Exclusive: Symantec confirms 'withdrawal' of NZ enterprise solutions staff

Symantec has this morning confirmed to ChannelLife that as of April, the vendor will have no New Zealand-based staff with the enterprise solutions side of the business to be maintained by its local distributor.

Rumours have been swirling that the vendor was gearing up to exit New Zealand.

Today, came the official announcement.

"Symantec has no intention of leaving New Zealand, but we are making some changes as we plan our company's separation," a spokesperson says.

"Beginning in April, Symantec will maintain its presence and service in the New Zealand market for enterprise solutions through its local distributor and extensive partner network and will withdraw its direct enterprise sales team.

The spokesperson says Symantec is working closely with partners to ensure a smooth transition and to minimise impact to customers.

Symantec will split into two separate companies at the end of the calendar year, with the security business continuing as Symantec, while a second company, Veritas, will handle the information management business.

The company declined to disclose local staff numbers, saying only that 'as a region, across Australia and New Zealand, we have approximately 500 employees'.

The spokesperson says 'a small number' of direct enterprise sales positions have become redundant, and some staff have been redeployed to Australia, as a result of the changes