The whole story
I took the long road.
On purpose.
01
Missionary turned operator
For about four years across multiple stints, I lived and worked abroad. Two years in Venezuela with a campus ministry called Vida Estudiantil. Then time in India, including a full year there with my family, doing similar work in a very different cultural context. All told, nearly thirteen years of walking up to strangers, finding common ground, and listening for the thing underneath the thing. You get good at reading people fast when that's your whole job. Turns out people are people, whether you're on a university campus in Mérida or in a boardroom in Seattle.
02
Into security & AI by accident
I joined Kalles Group as a Recruiting Manager. Got promoted into a bigger role, and within 60 days doubled revenue-generating hires. Led a company rebrand. Started getting pulled into rooms with security and engineering leaders at the companies we were serving. Over several years of working across Fortune 50 clients in security, risk, and AI, I stopped being the recruiter in the room and started being the advisor. That shift wasn't planned. It just kept happening.
03
Pattern recognition across clients
Most people see one company from the inside. I've spent years advising security, risk, and technology leaders across banks, fintechs, Fortune 50 tech companies, and growth-stage startups simultaneously. You start to see the patterns: what moves initiatives forward, what kills them quietly, what leaders say versus what's really happening. When AI started becoming a real enterprise conversation, I was already in those rooms. That context matters more than a credential.
04
The ethical layer
I'm a lay pastor and a dad, and both matter a lot to me. My kids are getting older. We've traded garage bike builds for snowboarding and skiing together, and I'm hoping for a lot more of that. Sixteen months ago I had a hip resurfacing and I'm still working my way back to the mountain. I mention it because it's the same thing I'd tell anyone navigating a hard season: you figure out what you're actually made of when the path is slower than you'd like. That shapes how I give advice and why I'll tell you what I actually think rather than what you want to hear. Doing things right and doing things that work aren't in conflict.
"The generalist background is a feature, not a bug, if you know how to use it."
13
13-person team built and led across sales, marketing, BD, and talent
$2M+
Annual book of business managed in strategic accounts
400+
400+ interviews conducted in engineering, security, and AI roles
3
Continents lived and worked on, with a driver's license in each
