Tom McAndrew vs Avani Desai

Tom McAndrew

CEO of Coalfire

BIO: Tom McAndrew is Chief Executive Officer for Coalfire. He is recognized as one of the world’s leading cybersecurity experts in both the commercial and government sectors. Mr. McAndrew joined Coalfire in 2006, and since that time, has held key leadership roles spanning Sales, Operations, Service Delivery, and Technical Testing, most recently serving as the company’s COO. Mr. McAndrew is focused on driving aggressive growth for the company’s strategic business units; under his leadership, Sales and Delivery teams have grown the business an average of 40+% annually over the past five years while supporting more than 2,000 customers annually. During his time at Coalfire, he has established the vision and implemented new services to meet the growing challenges in cybersecurity in such areas as cloud computing, forensics, penetration testing, architecture, and cyber engineering, and expanded Coalfire’s compliance and assurance services. He has established Coalfire as the cyber security leader in a variety of industries including financial services, healthcare, government, payment processors, technology, and cloud. Prior to joining Coalfire, Mr. McAndrew had a distinguished career in information security and weapons systems for the Navy. He has worked for the Space and Naval Warfare Command, Office of Naval Intelligence, National Reconnaissance Office, Office of Naval Research, and has made deployments in support of overseas combat operations. He has received several awards in cybersecurity and leadership including being recognized as one of the top influencers in Federal IT (FCW Federal 100), 40 under 40 business leaders in Seattle, top senior security leaders in North America (ISC2), and has several certifications in cybersecurity. He has served on several boards including start-ups, not for profit, and education. Mr. McAndrew is a graduate of the United States Naval Academy, holds an MBA from the University of Washington, a Master of Science degree in Information Technology from the University of Maryland, and a Master’s certificate in Space Systems from the Naval Post-Graduate School.

Avani Desai

CEO of Schellman

BIO: Avani Desai is a Chief Executive Officer at Schellman, the largest niche cybersecurity assessment firm in the world that focuses on technology assessments. Avani is an accomplished executive with domestic and international experience in information security, operations, P&L, oversight, and marketing involving both start-up and growth organizations. She has been featured in Forbes, CIO.com, and the Wall Street Journal, and is a sought-after speaker as a voice on a variety of emerging topics, including security, privacy, information security, future technology trends, and the expansion of young women involved in technology. Also passionate about strategic philanthropy, Avani sits on the board of Arnold Palmer Medical Center, Philanos, Audit Committee chairwoman at the Central Florida Foundation, and is the co-chair of 100 Women Strong, a female-only venture capitalist based giving circle that focuses on solving community-based problems specific to women and children by using data analytics and big data. Avani is also an avid runner, always looking to sign up for the next Disney marathon. With all that being said, Avani still considers her greatest accomplishment to be personal rather than professional—she is the proud mother to Sahil, Sareena, and Hastin.