The Astaro Management Team

Astaro Internet Security was founded in 2000 with the goal of finding a way to consolidate various network security applications into one, reducing complexity and costs whilst raising security levels. Here you can find out more about the people behind the initial vision, and those who joined the management team over the following years.

Jan Hichert, Chief Executive Officer,

has led Astaro since the company was founded in early 2000. Before Astaro, Jan consulted with software vendors and internet service providers on IT security and open source business models. Jan studied business at the University of St. Gallen and computer science at the Technical University of Karlsruhe before becoming an entrepreneur.

Gert Hansen, Vice President Product Management,

co-founded Astaro in early 2000. He was previously with the Internet service provider Plannet Systems and also co-founded the web development company Timenet, collecting extensive experience in both technology and entrepreneurship. Gert studied computer science at the Technical University of Karlsruhe. At Astaro, Gert is responsible for product strategy and software design.

Markus Hennig, Chief Technology Officer,

co-founded Astaro in early 2000. Markus has over ten years of experience in open source and network security and is an active member of the Linux community. In his previous career, he was Chief Technology Officer of the Internet service provider Plannet Systems where he built up the company's managed security business. Markus studied computer science at the Technical University of Karlsruhe. At Astaro, Markus oversees all product development.

Frank Nellissen, Chief Financial Officer,

is with Astaro since beginning of 2010 and responsible for finance, internal IT and HR. Frank is an experienced senior executive with extensive financial, operational and business management experience in a broad range of companies and situations. He joined Astaro from CfC Industriebeteiligungen, where he served as Managing Director / CFO since 2007. Prior to this position, Frank was CEO at AgfaPhoto. For Arcor, the fixed-line broadband business of UK’s Vodafone group, he served amongst other as CFO for their Online Business. In addition to Master’s degrees in economics and business administration, Frank also holds a PhD in economics.

Günter Junk, Senior Vice President for Worldwide Sales and Marketing,

joined Astaro in 2009 and is responsible for worldwide sales and marketing strategy. Before joining Astaro, Günter lead Swyx Solutions AG in his position as CEO. Under his leadership, Swyx was able to reach their current position as a market leader for IP telephony in Europe. In the years before his time at Swyx, Günter build up the German sales organization for Cisco Systems, became General Manager for Cisco Germany and was then elected as VP for European operations. Günter studied Communication Technology at the University of Cologne.

Richard Walford, Vice President Engineering,

joined Astaro in 2008 and is responsible for delivery of the Astaro product roadmap. Formerly Vice President research and development at SDL Tridion, Richard has extensive experience in the software industry. He has held senior management roles at Compuware, Softlab and Metier Management Systems, with responsibilities spanning both software and business development, including specifying, planning, developing, delivering, launching and selling complex software products. Richard has a MA in engineering from Cambridge University, UK.

Ralf Haubrich, Vice President Central Europe,

is with Astaro since 2004 and today responsible for the coordination of sales activities in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Over the years, Ralf has gained a vast amount of experience through several management positions in the IT sales industry, such as Managing Director Sales & Marketing for toplink-plannet GmbH and Regional Sales Director DACH for Kneip Communication S.A. in Luxembourg. Ralf Haubrich is a Business Graduate and studied Business Administration at the University of Trier.

André Scheffknecht, Vice President EMEA,

is responsible for the business development and sales activities across Europe, Middle East and Africa outside of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. André maintains over 8 years of experience in the appliance and security industry and co-founded Apligo, an appliance fulfillment company and one of Astaro's first OEM partners. He joined Astaro in 2005 as Sales Director and was promoted to Vice President EMEA in 2009. André studied Computer Science at the University of Karlsruhe and Business Economics at the University of Innsbruck.

Bob Darabant, Astaro Vice President Americas,

brings extensive experience in sales and marketing to Astaro in order to help grow the US operations by improving engagement within the partner community and by creating new revenue streams and increasing Astaro’s presence in the security market. Prior to joining Astaro, Bob was Co-founder of Montego Networks where he introduced the industry’s first virtual machine to virtual machine security software. In addition, Bob has held a variety of executive level positions including serving as the Vice President of Sales at NetScreen, and Executive Vice President Sales & Marketing at Reflex Security and Blue Socket. Bob holds a Bachelor of Science in Marketing and Bachelor of Science in Management from Slippery Rock University.

David Rogers, Vice President Strategic Alliances,

is responsible for developing strategic relationships and technology alliances with organizations to provide additional reach of the Astaro brand into specialized methods of integration, deployment, and use of the Astaro product line. Rogers joined Astaro in 2005 and most recently served as Vice President of the Americas Region. In this position Rogers lead Astaro’s US operations and was instrumental in the growth of Astaro’s partner community and end user base. Prior to joining Astaro, Rogers served in the Sales and Engineering Management disciplines at companies such as Network Associates, Compaq Computer, Zenith Data Systems, Computervision and Prime Computer. David holds several technical certifications and attended Johnson and Whales University.

Norbert Kiss, Vice President Asia Pacific Japan,

joined Astaro in 2009 and leads business development in Asia. Based in Singapore, Norbert has extensive experience throughout Asia Pacific, having worked and lived in this region for the past 16 years specializing in growing companies within the Asia Pacific region. Norbert has worked and held executive positions at companies such as Lexmark, Oracle, Geac and WatchGuard. Norbert holds an MBA from the University of Ottawa, Canada with a focus on Asia and is a graduate of the Columbia Business School’s Senior Executive Development program.

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