Ed Adams, CEO of Security Innovation, joins LeaderSpeak to discuss a career that moved from mechanical engineering to software quality and then application security. The conversation focuses on a people-centred model of leadership built around useful customer outcomes, employee trust, transparency, and humanity.
Ed trained and initially worked as a mechanical engineer, but became more interested in the software used to create his designs. After moving into software, he worked in quality disciplines including functional and performance testing. In the early 2000s, Professor James A. Whittaker invited him to join the board of a new company, Security Innovation. Ed has served as its CEO since October 2003.
He has also served as a board member and treasurer of the International Consortium of Minority Cybersecurity Professionals, as a distinguished research fellow with the Ponemon Institute, and as the host of a cybersecurity discussion series.
Ed found a striking contrast between mechanical engineering’s formal design and prototyping processes and the software industry’s “build it, ship it” approach. The speed was exciting, but he saw that testing practices often omitted security. That gap led him from general software quality into application security and eventually Security Innovation.
The company’s aim has not been a particular valuation or an eventual sale. Ed describes a pragmatic model: solve real customer problems, provide clear value, and treat employees well. He believes positive business results follow when those fundamentals remain healthy.
For Ed, people account for most of entrepreneurial leadership. He points to long-tenured colleagues and people who joined as interns before progressing through management and senior leadership as evidence that employees can build careers inside a supportive company.
He became CEO at about 33 and knew that he had significant gaps. Rather than pretending otherwise, he found people with stronger knowledge in finance, employment law, and human resources. Building a leadership team around those gaps was easier than the continuing work of aligning people around the company’s vision.
Security Innovation experienced the 2008–09 financial crisis and the pandemic. Ed credits transparent communication with helping the company navigate both. Employees deserve to know when business is going well, when it is struggling, and why. Even when some people chose to leave, the company tried to support a productive next step.
That respect extends to mental health and flexible work. Before the pandemic, employees could already work where and when they needed, provided they met commitments and treated colleagues respectfully. During the pandemic, some moved away from cities, changed time zones, relocated internationally, or took breaks from work. The company treated these situations as conversations about individual needs rather than automatic policy violations.
Ed has referred to colleagues as teammates or members of the Security Innovation family, although he recognises that not everyone prefers the same degree of intimacy. More important than the label is the expectation that people should be able to work together productively.
The company also maintains a “no jerks” policy. A consistently negative or disrespectful person can damage everyone around them, so Security Innovation tries to help such employees find a setting that is a better fit. Ed’s broader advice is to pursue work you care about, communicate openly, and remain personable. Passion supports endurance, while transparency and humanity build trust.
