Meet Avast

Avast is dedicated to creating a world that provides safety and privacy for all,
no matter who you are, where you are, or how you connect.

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Faster, smarter artificial intelligence

Avast is one of the largest security companies in the world using next-gen technologies to fight cyber attacks in real time. We differ from other next-gen companies in that we have an immense cloud-based machine learning engine that receives a constant stream of data from our hundreds of millions of users, which facilitates learning at unprecedented speeds and makes our artificial intelligence engine smarter and faster than anyone else’s.

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Scalable,
cloud infrastructure

Avast has created a scalable cloud-based security infrastructure that sees everything that happens on the internet. We have a view into everything online, good and bad, giving us the unique advantage of being first to inspect and analyze potential threats. When new malware is discovered, we can quickly deploy new security features to protect our users.

Avast prevents 1.5 billion attacks every month

We use advanced threat protection to keep
you and your business safe from cyber attacks.

Dedicated cybersecurity research experts

Avast’s innovative security approach comes from some of the most talented and experienced security engineers on the planet. Headquartered in Prague – a center of excellence for engineering and computer science –we attract the best and the brightest with over 50% of our employees in R&D. Our scientists, engineers, and mathematicians are from some of the most highly respected institutions, including Stanford, MIT, Oxford, and NASA. Our growth is fueled by our passionate culture of wanting to win and “beat the bad guys.”

Our growing patent portfolio is focused on these 4 key areas

Malware Detection and Blocking
AI and Machine Learning
Internet
of Things
Location
Technologies

Leadership team
Board of Directors

Ondrej Vlcek

Chief Executive Officer

Ondrej Vlcek

Chief Executive Officer

Ondrej Vlcek serves as Chief Executive Officer for Avast. Together with his senior management team, he executes on Avast’s vision to deliver people-centric security and spearheads the Company's product innovation program for emerging consumer technology categories, including the Internet of Things and 5G security. Mr. Vlcek was previously President of Avast Consumer, the largest business within the Company, and directed the development of Avast’s artificial intelligence-based cloud security network. Mr. Vlcek was also a key member of the executive team that took the company public on the London Stock Exchange in May 2018.
Previously, he held the combined position of Executive Vice-President & General Manager, Consumer, and Chief Technology Officer. In this role, he led Avast’s transformation from a traditional PC antivirus vendor to the leading provider of a full portfolio of protection, privacy, and performance products for consumers. Prior to that, Mr. Vlcek was chief developer, heading the team that developed one of the first ever antivirus programs for Windows. Mr. Vlcek holds an MS in Mathematics from Czech Technical University in Prague. He is a recognized industry speaker having delivered keynotes at a number of high-profile events including RSA, Web Summit, Black Hat and SXSW.

Michal Pechoucek

Chief Technology Officer

Michal Pechoucek

Chief Technology Officer

Michal Pechoucek joined Avast as CTO in September 2019. Mr. Pechoucek leads the core technology and R&D teams supporting the work of the Avast Threat Labs, Big Data and innovation teams. He is also responsible for the company’s scientific research in the fields of Artificial Intelligence, machine learning, and cybersecurity.

Before joining Avast, Mr. Pechoucek spent over twenty years as a professor at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering at the Czech Technical University (CTU) in Prague, during which time he led the Department of Computer Science and founded the Artificial Intelligence Center in 2001. He also co-founded a research-oriented study programme, Open Informatics, which offers a choice of different subjects, combines different areas of informatics and approaches and continues to be taught today.

Mr. Pechoucek has authored more than 400 high impact publications and contributed numerous innovative AI applications to research in computer science. Before joining Avast, he was the prime mover behind the creation of the Avast Chair of Cybersecurity at CTU, and in 2019, he also helped to establish the Avast funded joint CTU/Avast AI and Cybersecurity Laboratory. Today, Mr. Pechoucek continues to lecture at CTU and lead the Artificial Intelligence Center.

While pursuing his academic career, Mr. Pechoucek co-founded several technology start-ups including cybersecurity firm Cognitive Security (in 2013 acquired by CISCO), AgentFly Technologies, which specializes in controlling autonomous aircraft traffic, and Blindspot Solutions, which develops AI for industrial applications (in 2017 acquired by Adastra Group). He directed the R&D Center for AI and Computer Security at CISCO Systems and worked as a strategist in the CISCO Security CTO office. He is also a venture partner with Evolution Equity Partners, a VC firm specialized in cybersecurity. Recently Mr. Pechoucek co-founded the prg.ai initiative aiming to transform Prague into world-class AI super hub.

Mr. Pechoucek graduated from University of Edinburgh and gained his PhD in Artificial Intelligence at CTU in Prague. He also worked at University of Southern California, University of Edinburgh, State University of New York at Binghamton and University of Calgary.

