F5 Networks (NASDAQ: FFIV) today announced that Mary Gardner has joined the company’s leadership team as its Chief Information Security Officer (CISO). In this role, she is responsible for F5’s corporate-wide information security management efforts, along with strategic planning, governance, and controls. This includes identifying, evaluating, and reporting on F5’s overall security performance and posture in alignment with regulatory requirements and evolving industry best practices.

While the security, compliance, and data protection of F5, customer, and partner information will be her primary focus, in this role Gardner will also have opportunities to provide strategic input to product development and other teams with respect to F5’s current security offerings and technology roadmap, as well as the company’s broader cybersecurity and threat research efforts.

“Security is top of mind for any organisation, and having a sharp, adaptable leader in place is essential,” said Tony Bozzuti, CIO and SVP of Information Technology at F5. “Mary’s impressive career to date and knowledge of application security are a testament to the skills, aptitude, and authority she brings to the table. Her perspective will be a valuable asset as F5 expands its security and technology efforts to better support today’s multi-cloudenvironments and modern enterprises’ digital transformation efforts.”

Gardner’s background provides a wealth of security, compliance, and risk management expertise from a variety of industries, including healthcare, finance, and transportation/logistics. She joins F5 from Seattle Children’s, where she served as CISO. She has also held security leadership positions at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Port of Seattle, JPMorgan Chase, and Washington Mutual.

Gardner holds a B.S. from Trinity University. She is also a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and member of the Executive Women’s Forum. Gardner is based in Seattle at F5’s corporate headquarters.