CellTrust CEO: Successful Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) Program Requires Mobile Compliancy Enforcement Vision and Adaptiveness
by Lee Rech

Visionary, innovator, respectful, accessible and relaxed are among the words those closest to Arizona CEO of the Year Sean Moshir use to describe the cybersecurity thought leader. Moshir is widely known as the tech executive at the forefront of enterprise cybersecurity patch management and secure mobile device spaces for the past two decades.

As CEO and co-founder of Scottsdale-based CellTrust, Moshir has built the secure and integrated mobile enterprise solutions provider into a trusted compliancy enforcement partner. When it comes to enforcing policy, whether mandated by regulatory bodies or voluntary, he believes most companies are capable of establishing policies. However, enforcing these same policies across large enterprise networks and mobile devices, mandated or not, becomes a very different story.

Catching the BYOD Wave In 2013, Moshir and his team identified a market opportunity he describes as “BringYour-Own-Device” (BYOD), applicable in highly regulated environments such as finance (FINRA), healthcare (HIPAA), and government. Recognizing the untapped potential of the opportunity, he strategically transformed CellTrust’s award-winning, secure mobile technology to ensure business and product development strategy, planning, and execution efforts could remain well ahead of competitors.

In May 2017, FINRA published “Guidance on Social Networking Websites and Business Communications,” which provides guidelines for financial advisors on how to archive their text messages when communicating to investors, and which supported CellTrust’s mission to develop today’s leading mobile compliancy enforcement offering.

“Many companies, especially highly regulated industries such as finance, healthcare, and energy, are still very much at risk when it comes to enforcing and securing their policies and procedures,” explained Moshir. “According to Gartner, 90 percent of today’s workers use their personal devices for work. And, while the BYOD trend has proven to be productive and cost effective in many instances, it too often puts employers in jeopardy. Today, more than 68 percent of companies do not have a BYOD compliant policy in place. This is simply very risky.”
For those unfamiliar with BYOD, this alternative communications strategy allows employees, business partners, and others to use a personally selected and purchased mobile client device to execute enterprise applications and access data. Many believe employees are more productive when using their own mobile devices. However, once corporate data exists on a personal phone, regulatory enforcement becomes very difficult. Typically, BYOD spans smartphones and tablets, but the strategy also applies to PCs.

While accessibility benefits are seemingly obvious, the revenue BYOD could bear has the marketplace stumbling over itself. According to a 2015 Tech Pro research report, analysts estimated the BYOD market at $71.93 billion in 2013, but expected that number to reach $266 billion by 2019. Just two years away, and Moshir and his team know it. Moshir has worked tirelessly with his product marketing and development teams to ensure CellTrust stays at the crest of the “secure mobile communication compliancy enforcement” wave.

Today, under Moshir’s leadership, CellTrust offers advanced secure mobile communication compliancy enforcement software solutions and equally superior
stakeholder services. Aiding this effort, Moshir has partnered with global resellers and partners including Smarsh, BlackBerry, Samsung, MicroFocus, MessageWatcher, Actiance, GlobalRelay, MobileIron and VMWare to name a few.

CellTrust SL2™ Sets Bar for Mobile Communication Compliancy Enforcement Compatible with any iOS, Android, or BlackBerry mobile device, tablet or desktop, CellTrust has introduced SL2™, enabling the ability to make calls and texts from the application using a Mobile Business Number (MBN) which is separate from the users’ personal number. The app has its own phone calls, call logs, text messages and contacts keeping everything separate from the personal number. Calls and text made from the app may be encrypted and optionally traced and archived, helping to ensure compliancy with regulations. The user’s registered mobile device number remains available to make personal calls. Enterprise policies are executed and enforced by SL2™ to enable the enforcement of mandatory policy requirements. By embedding voice and text in the SL2™environment, the mobile device user can confidently conduct business and know they are compliant with corporate policies and mandated requirements.

CellTrust SL2™ makes it easier to use mobile devices in a regulatory environment, stipulated by federal mandates such as FINRA, HIPAA, and other complex reporting and archiving requirements.

Open Door (and Mind) Policy Mindset Center Stage at CellTrust Moshir believes great customer support is critical to business success.

“One of the most important elements of stakeholder strategy at CellTrust is the customer,” said Moshir. “I enjoy keeping my finger on the market pulse by remaining involved and interacting with CellTrust customers.”

Moshir developed many products and exited an Inc. 500 company over the past 20 years. During his career, he led several industry-changing technology initiatives including the creation of ManageWare, which he sold to IBM. He also developed one of the first network anti-virus VAP software for Central Point Software, a company ultimately acquired by Symantec. Credited with founding the now multi-milliondollar security patch vulnerability management and remediation space by establishing PatchLink Corporation (now Ivanti), Moshir led PatchLink to become one of the fastest growing companies in the United States at the time, with tens of millions using the software today. In just two years, PatchLink grew from 18 to more than 200 employees working from several global office locations. Moshir founded and established CellTrust in 2006, where he remains CEO today.

