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Canberra-based cyber technology provider Penten has announced the appointment of a new chief executive officer as part of a leadership restructure to support a rapidly expanding product portfolio and customer base.
Penten is embarking on leadership renewal in 2024 to support the increased adoption of key products among Australian government customers, including defence, intelligence, and security agencies.
As part of this leadership restructure, Penten’s current CEO and co-founder, Matthew Wilson, will step into the role of executive chair, while Dr Marcus Thompson AM will continue to serve the company as a board director, having been chair of Penten since October 2021.
Greg Barsby, a former managing director of the Australian arm of UK defence technology and test and evaluation specialist QinetiQ, will assume the role of CEO as part of Penten’s senior leadership transition, effective 29 January 2024.
A former Army officer, Mr Barsby brings over 20 years of defence industry experience to Penten, including close to a decade at the helm of QinetiQ Australia.
Outgoing chair Dr Thompson congratulated Mr Barsby on his appointment and highlighted the role he will play in guiding Penten’s future growth plans, saying: “Following an extensive search process, we are delighted to welcome Greg to lead Penten’s team and day-to-day operations.
"He is a highly-regarded senior executive with lengthy experience delivering services and technology solutions for military and government customers. The board looks forward to supporting Greg to realise Penten’s full potential.”
Current CEO Mr Wilson echoed the sentiments of Dr Thompson, saying: “Penten is strong, profitable and well positioned to support the AUKUS partnership with our best-in-class proprietary cyber and security technologies. Greg’s international defence industry experience will enable us to scale up across multiple jurisdictions while we continue developing our IP-led cyber technology portfolio in Australia and further commercialise our applied AI and technical services.”
Going further, Mr Wilson added: “The board also pays tribute to Dr Marcus Thompson for his invaluable leadership and personal commitment to Penten, which has been pivotal to our recent success, which includes a rapid increase in the adoption of Penten’s AltoCrypt products and data breach detection solutions. We look forward to Marcus’ continued guidance and support through his ongoing role on the Penten board.”
Founded in Canberra in 2014, Penten is an Australian-owned cyber technology business that delivers sovereign technologies for Defence and national security to ensure its clients maintain asymmetric advantage.
Penten’s technology is used across Australian and allied government organisations to secure and protect the most classified information.
Awarded Telstra Australian Business of the Year in 2018, Penten continues to receive accolades, including winning the Australian Defence Industry Cyber Business of the Year in 2019, 2020 and 2021 and taking out the Emerging Exporter of the Year category at the 2021 Australian Export Awards.
David Hollingworth has been writing about technology for over 20 years, and has worked for a range of print and online titles in his career. He is enjoying getting to grips with cyber security, especially when it lets him talk about Lego.
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