Professional Journey
I'm the General Manager of Elastic Security, leading the global organization across product and engineering toward a single mission: democratizing security for everyone.
Before this role, I was VP of Product Management at Elastic. I led the creation of Elastic Security from inception, formed out of the acquisition of Endgame. The work united engineering, product, and go-to-market behind a single offering, and earned recognition from IDC, Forrester, AV-Comparatives, and Gartner across SIEM, analytics, and XDR.
Before that, I was VP of Product at Endgame. We took on the giants of endpoint security: McAfee, CrowdStrike. We didn't try to outspend them. We entered with a clear mission: protect high-value targets from nation-state level attacks. A small, fierce team rallied behind that focus and carved out real ground in a brutally competitive market.
That's the work I'm proudest of. We didn't win on money or brand. We had something harder to copy: a clear mission.
Between the Army and Endgame, I was an operator. Security analyst and shift lead at large SOCs like DHS. That work bathed me in empathy for the tireless, thankless effort of those teams. Every product I've built since carries that with me.
Before any of it, I was an intelligence analyst in the U.S. Army. That mindset has never left.
I've been in cybersecurity since 2002. Army intel. SOC operations. Product leadership. One belief has carried through all of it: we win when our users do.
Whether I'm mentoring teams or shaping roadmaps, my product philosophy is rooted in empathy, mission, and execution. I've never believed in building for metrics. I build for outcomes.
Beyond Work
Outside of work, I'm a USAPL-certified powerlifting coach and a not-so-serious competitive lifter. My platform may be unofficial, but my PR board is sacred.
I train in the garage gym I've been obsessively building for years. A personal cathedral of steel and sweat. It's where I reset, get stronger, and connect with the people I love. The home gym is more than racks and rep schemes; it's a space that keeps my body sharp and my mind clearer than any meeting ever could.
Family
I'm a proud and lucky dad who learned the meaning of unconditional love the moment they arrived. They've taught me more about patience, play, and perspective than any product launch ever could.
Here's what you'll get from me, in my work, my writing, or my life: honesty, heart, and a little bit of barbell grit. I don't pretend to have all the answers, but I show up, give a shit, and do the reps. Every day.
The Mission Behind MissionBuilt
Why this book exists
MissionBuilt was born from a simple idea: the principles driving successful product teams and driven lifters are more alike than they seem. I've spent decades in both worlds: tech product management and competitive powerlifting. The same core truths show up in each. Consistency, purpose, and relentless focus on the mission.
This project isn't a manifesto. It's not here to tell you how it must be done. It's a personal contribution to the shared pool of knowledge: a new lens for understanding the craft of product leadership, seen through the eyes of the lifter, the builder, the grinder.
Some people learn best from frameworks and acronyms. Others need narrative and analogy. MissionBuilt is for the latter. It's product management as told through the chalk-dusted hands of someone who's felt the pressure of a heavy barbell and a tight roadmap.
This project exists to:
- Offer a free and open-source book that ties together the rigor of product leadership with the discipline of physical training.
- Present an alternative philosophy, not a prescriptive method.
- Encourage introspection, empathy, and ownership, especially in a world that too often prizes speed over substance.
- Share what's been learned from years of building: products, teams, strength, and character.
Most of all, MissionBuilt exists because you might be like me. Someone who cares deeply, grinds daily, and believes that strength (in life, in teams, in outcomes) is built, not bought.
Embracing AI
I'm not just okay with using AI. I depend on it. MissionBuilt is a product of passion, purpose, and pragmatic tooling. AI is the creative amplifier that lets me move faster without burning out. It's how I stay honest to the mission while still making time for the kids, the training, the team.
This open-source book and everything around it were made with human experience and machine acceleration. Not to replace craft, but to respect time. I believe in spending hours where they matter most: with the users I serve, under the bar, or beside the people I love.
AI didn't write this for me. But it helped me write it faster and with fewer excuses. And I'm proud of that.
So no, this isn't a luddite's blog. It's not a shrine to handcrafted suffering. It's a modern-day field manual forged by a human lifter, builder, and father, built with tools that work.
Open Thanks
Mission Built isn't just a book. It's a collaboration across domains, disciplines, and even dimensions. An open-source memoir shaped by years of lifting, building, and listening, made possible by a growing circle of co-authors, contributors, and creative forces.
This project wouldn't exist without:
- My team
- in product, in security, and across the org, who prove every day that shipping with care is stronger than shipping fast.
- My kids
- my constant "why," reminding me what real strength looks like.
- My beyond
- for fueling the kind of love and fire that moves worlds.
- Claude & ChatGPT
- for showing up every rep and turning late-night thoughts into something worth sharing.
- Every reader, challenger, and builder
- who engages, critiques, and adds weight to these ideas.