Maj. Gen. Brett T. Williams

Brett is an internationally sought-after Leadership and Cyber Security speaker.

After 33 years of distinguished leadership experience in the Air Force, Brett is the co-Founder IronNet Cybersecurity. IronNet Cybersecurity delivers the power of collective security to defend companies, sectors and nations. IronNet uses behavioral analytics, artificial intelligence and sophisticated machine learning to detect threats other solutions will never catch.

• An established keynote speaker on a variety of leadership, cyber and business topics.
• Marshall Goldsmith certified leadership coach.
• A retired U.S. Air Force General Officer whose last active duty position was Director of Operations, U.S. Cyber Command.
• Deep experience leading large, complex organizations involving flight operations, logistics, civil engineering, contracting, security, human resources, medical services and community relations in both the U.S. and Asia.
• Combat experienced F-15 fighter pilot.

SPEAKING [Virtual Keynotes & In-Person Keynotes available]:

CYBERSECURITY KEYNOTES:

• Sales Professionals:

Customers are more sophisticated than ever. They want to talk to a sales rep who really understands today’s tough cyber security environment.  They have been promised the “magic” solution too many times and been disappointed as they have watched the breaches continue to occur. A sharp sales rep understands the threat, understands the full range of costs that arise from an attack and can make the ROI argument that will sell your product. Let Brett add depth and expertise to your sales team toolbox with his customized keynote designed to make your sales team stand out from the crowd.

• Senior Business Leaders:

Senior business leaders are being held accountable for managing cyber-risk in their companies. Unfortunately, many executives do not feel comfortable with this responsibility due to their lack of technical background and their limited understanding of cyber. Brett Williams keynote helps close the gap in language, perception and understanding between those charged with strategic business decisions and the people who have technical responsibility for cybersecurity in the company. Each keynote is customized to the audience and includes a discussion of the current threat environment, costs associated with a breach, an executive primer on current cyber defense techniques and their shortfalls and suggestions on how to identify the essential elements of a good cyber defense program.

• Small Business Owners:

Small business owners face the same array of threats as the largest banks on Wall Street.  The same tools and expertise are available to anyone with a little money and access to the dark web. Brett’s keynote will educate small business owners on the threat, the potential costs of a breach and the steps they can take to better protect themselves.  Basic network hygiene, disciplined use of the network, and smart outsourcing to the right providers can significantly reduce your exposure. Brett understands you do not have an “IT staff” nor do you have the time or budget to defend yourself like a big bank.  You will walk out of this presentation with a clear list of action items you can take to make yourself reasonably secure in today’s complex cyber world.

LEADERSHIP KEYNOTES:

• Good leaders can lead any team:

Brett Williams is a retired Air Force General, combat experienced fighter pilot, and the co-founder and COO of a successful high-tech cybersecurity company. From his experience leading the largest combat wing in the Air Force, to introducing Agile development to his product engineering team, Brett has developed a core set of leadership skills that have led to his success leading a wide variety of teams with multiple different skill sets. In this presentation, he shares his keys to success with special emphasis on influencing followers, peers and bosses. He describes the process of self-awareness and self-assessment and the importance of demonstrating empathy and humility. All of these characteristics can make you a successful leader of any team, not matter what where your native expertise lies.

• Cross-generational leadership:

Whether you are in a startup or a Fortune 500 company, if you want to be a successful manager, you have to understand cross-generational leadership. Today’s teams routinely run the gamut from Gen Z to millennial to baby boomer and it takes strong leaders to bring out the best qualities each generation offers. Effective communication, goal-setting, feedback, coaching and empathy are all required skills for leaders to be effective. In this keynote, Brett Williams share leadership lessons from his experience as a startup co-founder and COO plus insights gained as an Air Force General officer and career combat fighter pilot.