Ajay Advani as vice president of partner and Alliances for Asia Pacific and Japan (APJ).

Advani will lead the partner team across APJ, building and optimising the partner ecosystem spanning technology partners, distributors, channel partners, systems integrators, cloud service providers, and hyperscalers.

"We are thrilled to have Ajay join Okta. His commitment to nurturing partnerships and enhancing customer experience will strengthen our APJ footprint," said Ben Goodman, Oktas senior vice president for Asia Pacific and Japan.

Working closely with Bill Hustad, Oktas senior vice president, Global Partner and Alliances, and Ben Goodman, Advani will develop and execute Oktas partner strategy for APJ. This strategy will focus on expanding Oktas reach through partners and increasing the partners capabilities to serve Oktas customers better.

Okta views partners as a critical extension of its salesforce. Earlier this year, the company overhauled its partner program and launched Okta Elevate to streamline engagement, create more opportunities to win, and accelerate growth.

"With identity management at the core of digital operations, Okta's mission is to equip organisations with secure identity-led infrastructure, bolstering their digital service capabilities. A strong partner network is critical to achieving this goal," said Advani.

The program transformed the partner experience and introduced a new partner tiering framework, providing partners with access to various financial and business benefits, from training and tools to market development funds and partner advisory councils. Partners enter the program at the Activate tier and meet a combination of revenue and specialization requirements to achieve higher tiers: Amplify, Ascend, and Apex.

Okta also announced a strategic alliance with KPMG Australia, further expanding the partner network in Australia. The alliance includes the launch of a new offering, Powered Enterprise | Cyber enabled by Okta, an outcome-driven transformation solution that empowers businesses to prepare for and protect themselves in the digital future.

Powered Enterprise | Cyber enabled by Okta is a collaboration between Okta's IDaaS platform and KPMG's Powered Enterprise methodology. This alliance helps organisations accelerate the delivery of cloud access management programs and services, allowing a smooth transition to the cloud without the limitations of traditional legacy IT. Central to the alliance is the KPMG Powered Framework for Okta, a solution that leverages KPMG's extensive experience in functional transformation with the latest cloud technologies, ensuring businesses achieve their objectives and rapid modernisation with a high level of certainty.

With more than 25 years of experience, Ajay Advani will strengthen Okta's leadership team. Over the course of his career, Advani has demonstrated his commitment to industry growth and evolution, having built partner programs and ecosystems in several companies and geographies.

"We are thrilled to have Ajay join Okta. His commitment to nurturing partnerships and enhancing customer experience will strengthen our APJ footprint," said Ben Goodman, Oktas senior vice president for Asia Pacific and Japan.

"With identity management at the core of digital operations, Okta's mission is to equip organisations with secure identity-led infrastructure, bolstering their digital service capabilities. A strong partner network is critical to achieving this goal," said Advani.