Jaya Baloo

Chief Information Security Officer

Jaya Baloo

Chief Information Security Officer

Jaya Baloo is Avast’s Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) and joined Avast in October 2019. Previously, Ms. Baloo held the position of CISO at KPN, the largest telecommunications carrier in the Netherlands, where she established and lead its security team whose best practices in strategy and policy are today recognized as world leading. Prior to this, Ms. Baloo also held the position of Practice Lead Lawful Interception at Verizon, and worked at France Telecom as a Technical Security Specialist.

Ms. Baloo is formally recognized within the list of top 100 CISOs globally and ranks among the top 100 security influencers worldwide. In 2019, she was also selected as one of the fifty most inspiring women in the Netherlands by Inspiring Fifty, a non-profit aiming to raise diversity in technology by making female role models in technology more visible.

Ms. Baloo has been working in the field of information security, with a focus on secure network architecture, for over 20 years and sits on the advisory boards of the NL’s National Cyber Security Centre, PQCrypto and Flagship Strategic. She serves on the audit committee of TIIN capital, a cybersecurity fund, and is also a member of the IT Committee of Sociale Verzekeringsbank. Ms. Baloo is currently a member of EU Quantum having been a member of the EU High Level Steering Committee for the FET Quantum Flagship from 2016 - 2017.

Ms. Baloo has spoken widely at high profile conferences such as RSA, TEDx and Codemotion on topics including Lawful Interception, VoIP & Mobile Security, Cryptography, and Quantum Communications Networks. Additionally, Ms. Baloo is a faculty member of the Singularity University since 2017, where she regularly lectures.

Phil Marshall

Chief Financial Officer

Phil Marshall

Chief Financial Officer

Phil Marshall joined Avast in 2018, bringing a wealth of global experience, having successfully led finance groups in a variety of public and private companies. Before Avast, Mr. Marshall served as CFO for Exova Group PLC, CFO for Wood Mackenzie, CEO of the $2B General Electric Consumer & Industrial Solutions group for the EMEA region, and various other positions throughout his seventeen-year career at GE. He has also served on the boards of several companies. Mr. Marshall holds a BA in Accounting Studies from the University of West London.

Julio Bezerra

Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer

Julio Bezerra

Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer

Julio Bezerra is Avast’s Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer. He is responsible for developing, communicating, and executing the company’s strategy including leading major transformation projects. His responsibilities also include Corporate Development and M&A. Prior to joining Avast, Mr. Bezerra served as Managing Director and Partner at the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) in London, United Kingdom. At BCG he was a core member of the Technology, Media and Telecommunications practice, a global expert in Sales and a pioneer in Big Data Analytics. Mr. Bezerra began his career launching new businesses, including four mobile operator start-ups.

Mr. Bezerra has deep experience in articulating strategies in fast moving technology, customer and competitive contexts and in translating strategies into operational plans. Throughout his career, he has been recognized for the delivery of a number of large cross-functional programs.

Mr. Bezerra holds an MBA, with distinction, from INSEAD, an MA in marketing from Fundação Getulio Vargas, and a BSc in industrial engineering from Universidade de São Paulo. Mr. Bezerra has extensive international experience (Europe, US, Emerging Markets) and is fluent in 5 languages.

Rebecca Grattan

Chief People and Culture Officer

Rebecca Grattan

Chief People and Culture Officer

Rebecca Grattan joined Avast as Chief People and Culture Officer in February 2020. She is responsible for the Human Resources and Facilities functions within the company.

Ms. Grattan brings extensive global human resources and transformation experience through a career which includes executive, interim, consultancy and non-executive positions in the UK, as well as internationally.

Ms. Grattan is adept in designing and implementing strategies which enhance the employee experience and develop a high performance culture. She has an extensive background in operating models and organizational design through work with start-ups, through M&A and publicly listed businesses, and has worked successfully through and with global teams.

Ms. Grattan has particular interests in creating an organizational climate and culture where people thrive and where under represented groups can be supported to achieve their potential. She has championed programs to highlight and tackle gender, LGBTQ+ mental health and wellbeing, and has been involved in a range of ‘Women in Tech’ initiatives.