At CellTrust, understanding the nuances of the compliance enforcement market was in line with Moshir’s experience. Fortune 500 companies worldwide, such as Shell, Lockheed Martin, Novell, IBM, Thompson, Kraft Foods, Harley Davidson, and the banking industry, sought out Moshir for his security products and expertise. With a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Moshir is as adept at providing complex technology recommendations as he is running day-to-day business.

While Moshir continues to ensure all CellTrust stakeholders buy into his SL2™ and BYOD vision, he also makes sure everyone from office manager to software developer to CFO gets the opportunity to present their views and ideas.

“Giving all employees a voice makes achieving our goals much easier,” Moshir explained. “My open-door policy with all employees, customers, and contractors helps me to see the objectives and end-game from different perspectives.”

Moshir admits that several CellTrust stakeholders are closer to some of the core issues than he is as CEO. For example, and for obvious reasons, CellTrust developers are oftentimes closer to product issues and problems. “Their approach to addressing an issue could be different than what I would have advised; but that isn’t always a bad thing,” noted Moshir. “In fact, sometimes it is a great thing. In the end, I just make sure their ideas fit into the big picture and are coherent with our overall product and company roadmap.”

At CellTrust, department heads manage their own departments day-to-day but Moshir encourages all employees to communicate with him and other executive team members at all levels. It is important that CellTrust employees feel comfortable approaching and discussing ideas with the CEO. The open door (and mind) policy at CellTrust remains a top priority for Moshir and his executive team.

A Relaxed Culture Built on Goals and Expectations Just last year, Fast Company published a story on corporate culture. As part of the myth busting format, writer Barry Saltzman determined that companies can cultivate a relaxed atmosphere and still set boundaries. Moreover, Saltzman discovered that in a recent Business Analysis and Research study sponsored by Strategic Finance, 40 percent of employees surveyed agreed that they benefit when their own goals are in step with their company’s goals. So, while Moshir might not have invented the relaxed tech company environment, he certainly has taken hold of the right culture approach.

“I expect people to do what they need to do to meet objectives, but those same objectives are all set around high-level company goals,” said Moshir. “I find when employees at every level feel they are part of the big picture, they feel more confident taking on projects and supporting the corporate end game.”

Moshir points out that CellTrust provides food and drink to ensure employees are happy, energized, and well-fed during the workday. Because CellTrust deals with mobile security and compliancy scenarios at so many levels, customers expect a level of corporate professionalism and interaction that extends beyond other consumer technology software service providers. In addition, CellTrust provides employees with a Zen Room for reenergizing, an employee recognition program, flexible work hours and accommodations for parents.

CEO of Year Award Provides Multi-Faceted Affirmation “After working years in the cybersecurity technology industry and serving as an advisor to national cybersecurity gurus, such as the late Howard Schmidt, former cyber-security coordinator during the Obama and Bush administrations, it is an honor to be recognized as Arizona’s CEO of Year,” Moshir humbly acknowledged.

Moshir notes his fondness for Arizona as one of best places to live and work. However, he laments that a business location, Arizona is sometimes underestimated for its cybersecurity attributes, innovation, and advancement. For this reason, Moshir made a concerted effort to extend beyond his for-profit to become one of founding board members of CyberSecurityCanyon.org. The non-profit, cybersecurity coalition was created to generate, attract, and retain highly educated tech talent into Arizona’s cybersecurity sector.

Moshir believes that actively working across private and public business sectors gives him an advantageous employee and customer perspective and focus. Moshir added that many
Americans don’t realize there is a Cyber Security Warfare Range based in Arizona. The range is open to organizations with an interest in developing welltrained workforces versed in the continuous improvement process for cyber security and ultimately national security.

When asked to reflect on key attributes that helped him become an award-winning business leader, Moshir mentioned an intuitive nature that he developed through his career. Moshir stated, “I think my ability to recognize the raw energy people have in them and help them channel that energy in a positive way has been a driving force over the years. And, my ability to team, work with, and adapt to many personalities has been a plus.”

Moshir believes the ability to focus and understand a business’ space, industry, and trends is critical to success. Being able to make changes and adapt as the market changes is how CellTrust has advanced — Moshir expects more of the same.

“I believe CellTrust’s new SL2™ technology will rapidly take off based on industry feedback received to date,” Moshir explained. “Our continued expansion will provide customers what they have come to expect from CellTrust — superior mobile security and compliancy enforcement, that cost-effectively combines personal and work mobile devices without the risk.”