Michael D. Moberly    February 24, 2013    ‘A blog where attention span really matters’!

To the readers of my blog, please do not interpret this post as necessarily constituting an endorsement of a specific product or, in this instance a security technology.     

But, I really did have a very stimulating, probing, and thought provoking conversation recently with one of the co-founders and now CEO of CrowdStrike, an Irvine, CA. based ‘security technology’ firm which Business Insider reported as being one of ‘The 15 Most Important Security Startups Of 2013’.

I am respectfully confident the other twelve security technology startups highlighted in the ‘Business Insider’ piece were exemplary in their own right and the various security technologies they developed and embedded in their product produce beneficial outcomes for their clientele – market space.  But, in my view, CrowdStrike is perhaps, in a positive sense, somewhat atypical of numerous other technology startups which I have become familiar over the years, That is, based on my conversation with one of Crowdstrike’s founders, I surmised their experience and multiple symbiotic technologies and the relatively seamless and certainly strategic manner in which those technologies have been integrated was in no sense, merely a compilation of random outcomes of research in which someone eventually said, ‘hey, this may have some IT security applications’.

So, with many unremedied and forward looking concerns, risks, and threats facing businesses IT systems globally, CrowdStrike assembled a team of like-minded/experienced experts from various sectors to develop tiered-layered technologies to address the specific challenges expressed by the CFO’s, CTO’s, and CXO’s with whom they had acquired acquaintanceships.

CrowdStrike’s ‘pitch scripts’ appear o be genuinely fashioned and tailored to articulate and distinguish their technology in language c-suite’s can and do readily translate and convert in return-on-security-investment’ terms. But, more importantly, c-suites recognize CrowdStrike’s technology can mitigate problems they and many other companies were experiencing, i.e., the intangible asset losses emanating from the materialization of reputational risks, e.g., data breaches, etc.  

So, by no stretch of one’s imagination could CrowdStrike’s founders’ and senior leadership be tagged as ‘newbies’ particularly in five essential areas in which appear to firmly grasp, i.e.,

·         knowing – understanding, based on seemingly objective experiential research, the who, what, when, where, how, and why  of networks of global adversaries.

·         clarity of mission and purpose gleaned from countless conversations with c-suites globally.

·         clear formulas for effectively framing the globally asymmetric contexts which risks and threats to IT systems can materialize.

·         qualitative – quantitative recognition of ways which materialized (IT) risk – threats  produce significant and often irreversible adverse economic – competitive advantage effects to companies.

·         Integrate experienced language consistent with business decision making and risk prioritization.

Admittedly, IT security is not an arena in which I am as well versed as I am with intangible assets.  As I have endeavored to convey in countless posts, I am an intangible asset strategist and risk specialist and have a clear understanding for identifying and mitigating adverse economic – competitive advantage impacts of data security breaches and/or manipulations to companies’ varied and contributory value combinations of intangible assets.  And too, we know now, as economic fact, that intangible assets now routinely comprise 80+% of most company’s value, sources of revenue, and ‘building blocks’ for growth, profitability, and sustainability.  So, any materialized risks targeting a company’s intangibles can have devastating outcomes.

I am particularly intrigued by CrowdStrikes’ development of indicators of materializing (IT security) risks and threats and their ability to link same to particular adversaries, in real time.  All that, coupled with an awareness of adverse intangible asset impacts which risks-threats can bring to companies’ reputation, image, goodwill, and competitiveness, etc., solidly places them, in my view, in the category of being the right company with the right team, and the right strategy, at the right time to render them worthy of our attention, that is, possessing forward looking insights worthy of company decision makers’ attention.

Mr. Moberly personally researches and writes each post. Comments regarding my blog posts are encouraged and respected.  Should a reader elect to utilize all or a portion of my posts, full attribution is expected and appreciated. While visiting my blog readers are encouraged to browse other topics (posts) which may be relevant to their circumstance or business transaction.  I always welcome your inquiry at 314-440-3593 or [email protected].

Please also see previous posts respectively titled, Intangible Assets Embedded In Security Products… and Intangible Asset Deliverables In Sales Reps’ Pitch Scripts.