Vita Santrucek

General Manager, Avast Business

Vita Santrucek

General Manager, Avast Business

Prior to being appointed to the GM role in 2019, Vita Santrucek served as Avast’s Vice President, Engineering, leading the global engineering and technical support strategy and operations for Avast Business
In this role, Vita’s focus has been to continually enhance the delivery of Avast Business services to partners and customers, and facilitate the expansion of the SMB portfolio with new offerings such as enterprise-grade Cloud security and Patch management.
Vita has 20 years’ experience leading Big Data, Internet of Things (IoT), and Java platform engineering teams at companies including Oracle, Sun Microsystems, and MSD (Merck Sharp & Dohme Corporation, a subsidiary of Merck & Co.). Immediately prior to joining Avast in 2018, Víta was Director of Software Development at MSD, before which he was Director of Software Development at Oracle leading a team with responsibilities for the IoT product line. At Sun Microsystems, he led globally distributed teams on projects that included engineering deliverables for Sun’s Java Standard Edition or Solaris. Vita, who is Czech-American, lived and worked in Silicon Valley between 2006 and 2016 and now resides in Prague.

Lisa Carey

Chief Marketing Officer

Lisa Carey

Chief Marketing Officer

Lisa Carey is Avast’s Chief Marketing Officer, and joined the company in April, 2020. Prior to joining Avast Ms. Carey served as CMO at Visionable Global, a technology startup for the healthcare industry, based in London, United Kingdom. Before joining Visionable, Ms. Carey was based in Silicon Valley and held a variety of leadership positions as a senior marketer at global technology companies, including Twitter, Facebook, and eBay. Ms. Carey brings more than 20 years of marketing expertise to Avast, having built world-class brands and businesses across all stages of growth, with strategic rigor, keen intuition and creativity. Ms. Carey holds a BA in English from the University of California, Davis.

Detlef Steinmetz

Chief Information Officer

Detlef Steinmetz

Detlef Steinmetz joined Avast as Chief Information Officer in January 2017. Since joining Avast Mr. Steinmetz has re-designed its IT infrastructure creating strong efficiencies while improving the customer experience online. Prior to his current role at Avast, Mr. Steinmetz served as CIO of Swiss telco operator Sunrise, where he adapted the company’s IT infrastructure to the complex requirements of a highly competitive market, modernizing and improving it to support network and customer services. Mr. Steinmetz has also held Senior Operations, IT, and CTO roles at NETnet, Telegate, and T-Mobile. He holds an Electrical Engineering degree from Armed Services University, Munich.

Peter Turner

Senior Vice President & General Manager, Consumer

Peter Turner

Senior Vice President & General Manager, Consumer

Peter Turner joined Avast in 2016 and is SVP & GM of Avast’s consumer business. Prior to this position, Mr. Turner served as Avast’s SVP & Chief Revenue Officer, Consumer. Mr. Turner also previously served as Avast’s SVP of Sales and Marketing for the consumer business. Prior to joining Avast, Mr. Turner was General Manager, Consumer for AVG. He has also held positions in a variety of organizations including Experian, Orange, Freeserve, Sainsbury’s, Dixons, and GE. He holds an HND in Business and Finance, with merit, from Humberside Polytechnic and a postgraduate diploma in Marketing Management from Staffordshire University, both in the UK, and completed training in International Executive Management from EMLYON Business School, France.

Kelby Barton

General Counsel

Kelby Barton

General Counsel

Kelby Barton joined Avast in 2014 as Deputy General Counsel and was appointed as our General Counsel in 2018. In this role, he is the principal source of legal advice to the Board and Management. While at Avast, he led or was integral to such projects as the acquisition of AVG, the implementation of GDPR, and our listing on the London Stock Exchange. From 2008 to 2012, he was Assistant General Counsel of RightNow Technologies, Inc. (RNOW: NASDAQ), and after its acquisition by Oracle in 2012, was a managing counsel at Oracle Corporation. Mr. Barton began his career in 2002 with Thomson Reuters. Mr. Barton received his law degree from the University of Colorado, and is a member of the State bar of Colorado (United States).

John G. Schwarz

Chairman of The Board;
Chief Executive Officer, Visier

John G. Schwarz

Chairman of The Board;
Chief Executive Officer, Visier

John G. Schwarz has been a member of our Board of Directors since 2011 and the Chairman since 2014. He is currently the co-founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Visier Inc., a business analytics software firm. Previously he served on the executive board of SAP AG from 2008 to 2010, and as a Chief Executive Officer of Business Objects S.A. from 2005 through its acquisition by SAP in 2008. Mr. Schwarz has also served as the President and Chief Operating Officer of Symantec Corporation from 2001 to 2005. Mr. Schwarz previously worked 25 years at IBM Corporation, ultimately as the General Manager of IBM's Industry Solutions division. Mr. Schwarz has served as a director at Synopsys Corporation since 2007, and at Teradata Corporation since 2010. Mr Schwarz hold degrees from the Canadian universities of Manitoba, Toronto and Dalhousie.

