Laura Beck, CMO

As interim Chief Marketing Officer for SECNAP, Laura Beck brings the benefit of 18 years of public relations and marketing experience in the technology space. Her expertise was developed at large public relations agencies, including her most recent 13-year post at global powerhouse Porter Novelli, where she conceived and implemented PR and marketing programs for technology brands such as HP, EMC and BMC Software.

While these brands included a security focus, Ms. Beck’s most significant security experience began in early 2002, when she fully led and executed the launch of TippingPoint Technologies, and the introduction of a new enterprise/network security category: IPS.  This big-buzz marketing strategy resulted in TippingPoint’s acquisition by 3Com. Her eight-year concentration in security technology included assisting WholeSecurity in its early 2003 launch of solutions in the online identity theft space, ahead of the curve in addressing threats from phishing, pharming, site spoofing and Trojans.  Within two years, WholeSecurity was listed among Fortune Magazine’s Top 25 companies to watch, and was soon acquired by Symantec.

Ms. Beck has also assisted a diverse range of security firms including LayerN (SSL semiconductors), Alchemedia (eDRM), Datakey (smartcards), NetBotz (integrated physical and network security), GuardedNet (SEM), Mirage Networks (network access control), Scalable (compliance software), BreakingPoint (network test), iovation (device level protection), CoreTrace (application white listing), PwC, and the National Cyber Security Alliance. With Porter Novelli, she also helped support McAfee for years, through its name change to Network Associates and its return to the McAfee brand.

Ms. Beck has developed strong relationships in the security industry, with business players as well as industry influencers, consultants, experts, media and analysts at outlets such as Computerworld, Dark Reading, Gartner, InfoWorld, Network World, TechCrunch, TechTarget, the451 Group, VentureBeat and WSJ.

Ms. Beck established and grew the Austin, Texas office of Porter Novelli to a $3M shop with 35% profitability and a large portfolio of satisfied clients, including TippingPoint, WholeSecurity and others noted above.  She left the firm in May, 2010 to explore independent marketing and PR consulting, with a continuing focus on helping technology start-ups and entrepreneurs bring their dreams to life, create positive buzz, and gain strategic visibility.