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Larry Pfeifer

Larry Pfeifer: Fortifying Organizations, Contributing for Change

In the era of everything-digital, the primary concern, equally for end-users and organizations is the protection of data. As promising as the digitalization of sensitive information seems to be, it is also equally prone to an overabundance of threats. Organizations dealing with and in information technology and related aspects are the most familiar with the gravity of these threats, and one leading industry expert of the enterprise security discipline, is of the same opinion. This is Larry Pfeifer, the President of Consortium Networks. Conveying his perspective about the current scenario of the industry, Larry says that the enterprise security market, as it stands today is booming with a plethora of solutions and product offerings; so are the threats, vulnerabilities, and alarming instances of devastating breaches. Pertaining to this, Larry expresses that identifying the right solution has evidently become more of a ‘fill in the gaps’ puzzle, wherein Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) are burdened with the tasks of separating ‘the noise from the signal.’
Larry is also of the opinion that heavy market competition tends to overwhelm, and at times, confuse enterprises into making nonessential and risky investments. While a one-size-fits-all solution may be idealistic, achieving a robust cybersecurity strategy not only demands cross-departmental participation within an enterprise but also, a ‘beyond-enterprise’ community-level engagement among CISOs and other enterprise leaders. Moreover, as threats build up on the horizon, the line of defense shouldn’t be dictated solely by the solution provider, but also by a rightly informed CISO. This is where Consortium Networks helps companies realize their enterprise security needs with its revolutionary collaboration platform for security experts.
Advocating Innovation
Built upon the proven notion of crowd-sharing intelligence, Consortium Networks’ portal provides real-world feedback and data on tools meant for physical and cybersecurity product offerings in the market. In contrast to the hugely prevalent, biased reviews from paid analysts and consultants, Consortium Network’s platform fosters a learn-from-peers approach to help security experts and enterprise leaders address the predicaments associated with choosing the right security solution for their enterprise. “The whole idea is to reduce the risk and get the truth about all the products that are out there, including diving past the power points, the proofs-of-concept and actually sharing what people are using,” states Larry.
When asked upon his company’s mission and source of inspiration, Larry expresses, “Two of our key values are integrity and altruism. A percentage of all our profits go to charity each year.” Having helped many enterprises attain robust security decision-making, Consortium Networks continues to expand its capabilities to tackle some of the prevalent issues in the enterprise security arena. The company plans to make its platform more interactive so as provide real-time answers to user queries. In parallel, the company has in its agenda the task of addressing the huge shortage of skilled employees in the space by spurring up a mechanism to match skilled professionals with companies in need. “We want to help people. That could mean customer, vendors or just people that need help!” adds Larry.
The organization also incorporates charitable donations in its activities and marketing events which aligns to its core value of giving back and helping people in need. Over the past few years, the company has contributed to FBI Fallen Heroes, Childhood Leukemia and Lymphoma Foundation (CLLF), Alstom Foundation, Teen Challenge, as well as Feeding Foundation for the homeless.
Triumphing Challenges
The biggest challenge for Consortium Networks while establishing its position in the marketplace was keeping up with the growth of the business without any disruption with the level of service and personal touch it delivers to its customer base. “Our great team of employees put on multiple hats to help ensure we continue the endurance of customer service and have been an integral part of our success as a company,” says Larry.
It is considered that, to efficiently resolve any issue, the team at an organization has to be efficient and be collectively responsible for devising a successful solution. Similarly, the team at Consortium Networks considers it important that its members mentor each other with any obstacle so that it can learn from each other’s experiences and mistakes and grow from them. Larry comprehends that honesty is important, so any news or information that will impact the company is presented to the team to work through any questions or concerns.
Attaining Zeniths
When it comes to achievements and accolades, Consortium Networks has studded its hat with many feathers. There are many achievements to be noted but Larry emphasizes on instances like, when a mother and wife of a fallen FBI agent approached him to thank the company for helping their family after her husband departed. “That was emotional for me and helps further validate that we are truly doing something different,” he says.
Larry also recalls how a CISO stood up at an event, unsolicited, and said openly that she thought Consortium Networks was a different kind of company based on its values and what it does to help, and that she would work with them anywhere.
Beholding Progress
Consortium Networks aims to keep doing the same thing it’s doing now, but just in more places. “I love what we do and we are making an impact and having fun at the same time,” states Larry. The company is releasing some products this year. It has decided to release two products for free to its customers. First is a No Cost cloud-based threat intelligence aggregation platform. The organization figured a way to help companies operationalize threat intelligence even if they don’t have a team to do so.  Second, it will be releasing a cloud-based DNS filtering solution at no-cost again. The organization found out a way to significantly reduce spam and modern malware through DNS filtering. “This is really going to help a majority of our customers protect themselves with little impact to their environment,” Larry asserts.