FireMon Picks Up Two Former FishNet Security Execs After Acquisition

Less than two months after a blockbuster merger between Accuvant and FishNet Security, two of the company's executives have been scooped up by partner network security intelligence company FireMon.

On Thursday, FireMon announced it had added Brandy Peterson as chief technology officer and John Van Blaricum as vice president of marketing. Both executives held the same title at FishNet before starting at FireMon in February.

The two companies already have a close partner relationship, as FireMon was spun off from FishNet in 2004. FishNet remains a key channel partner of the vendor.

[Related: Accuvant-FishNet Merger Complete, $1.5B Security Behemoth Is Born]

Peterson had been at FishNet for 16 years, most recently as CTO, where he helped oversee the company's hardware and software strategy as well as launch the company's commercial security operations center. Van Blaricum spent two years at FishNet and has also held positions at Mediware Information Systems and Innovation Group. In a statement, CEO Jody Brazil praised the executives' "proven track records," which he said would "prove invaluable" to the company's growth trajectory in the future.

"The extensive knowledge and experience that comes with the addition of Brandy and John to the FireMon executive team further positions the company to build and deliver industry leading security solutions to the growing market we serve," FireMon CEO Jody Brazil said in a statement.

Peterson said in an interview with CRN that he has an "immediate focus" of delivering a new vision to the market within the next few months. Beyond that, he said he will focus on incorporating the company's recent acquisition of Immediate Insight and expanding the company's Solutions Architecture Group.

A lot of that growth push will be focused around channel partners, Peterson said. That's one area where Peterson said his many years at a security-focused solution provider will come in handy, as he is already intimately familiar with both the technology and the ins-and-outs of the channel partner model.

"It is a very important component for us. I've seen from the other side how important the reseller community is to the security industry," Peterson said. "That's a really big deal for us ... that we have the right set of partners. We have a lot of people here that get that and understand that."

Steve Barone, CEO of Ferndale, Mich.-based CBI, a FireMon partner, said in an email that the most recent executive additions are just another instance of the company "pulling away from the pack."

"I am excited to see FireMon continue to build their executive team with A players. It further shows their commitment to the growth strategy we’ve discussed with them in detail. Moves like this create a solid energy right before our inaugural Partner Advisory Board session at RSA," Barone said.

PUBLISHED APRIL 16, 2015