Philip Quade

About Philip Quade

Is CISO in Residence (former COO) at Evolution, an international (New York, Palo Alto, Zurich, London) venture capital investor, partnering with exceptional entrepreneurs to develop cybersecurity & market-adjacent companies.Served as the CISO of Fortinet, a Silicon Valley, S&P 500 cybersecurity company that is #1 in units shipped or 2 in market capitalization. During his time in the C-Suite, Fortinet achieved 12x market cap growth, was profitable, debt-free, and had ~20% annual growth rate. A senior executive and technologist with deep operational experience, served as a strategic consultant to large Enterprises, was a trusted advisor to governments worldwide, and formed relationships & coalitions to solve large problems. Also led Fortinet’s Critical Infrastructure protection strategy.Is a member of a number of external Enterprise, start-up, and Government Boards, and was Board Chairman for Fortinet Federal.Appears regularly in NBC, CNBC, Forbes, USA Today, Washington Post, and other outlets, and is author of The Digital Big Bang (Wiley Publishing, 2019).Formerly with the National Security Agency for 30+ years, was most recently the NSA Director’s Special Assistant for Cyber & Chief of the NSA Cyber Task Force. Regularly represented NSA at the White House on national strategy, policy, budget, and intelligence & attack operations. Immediately prior, was Chief Operating Officer of the NSA directorate responsible for Government classified information systems and nuclear command & control codes.Previously served at: US Cyber Command; the US Senate; the Director of National Intelligence, and a special CIA/Pentagon joint center.Motivated by good people, hard strategic challenges, team-oriented action, diversity of thought/background, a sense of humor, and family. Expertise:•Management of large, complex organizations, with multi-billion dollar budgets and worldwide mission & workforce•Deep technical & operational expertise, including Cyber (defensive, offensive, intelligence), high-performance computing, and cryptography•Extensive Public Speaking experience, including TV; Radio; Tier-1 press; Congressional testimony; major keynotes; panels; press; Chatham House Rules venues•Senior Government insights and TS//SCI clearances, working effectively at the White House, Capitol Hill, Pentagon, CIA (hundreds of meetings at each)•Program Management for large, competitive Development & Production acquisition contracts•In-depth experience in strategic planning, risk management, and use of technology, leadership, and policy to achieve goals

Experience

1. CISO in Residence

   Evolution Equity Partners

   Apr 2025 — Present

   The CISO in Residence is the senior executive with extensive domain experience who enhances Evolution’s investment strategy & execution, supports portfolio company vetting & growth, and strengthens the firm\'s market position. At Evolution, serves on the Investment Committee, represents the firm to potential investors, and grows portfolio companies.

Education

• University of Maryland

  Bachelor of Science (B.S.) Computer Science, Computer Science, Mathematics