DARKTRACE - Key Persons
Al has over 14 years' experience in enterprise software. Prior to joining Darktrace, he was responsible for the creation and growth of the HP Professional Services Solutions organization. Al is responsible for customer-facing technical teams at Darktrace, ensuring the highest standards of consistency and service across the customer experience. Al holds a first-class degree in Computer Science from the University of Sheffield.
Job Titles:
- Chief Financial Officer
- Member of the Board of Directors
Cathy Graham is Darktrace's Chief Financial Officer. Cathy has more than two decades of professional experience in financial disciplines and has served at the helm of several businesses throughout periods of rapid growth and capital structure evolution. Previously at 2U, a global leader in education technology, she has extensive experience in developing and maturing hyper-growth technology companies. In 2015, she was named as Northern Virginia Technology Council's ‘Public Company CFO of the Year' and has most recently been included in the Washington Business Journal's 2018 list of ‘Women Who Mean Business.' Cathy will lead Darktrace through an exciting period of continued growth and technological innovation. She holds an MBA from Loyola University Maryland and a BA in Economics from the University of Maryland.
Dave is the Chief Product Officer at Darktrace, overseeing the mathematics and engineering teams and project strategies. With over 13 years' experience at the forefront of government intelligence operations, Dave has worked across UK intelligence agencies GCHQ and MI5, where he was responsible for delivering mission-critical infrastructure services, including replacing and securing entire global networks, the development of operational internet capabilities and the management of critical disaster recovery incidents. He acts as an advisor to cyber security start-ups and growth-stage companies from the UK Government's Cyber Security Accelerator and CyLon. His insights on AI and the future of cyber security are also regularly featured in the UK media. He holds a first-class degree in Computer Science and Software Engineering from the University of Birmingham.
Job Titles:
- Chief Technology Officer, Americas
Eloy Avila has over fourteen years' experience in enterprise software. Based in San Francisco, he works closely with Darktrace's R&D team to develop its world-leading Self-Learning AI, and oversees the technology's strategic direction in the US, Latin America and Canada. He currently sits on The Experiences Per Mile (EPM) Advisory Council, which brings together industry leaders to discuss the future of automotive and mobility industry. Prior to Darktrace, Eloy led global engineering teams at a number of listed technology companies, and has helped design and build ultra-efficient electric vehicles in the US and Australia. Eloy holds a degree in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University, California.
Emily is one of the founding members of Darktrace, and has worked in technology marketing and communications for ten years. Her commentary on the cyber security challenge has been reported in leading media outlets including BBC News, Sky News and Channel 4. In 2018, she was named in the ‘Maserati 100' index of British entrepreneurs in The Sunday Times and in 2020, she was recognized by Management Today as one of Britain's brightest young business leaders. Emily holds an MA in Modern Languages from the University of Cambridge.
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Member of the Board of Directors
Gordon is Chairman of Darktrace, having joined the Board as a Non-Executive Director in August 2019. He has been on the Board of Featurespace since November 2014, and prior to that, he joined Capita in 1988 and was first appointed to the Board as Commercial Director in February 1996. Through a combination of acquisitions and ground-breaking white collar outsourcing deals - initially in the public sector - the company continued its rapid growth and entered the FTSE 100 in 2001. Through this period Gordon was instrumental in managing acquisitions, large outsourcing deals, and building a team of commercially-focused Finance Directors to enable continued development of the business. Capita plc has a turnover of c£4.5bn, employs 65,000 people, and spans numerous markets and sectors including Financial Services and Banking. Gordon also is Non-Executive Chair of the PE funded services business, Marston Holdings, and a Non-Executive Director of Motorpoint Plc.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Han joined Summit Partners in 2004 and today manages the firm's London office. He focuses primarily on investments in the technology sector in Europe. Han is currently a director at Darktrace, Flow Traders (Euronext: FLOW), Masternaut, OnRobot, Red Points, RELEX Solutions, Siteimprove and Syncron, and he is actively involved in the firm's investment in Avast (LON: AVST). His previous board and investment experience includes 360T Group (acquired by Deutsche Börse), Acturis Limited (acquired by Astorg), Multifonds (acquired by Temenos), SafeBoot (acquired by McAfee) and Welltec International (acquired by Exor and 7 Industries).
Prior to Summit, Han worked for Scotia Capital and IBM Corporation. He holds a BS in business administration from the University of Groningen, an MSc in international business from the University of Groningen, and an MSc in international finance from the CERAM Graduate School of Management & Technology.
Job Titles:
- Chief Technology Officer
- Founding CTO
Jack Stockdale is the founding CTO at Darktrace. With over 20 years' experience of software engineering, Jack is responsible for overseeing the development of Bayesian mathematical models and artificial intelligence algorithms that underpin Darktrace's award-winning technology. Jack and his development team in Cambridge were recognized for their outstanding contribution to engineering by the Royal Academy of Engineering MacRobert Innovation Award Committee in 2017 and again in 2019. Jack has a degree in Computer Science from Lancaster University.
James qualified as a solicitor at Linklaters in 2001 before working in the corporate department there for several years advising blue chip clients on major transactions. In 2005 he joined BP's in-house M&A legal team, before going on to join online food delivery company Just Eat plc in 2013, where he was instrumental in its transformation from pre-IPO business to the FTSE 100 and in subsequently navigating its merger with Takeaway.com. In 2020, James was shortlisted for The Lawyer's General Counsel of the Year. He has a Law degree from St Catharine's College, Cambridge and a Law Diploma from Nottingham Law School.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Lord Willetts served as a Member of Parliament from 1992 to 2015. He was Minister for Universities and Science within the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills from 2010 to 2014, and previously held roles within HM Treasury and the No. 10 Policy Unit. His current roles include President of the Resolution Foundation and Chair of the Foundation for Science and Technology, together with serving on several company boards.
