Network security firm Sourcefire on Monday announced that it has appointed John Becker as its new Chief Executive Officer, taking over for Martin Roesch who has served as interim Chief Executive Officer since June 2012 after John Burris took a medical leave of absence to undergo a series of treatments for colon cancer. Burris officially announced his retirement in October 2012.
Roesch will continue in his role as Chief Technology Officer and remain a member of the Board, Sourcefire said.
Becker, 55, has served on the Board of Directors of Sourcefire since 2008, and comes to Sourcefire from ScienceLogic, a provider of network monitoring software, where he served as CEO from April 2012 through March 2013. Becker will remain a member of the Board at Sourcefire.
Previously, