Optiv Co-Founder Dan Burns Joins Balance Theory Board of Directors

Serial Cybersecurity Entrepreneur to Advise Balance Theory on Scaling of Product and Sales Teams

FULTON, Md., Sept. 21, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Balance Theory, the leading cybersecurity ecosystem management platform, today welcomes Dan Burns, co-founder and former CEO of Optiv, to the Balance Theory board of directors. 

Burns has more than 30 years of business, technology, and cybersecurity industry expertise. He co-founded Accuvant in 2002, launched the sales force, and grew it to a national powerhouse organization within 10 years, conducting business with nearly half of the Fortune 500 and driving $740M in revenue. In 2015, as CEO, Burns and Blackstone merged Accuvant and Fishnet Security to create Optiv with over $2B in total revenues. He now serves on several boards to help entrepreneurs and investors execute their plans to launch disruptive cybersecurity companies.

"One of the most pressing challenges cybersecurity leaders face today is the complexity of managing and maximizing their people, technology, and processes in a unified cyber ecosystem," Burns said. "While the cyber market offers thousands of technology solutions, consulting engagements, and expert advice, the results, while valuable, can add to complexity challenges. The Balance Theory team is addressing innovative solutions to meet underserved core needs of CISOs, and I'm thrilled to be a part of it."

Balance Theory, which received $3 million in seed funding in November from DataTribe, is building the first Cybersecurity Ecosystem Management platform. By filling the void of a missing source of truth for cyber programs to operate centrally, CISOs can begin aligning, rationalizing, and optimizing their resources and technology investments. Balance Theory breaks down the missing system challenge into high value starting points, including building transparency, rationalization, and cost reduction of the cyber technology stack.

"Dan is an industry visionary who brings a wealth of insight on the security market and experience building customer-obsessed security companies," said Greg Baker, CEO of Balance Theory. "We are honored to continue building high-impact outcomes with this new venture and look forward to having him as a trusted advisor."

Dan and the Balance Theory team shared success after Optiv acquired Baker and his team's first company Decision Lab, in late 2017.

Before his achievements with Accuvant, Burns was the regional VP of sales for the western region of OneSecure. He was integral in transitioning the organization from a managed security services (MSS) provider to a product company, delivering the first intrusion prevention system (IPS) to the marketplace and generating $40M in product sales in the first year.

Previously, as the western region VP for Exault, Burns secured some of the largest enterprise clients in the Rocky Mountain region and helped grow revenues to nearly $150M in two years. He also held positions at Access Graphics, Arrowpoint, and Netrex.

About Balance Theory
Balance Theory builds solutions that enable cybersecurity teams to manage the chaos of their ecosystems more effectively. Balance Theory helps CISOs streamline their programs and manage and optimize the alignment of people, processes, and technologies. With a unique approach to layering solutions that produce rapid results, Balance Theory lowers the barriers to getting started with contract-guaranteed results. Balance Theory is backed by DataTribe and is headquartered in Fulton, Maryland.

CONTACT: Adam Benson, [email protected]

SOURCE Balance Theory