Mike has spent 18 years working in technology, security and risk operations. He started his career as a software engineer on GCHQ's technologist programme, and progressed to support military operations. He has conducted intelligence analysis and assessment in operational theatres across the world, becoming a senior intelligence officer. In 2010, Mike merged his intelligence and technology experience to run cyber defensive operations for UK government, including working on the implementation of the national cyber security strategy and protecting the London 2012 Olympic Games. Joining Darktrace at its early stages in 2014, Mike developed the cyber analyst operation that supports thousands of Darktrace customers with 24/7 support and since 2020 oversees Darktrace's internal security program as Global CISO. He holds a first-class degree in Computer Science from the University of Plymouth.
Nick is part of the founding team at Darktrace, previous to which he led a cyber security consultancy advising large business on their cyber risk, and has been a speaker and coach on the topic of economic espionage. He had a long and distinguished career in the intelligence community, working overseas developing cutting-edge capabilities to defend national interests against a range of threats. Originally responsible for the commercial team, Nick established and grew the global sales team before becoming Chief Operations Officer in 2020.
Nicole Eagan - Chief Strategy Officer
Job Titles:
- Chief Strategy Officer
- Officer
- Chief Strategy Officer, AI Officer
Nicole Eagan is Chief Strategy Officer and AI Officer of Darktrace. Her extensive career in technology spans 30 years working for Oracle and early to late-stage growth companies. Nicole identifies and shapes Darktrace's strategic plan, leads the Company's AI vision together with our CTO, and provides product strategy and direction. A core part of the executive team, during Nicole's tenure, Darktrace has won more than 100 awards, and the company has been named one of WSJ's ‘Tech Companies to Watch', Fast Company's ‘Most Innovative Companies', and a CNBC ‘Disruptor 50'. Nicole was named ‘AI Leader of the Year' and was awarded the top position on The Software Report's ‘Top 25 Women Leaders in Cybersecurity' in 2020.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Paul has held senior positions at several high growth, public technology companies in the UK and internationally. He is currently Chief Operating Officer and Executive Director at Ascential plc, a FTSE 250 data and analytics company. Paul's previous roles include CFO of the online food marketplace Just Eat plc, Group CFO of software company The Sage Group plc, both FTSE 100 businesses, and CFO of data solutions company WANdisco plc. He also served as a Senior Independent Director on the Board of Hays plc, a recruitment company.
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer
- Member of the Board of Directors
Poppy Gustafsson is the Chief Executive Officer of Darktrace plc. Under her leadership, the company has experienced significant growth and global expansion, with 6,500 customers and 1,700 employees worldwide. She was named Vodafone's Woman of the Year for Technology and Innovation in 2020, Tech Businesswoman of the Year at the UK Tech Awards 2019 and won the Veuve Clicquot Business Woman Awards 2019. Together with Darktrace CTO Jack Stockdale, Poppy was awarded an OBE for services to cyber security in 2019. She is a qualified chartered accountant, and holds a BSc in Mathematics from the University of Sheffield.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
- Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering
Sir Peter Bonfield has more than 50 years' experience in the international technology sector, leading businesses in the fields of electronics, computers and communications. He is currently Chairman of Netherlands-based NXP, a world leading semiconductor company. He is also Director and Chair of Audit at TSMC in Taiwan, on the Board of Imagination Technologies in the UK and on the US Board of the EastWest Institute, an international not-for-profit think tank. He is a member of The Longreach Group Advisory Board, Senior Advisor to Alix Partners and Board Mentor for CMi.
Sir Peter's prior positions include CEO of BT Group, Chairman and CEO of ICL plc and Deputy CEO of STC plc. He has served on the boards of 12 international companies including Sony, Ericsson and AstraZeneca.
Sir Peter is an elected Fellow of The Royal Academy of Engineering. Knighted in 1996 and awarded the CBE in 1989, Sir Peter has received honorary doctorates from 11 universities.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Stephen Shanley joined KKR in 2014 and is head of KKR's Technology Growth Equity business in Europe. He is actively involved with KKR's investments in Darktrace, OutSystems, KnowBe4, GetYourGuide, Ivalua, Trainline, ClickTale, Optimal+, and Travelopia. Prior to joining KKR, Mr. Shanley was with Technology Crossover Ventures in Palo Alto, California and subsequently London. Prior to TCV, Mr. Shanley was with the TMT investment banking group of Needham & Company and started his career in the transaction services group of KPMG. Mr. Shanley holds a BS and a BSC from Santa Clara University.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Vanessa's expertise is in PR and communications, having held senior positions at agency Edelman and Burston Marsteller in Madrid and New York. She served as SVP of Communications at Autonomy, then the UK's largest technology company, which sold to HP for $11 billion in 2011. Vanessa is a Partner and Co-Founder of Invoke Capital. At Invoke, Vanessa is responsible for Communications and Investor Relations and oversees these functions for portfolio companies including Luminance, where she also sits on the Board of Directors.
Vanessa holds a First-Class BA in Modern European Languages from Durham University, and an MA in Journalism from Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. She is bilingual in Spanish and English, and conversational in Italian and French.