GET TO KNOW
from me to succeed. Top performers don’t
need the same level of support as young
guns starting out but they still need time
and focus to get the best results. I take real
pleasure in seeing all my team achieve their
best potential.
What do you think will emerge as the
technology trend of 2020 and why?
The rise in the number of applications and
endpoints in all organisations renders the
traditional thought of putting a secure ring
around everything redundant. Instead, we
need to consider how we understand all the
different endpoints, applications, users and
ways to access information and be more
dynamic in the way we think about network
segmentation and the concept of trust.
What do you currently identify
as the major areas of investment
in your industry?
Cyber continues to be a hot area for
investment with many new technologies
coming to market. While adversaries
continue to evolve, there is still a shortage
of skills across the cybersecurity industry.
I am seeing significant development
and investment from higher education
establishments to attract young talent
from enterprises investing in their staff
and from vendors as we strive to enable
knowledge transfer into our customers. This
“
TOP PERFORMERS
DON’T NEED THE
SAME LEVEL OF
SUPPORT AS
YOUNG GUNS
STARTING OUT
BUT THEY STILL
NEED TIME AND
FOCUS TO GET THE
BEST RESULTS.
must continue to be a significant area of
investment for us all.
How do you deal with stress and
unwind outside of the office?
Physical pursuits like running and mountain
biking help me unwind as well as coaching
my son’s football team. I also just completed
an ascent of Snowdon for charity. It was
many miles on a bike and a kayak across a
lake, all in the wild Welsh weather but it was
brilliant and a great personal achievement
for a good cause.
If you could go back and change one
career decision, what would it be?
I wouldn’t change anything. Although my
career path started by chance, I would not
change a thing about it and I feel extremely
fortunate to have landed in, what I consider,
to be one of the most exciting areas of the
IT industry – cybersecurity.
What are the region-specific
challenges when implementing new
technologies in Europe?
The big challenge across EMEA is the
variation across countries in awareness
and approach to solving cyber-challenges.
In some countries, we see strong leadership
– governments driving forward regulation
to secure customer data, but in others we
see reluctance from enterprises to be
early adopters – preferring to let others
blaze the trail.
What changes to your job role have
you seen in the last year and how do
you see these developing in the next
12 months?
At Forescout, we are in a rapid growth
mode. Over the last year there has been
rapid expansion in my team, not just sales
roles but broader operations, professional
services, marketing and so on as we build
out our business. I expect this to continue
this year as we continue to grow and expand
into more countries across EMEA.
Exciting times ahead!
What advice would you
offer somebody aspiring to
obtain C-level position in
your industry?
The cybersecurity industry is founded
on trust. You have to trust the
people, processes and technology
around you to secure your enterprise,
customer data, IP etc. In order to
progress, real world experience is
vital of course, but more than that,
it is necessary to be well-informed,
credible, to trust and be trusted
among your peer network. Then to
take this foundation and be confident
to develop a clear direction, a vision for
your business that will ensure you stay
ahead of the threats. n
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