Eric Simmons CEO, Asigra, Replacing David Farajun Now COB

Asigra Inc. announced executive appointments to its senior management team as the ransomware threat to backup data takes center stage in 2022.

Moving the company into the new year are industry veterans: Eric Simmons CEO, Val Silva CTO, Pete Nourse CRO/CMO, and Chris Gilkes VP of WW sales.

The new team reflects a new chapter for the company by adding experience in key areas to address growth objectives and the evolving cybersecurity landscape.

“Ransomware is resulting in revenue and data loss, compromised data, reputational damage, significant operational disruption and more,” said Zachary Ginsburg, research director for the Gartner audit and risk practice. “Regardless of their size or revenue, organizations should assume they willvbe targeted with ransomware, and they should examine their prevention, detection, mitigation, response and recovery measures.”(1)

Taking on this challenge head-on is Eric Simmons, new CEO. He more than 2 decades of strategic enterprise IT experience to the company and is making it his mission to elevate the company’s position in secure backup and recovery as businesses defend against the reach of ransomware into backup data. Prior to Asigra, he held the post of chief sstrategy officer for IMC, the parent company of AI/analytics provider Scaled Insights, where he refined the software vendor’s strategic direction, resulting in a stronger market presence and increased revenues. Before that, he was CEO of Altum Health, a division of the University Health Network where he developed a 5-year strategic plan and diversification strategy that led the organization to focus on timely execution of strategic priorities. He has also held senior executive positions at Dell, Rogers Communications, Canadian Tire and other leading organizations going back to 1996.

Company’s founder and former CEO of Asigra, David Farajun, moves to COB.

Spearheading platform development is Val Silva, new CTO. With 3 decades of engineering and software development expertise, he is setting the company’s sights on advancing its core value to the user and enhancing customer experience metrics in terms of usability, interoperability, scalability and next-generation security to ensure resilience to malicious cyberattacks. Prior to Asigra, he was CTO of IMC, an AI company which won numerous awards including Best New AI Startup in the 2018 Global AI Awards. He has a knowledge of computer science and development coupled with an understanding of how to organize people to achieve the best possible outcomes.

Managing revenue growth and marketing for Asigra is Pete Nourse who holds the position of CRO/CMO. Pete will be centered on amplifying awareness for the company and its AI-based anti-malware backup and recovery platform in support of enterprises and the company’s IT channel. Prior to that, he was CMO for Veriato, an AI-based security software provider where he grew the company’s market position over a 3-year period. Before that, he was director of market strategy for Bitdefender, a cybersecurity vendor and director of marketing for nCipher where he defined target markets, developed positioning, and played a role in market development.

Leading international sales operations is Chris Gilkes who joins as VP of WW sales. He is an experienced technology sales executive and is responsible for sales strategy and execution. Based in London, UK he has spent much of his career delivering technology solutions across public and private sector organizations. Prior to that, he managed EMEA sales and operations at Veriato, and was part of the senior management team at Canon, focusing on cybersecurity. Additionally, he worked at Blackthorn Technologies where he worked with many high-profile commercial and government organizations. With his experience in technology sales management, business development and channel expansion, he will play a role in the company’s accelerated growth strategy.

“Ransomware has come a long way since its emergence and it now attacks data backups which had previously been the last line of defense,” said Simmons. “With a highly skilled team of senior executives and software engineers wielding the most secure backup platform on the market, we are pleased to embark on this new journey as we advance our technological excellence and global presence.“

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(1) Gartner, Gartner says Ransomware and Long-Term Economic Effects from
Covid-19 are Top Issues for Auditors in 2022, November 9, 2021