Erwin Gunst

Independent Non-Executive Director

Erwin Gunst

Independent Non-Executive Director

Erwin Gunst joined the Board of Avast in October 2012. From 2008 to 2010, Mr. Gunst served as COO and a member of the Executive Board of SAP AG, where he was responsible for global operations, information technology, human resources, and the management of all SAP Labs worldwide. Mr. Gunst started his career in audit, finance and controlling. He was SAP’s Managing Director in various countries and was its Regional President for EMEA before joining the SAP Board. Mr. Gunst holds a M.S. degree in Commercial Engineering from the Free University (Solvay) in Brussels, Belgium.

Belinda Richards

Independent Non-Executive Director

Belinda Richards

Independent Non-Executive Director

Belinda Richards joined the Avast Board in June 2018. Her background includes a 30-year career in Finance, M&A, and strategy development and implementation. Previously, Ms. Richards served as a Senior Corporate Finance Partner at Deloitte LLP where she held the position of Global Head of Deloitte’s Merger Integration and Separation Advisory Services business. Currently, Ms. Richards sits on the Boards of WM Morrison Supermarkets plc, Phoenix Group Holdings plc, The Monks Investment Trust PLC and Schroder Japan Growth Fund plc. She is a member of FRC’s Advisory Group of Audit Committee Chairmen and a member of the Governing Council of CSFI, a not-for-profit think tank based in London. She has a first class honours degree from the University of Kent at Canterbury and a PhD from University College, London.

Ulf Claesson

Independent Non-Executive Director

Ulf Claesson

Independent Non-Executive Director

Ulf Claesson joined the Board of Avast in October 2012. In 2009, Mr. Claesson became a Partner at BLR & Partners AG, a private equity and advisory firm located in Zurich, Switzerland. He is a serial entrepreneur, having founded and built a dozen technology companies to-date, most of which have been acquired by larger enterprises including Hewlett Packard, ESRI and Husqvarna. From 2002 to 2006, he was Co-Founder and Chairman of Silverwire Group; subsequently, on its acquisition by Hewlett-Packard Company, Mr. Claesson built up and ran one of HP’s product divisions from 2006 to 2009. Earlier in his career he held corporate executive positions at IBM, responsible for developing IBM’s European CAD/CAM/CAE business, and thereafter for building IBMs OEM business in Europe and later worldwide. Mr. Claesson serves as a member of the board of the Swiss Federal Commission for Technology and Innovation, and teaches Technology Entrepreneurship at ETH, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. He holds an M.Sc. from Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden.

Maggie Chan Jones

Independent Non-Executive Director

Maggie Chan Jones

Independent Non-Executive Director

Ms. Maggie Chan Jones is a widely recognized industry thought leader in marketing and technology. Named one of the world’s most influential CMOs by Forbes, Ms. Chan Jones broke new ground as the first woman to be appointed Chief Marketing Officer at the world’s largest enterprise application software provider SAP. She specializes in brand and cloud transformation and has been instrumental in this role during her tenure at Level 3 Communications (now CenturyLink) and Microsoft. As an Asian-American woman, Ms. Chan Jones recognizes the barriers facing women in today’s corporate culture. Determined to change this, she founded and currently is CEO of Tenshey, a leadership development startup with a mission to advance gender diversity through executive coaching.

Warren Finegold

Senior Independent Non-Executive Director

Warren Finegold

Senior Independent Non-Executive Director

Warren Finegold joined the Board of Avast in February 2015. He was a member of the Vodafone Group Executive Committee for 10 years, serving principally as Group Strategy and Business Development Director. Previously, he was a Managing Director of UBS Investment Bank, where he held a number of senior positions, most recently as Head of the Technology Team in Europe. Mr. Finegold is an independent non-executive Director OF Inmarsat PLC. He holds a M.A. in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from Oxford University and a Masters degree in Business Administration from London Business School.

Tamara Minick-Scokalo

Independent Non-Executive Director

Tamara Minick-Scokalo

Independent Non-Executive Director

Ms. Tamara Minick-Scokalo is an experienced Non-Executive Director Board member with a career spanning over 30 years specializing in Fast Moving Consumer Goods and international markets. Most recently at Pearson plc in London, as President, Growth Markets and a member of the Executive Committee for top 20 emerging markets, she directed acquisitions and developed businesses in Brazil, China, India, and South Africa. She also co-founded high tech unicorn Trax Retail and was CEO, then Chairman of this fast growing, image recognition tool for shelf management, the leader in its category. She led significant change management, as President Chocolate Europe with the integration of the Kraft/Cadbury business, and also as Cadbury President Global Commercial in moving to a category-led, scaled innovation organization with award winning marketing in a digital age. Her deep experience in consumer brands includes positions at Elizabeth Arden, Procter & Gamble, E & J Gallo Winery Europe and Coca Cola.

Ondrej Vlcek

Chief Executive Officer