SOMERSET, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–1Kosmos, the only standards-based platform that uses advanced biometrics and a private blockchain to create an indisputable, reusable digital identity for strong and continuous authentication, today announced its executive team expansion with the appointments of Javed Shah (previously at ForgeRock) as VP of Product Management and Rich Hlavka (previously at Splunk) as SVP of Business Development and Strategic Alliances.
Javed will be responsible for executing the 1Kosmos BlockID product strategy while building out and running the company’s world class product team. Rich will drive strategic partnerships and revenue sources to maximize and scale 1Kosmos in the marketplace, as well as oversee independent software vendors (ISVs) , global systems integrators (GSIs), managed security service providers (MSSPs) and traditional channels all tied to 1Kosmos’ identity product portfolio.
With these strategic new hires, 1Kosmos continues to disrupt traditional identity and authentication security architecture with the industry’s most advanced solution for strong, verifiable identity-based authentication. According to Gartner, 78% of CISOs are finding it increasingly challenging to manage their cybersecurity solutions effectively, noting that most use more than 16 solutions. 1Kosmos brings together advanced biometrics, passwordless options and verifiable identity security within a private blockchain, all in one platform for individuals and enterprises.
“As companies move toward passwordless solutions, 1Kosmos fills a void in the market with a sophisticated and advanced solution that combats identity fraud, simplifies the user experience, and puts individuals in control of their credentials,” said Hemen Vimadalal, CEO and founder of 1Kosmos. “Welcoming Rich and Javed to our executive team will enable us to grow our product suite as well as our network of partners and strategic alliances.”
Javed has spent his entire 20-year career designing and building identity and access management solutions. He comes to 1Kosmos after a successful tenure at ForgeRock, where he led the pre-sales organization for Americas and LATAM, later becoming the lead evangelist and product owner for the ForgeRock Identity Platform. His capstone achievement at ForgeRock was designing and building the ForgeRock Identity Cloud service, which is a global deployment of the powerful and extensible ForgeRock Identity Platform. Javed has an MBA from UC Berkeley.
“As a Product Manager by trade and having spent 20+ years building identity and access management products that delight customers, I look forward to building and leading the 1Kosmos product team as VP of Product Management,” said Javed. “The company has disrupted the identity market with an innovative and scalable decentralized identity platform that serves a great unmet need in the market. I look forward to guiding the team as we create identity platform solutions that adapt to the current and future needs of the market and absolutely delight our customers.”
RIch comes to 1Kosmos with 28 years of experience holding senior executive positions and leadership roles for startup, mid-staged, and large enterprise companies, including Splunk and Phantom Cyber (acquired by Splunk in 2018). Prior to 1Kosmos, Rich served as the Director of Global Strategic Alliance (GSA)-Security Markets Group at Splunk as part of the acquisition of Phantom Cyber for $350M in 2018, where he was responsible for the entire Splunk security partner ecosystem of more than 500 partners that integrated with Splunk’s Core and Security portfolio. Additionally, he created several strategic business development initiatives to drive net-new customer logos and incremental revenue while also assisting in several M&A activities. He holds a BS in General Business from Excelsior College.
“Throughout my time in the security industry, I’ve seen firsthand the issues that 1Kosmos is solving with its technology,” said Rich. “1Kosmos is on the brink of market domination with solutions that provide security and flexibility for businesses, and BlockID fulfills a long-awaited need for passwordless products. I’m excited to begin this journey with a fast-growing company and leading our team to the next-level of our growth.”
To learn more about 1Kosmos, visit www.1kosmos.com.
About 1Kosmos
1Kosmos BlockID is a distributed digital identity platform supporting both business-to-employee and business-to-consumer services that easily integrates with existing operating systems, applications, and IT security infrastructure to perform strong, verified identity-based authentication – eliminating the need for passwords, one-time codes, and more. By simplifying identity infrastructure, 1Kosmos drives both cost savings and user convenience while securing businesses and individuals from the harm and inconvenience of identity fraud. The company is headquartered in Somerset, New Jersey. For more information, visit www.1kosmos.com or follow @1KosmosBlockID on Twitter.
