Executive Spotlight: Tamara McCarthy, Concourse Labs’ Vice President of Strategic Alliances

According to the most recent data from (ISC)², women make up less than a quarter of the cybersecurity industry. This is still a significantly higher finding than from 2017, when only 11% of study respondents were women, showcasing that women are succeeding in forging a path in this historically predominantly male workforce.

Tamara McCarthy is a 20+ year technology veteran who is currently Vice President of Strategic Alliances at Concourse Labs. “I am responsible for the creation and execution of our company’s overall alliance and partner strategy, with an emphasis on enabling the channel at cloud speed through customer-centricity,” she says.

Tamara joined Concourse Labs in late 2020 to focus on defining its alliance approach and ecosystem strategy. Tamara is a demonstrated leader in developing diverse global ecosystems who takes pride in watching teams grow to conquer industry and global challenges.

A seasoned leader in the technology industry, Tamara has extensive experience developing and executing complex global alliances, marketing strategies, and go-to-market programs in high-tech areas such as cloud and edge computing.

A California native, she has worked at many tech companies, both startup and enterprise, and has held senior-level positions at organizations such as Red Hat, BEA Technologies, and Trend Micro. She’s passionate about building strategic alliances with industry leaders and has expansive experience forming partnerships with behemoths such as Cisco, Microsoft, and Intel.

According to Forrester, channel programs were heavily influenced by the unprecedented events and climate 2020 brought. In fact, 76% of business leaders agree that current business models will be unrecognizable in the next five years — and ecosystems will be the primary change agent. Tamara wholeheartedly agrees. “We are in the middle of a major transformation of how companies go to market,” she says. “Digital transformation and cloud security have led to a dramatic shift in how enterprises manage their applications and infrastructure. They are now considered business necessities which ultimately have changed the relationship between the enterprise and its channel partners. Factor in the inherent complexities the cloud brings and layer on global environmental security issues that have been bubbling up to the surface, and you’ve created a situation that Concourse Labs is perfectly suited to solve. With cloud now being a board-level discussion, it’s extremely important for our customers and our partners’ customers to have a trusted set of advisors and subject matter experts that not only provide guidance on the right technologies but who also offer creative engagement models and provide strategic input that begins the path toward solving the challenging problems that keep everyone up at night.”

Tamara isn’t just the rare female leader in cloud security and cybersecurity — she’s also a gay woman helping pave the way for future women leaders. “Employees want to see themselves in their leaders,” she says. “The more women succeed in cloud security and cybersecurity, the more other women can envision themselves in careers once reserved for men. This will then lead to a more diverse workplace, which facilitates multifaceted opinions, thoughts, and approaches, which are ultimately the foundation for innovation.”

It is apropos that March is Women’s History Month. As a gay woman in a technology leadership position, Tamara says her advocacy knows no bounds — from promoting the accomplishments of others to acting as a mentor. “I’m passionate about building and retaining a diverse global workforce. At every company I’ve worked for, I advocate, advise, and work to rally employees through diversity and inclusion initiatives and by intentionally telling my story,” she says.

Aside from a passion for the cloud channel and technology ecosystems, Tamara loves spending time with her wife and daughter. On weekends, she can be found cooking and laughing with her family, taking the puppy for regular walks, and acting as her daughter’s personal Uber driver.

Feel free to connect with Tamara on LinkedIn or find her on Twitter @TamaraAmccarthy

Related Resources

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