Frances Townsend Joins Protiviti Advisory Board

Townsend brings extensive cybersecurity experience to firm's board

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Feb 18, 2015, 01:10 ET

MENLO PARK, Calif., Feb. 18, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Protiviti (www.protiviti.com), a global consulting firm, has added Frances Townsend to its advisory board. Townsend is the fourth member of the board, which assists Protiviti clients in navigating the changing economic and regulatory business environment.

From 2004 to 2008, Townsend served as Assistant to President George W. Bush for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism and chaired the Homeland Security Council. She also served as Deputy National Security Advisor for Combatting Terrorism from May 2003 to May 2004. Townsend also spent 13 years at the U.S. Department of Justice under the administrations of President George H. W. Bush, President Bill Clinton and President George W. Bush. Townsend is currently an executive vice president for worldwide government, legal and business affairs at MacAndrews and Forbes Holdings Inc. She works across the firm's portfolio companies, focusing on international, legal, compliance and business development issues.

"We formed the Protiviti Advisory Board to best position ourselves for growth and help better serve our clients in addressing an ever-changing economic and regulatory business environment," said Joseph Tarantino, Protiviti president and CEO. "The addition of Frances Townsend to our board will further strengthen the depth and breadth of our existing team, drawing on a tremendous amount of experience from within the government sector."

Townsend joins current Protiviti Advisory Board members Dirk Kempthorne, president and CEO of the American Council of Life Insurers and former U.S. Secretary of the Interior, U.S. senator and governor of Idaho; Marc Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League and former mayor of New Orleans; and Evelyn Dilsaver, the former president and CEO of Charles Schwab Investment Management.

"Companies operating in today's competitive business environment must continue to adapt to an evolving set of global risks, especially in regard to cyber-terrorism," said Frances Townsend. "As a new reality across industries, this growing risk area has become front-and-center for companies who must now prioritize their efforts to maintain and improve existing cyber-security practices and processes. I am thrilled to join the Protiviti Advisory Board and look forward to working alongside the other board members as we continue to enhance and grow Protiviti's solutions and services in this space."

In addition to Protiviti, Townsend serves as director on the boards of three public companies ‑ Freeport-McMoRan Inc., The Western Union Company and Scientific Games Corp ‑ where she serves on compliance, compensation and governance committees. She also serves on several government advisory and nonprofit boards and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Trilateral Commission. Townsend is an on-air analyst for CNN and has appeared regularly on network and cable television as a foreign policy, counterterrorism, national and homeland security expert.

About Protiviti

Protiviti (www.protiviti.com) is a global consulting firm that helps companies solve problems in finance, technology, operations, governance, risk and internal audit, and has served more than 40 percent of FORTUNE 1000® and FORTUNE Global 500® companies. Protiviti and its independently owned Member Firms serve clients through a network of more than 70 locations in over 20 countries. The firm also works with smaller, growing companies, including those looking to go public, as well as with government agencies.

Protiviti is a wholly owned subsidiary of Robert Half (NYSE: RHI). Founded in 1948, Robert Half is a member of the S&P 500 index.

Protiviti is not licensed or registered as a public accounting firm and does not issue opinions on financial statements or offer attestation services.

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