Vanta, a leading trust management platform, has appointed Jadee Hanson as its CISO. It is the third CXO appointment within a year. Following the addition of David Eckstein, Chief Financial Officer and Jeremy Epling, Chief Product Officer.
Hanson appears to be the first CISO that Vanta has appointed. The last head of security appears to have been Rob Picard. He left the company in December 2023 as the “Security Lead” to become CEO of Observa, a security consultancy for startups that he co-founded this month. Hanson will oversee Security, Enterprise Engineering and Privacy, Risk and Compliance (PRC). That it has taken this long for Vanta to appoint its first CISO when it sells to CISOs is surprising but a sensible move.
Christina Cacioppo, Founder and CEO, commented, “At Vanta, trust is at the center of everything we do – from being trustworthy in how we build to what we build for our customers’ own trust and security. As the market-leading trust management platform, finding an exemplary CISO with strong commercial sense, depth of experience in growing and developing exceptional teams, and a proven leader in security whose own philosophy aligned to ours was of paramount importance.
“Jadee brings these attributes and much more to Vanta over her past 20 years of building businesses for growing security companies like Code42 and iconic billion-dollar brands like Target and Deloitte. I’m looking forward to Jadee’s leadership as we continue accelerating our enterprise momentum and pioneering the future of trust for global companies of all sizes.”
Who is Jadee Hanson
Hanson is an experienced leader who has worked at Code42 for nearly eight years. She rose to the role of Chief Information Security Officer and Chief Information Officer during her time there. At Code42, she was responsible for business technology strategy and purchasing. As well as leading global risk and compliance, security operations, incident response, and insider threat monitoring and investigations.
At Code42 she was involved in building the company’s cybersecurity program. Working on culture setting in the early days of the project. In 2020, she was integral in the launch of an insider risk management detection and response product and securing FedRAMP authorization for it. She has also co-authored a book with Joe Payne and Mark Wojtasiak. “Inside Jobs: Why Insider Risk Is the Biggest Cyber Threat You Can’t Ignore”, Amazon (Aus, UK, US). Her work was most recently recognised by Security Magazine when she was named one of the top Cybersecurity Leaders of 2023.
Before Code42, she worked for Target in various leadership positions within the security team. She served as the security leader for the acquisition of software development and online retail companies and the sale of Target Pharmacies to CVS Health. Hanson stayed at Target for nearly eight years.
She began her career working in the enterprise Risk Services team at Deloitte. During her tenure as manager, she worked as a security consultant for several customers across various industries. Including healthcare, technology, manufacturing, energy, and retail.
Hanson also acts as a security advisor to YL Ventures and is currently a cybersecurity advisor to Noname Security. It is unclear if that role will continue with potential conflicts of interest.
Hanson is also the CEO and Founder of the non-profit organisation Building Without Borders. The organisation works in the Dominican Republic, working with local leadership and Christian ministries to build homes in the region. Its mission is to improve the quality of life for those in need around the world by providing funds for houses, building materials, and shelter. Since its founding in 2015, it has built 86 houses in the Dominican Republic. It also holds food drives in October and November for Christmas food packages.
Hanson commented, “Vanta is the prime example of a company putting customers first to solve the cybersecurity challenges of today, with cutting-edge automation, AI and a trust management platform that’s unmatched in the industry. I’m elated to bring my cybersecurity experience to the Vanta team, and ultimately our customers, from small businesses to large enterprises. Together, we’ll continue to listen intently to the needs of our customers and deliver solutions that not only empower but also elevate cybersecurity controls on a global scale.”
Joining a vibrant company
Hanson is joining a company that more than doubled its customer base in 2023. This was on the back of a Series B funding raise of $40 million the previous year led by CrowdStrike. The company now has more than 6,000 customers across 58 countries. While the company has a remote first workforce strategy, it has offices in San Francisco, New York, Sydney and Dublin. It is also growing significantly, with 36 open positions worldwide. Including one in Canada, which may mean it is considering opening an office there.
The company has also launched more than 260 new product features. These include Vanta AI, Vendor Risk Management, and the Vanta Trust Center. The platform also includes more than 300 integrations with plans to add more. Including Ashby and Harness, the next two on the roadmap.
Enterprise Times: What does this mean
Cacioppo has managed to lure a significant leader to Vanta. As CISO, not only does Hanson have the experience to help steer the company strategy, she will also be able to assist with customer conversations. Bringing her a deep understanding of their issues, having faced them herself during her career. What will be interesting is to see the balance she achieves in her new role.
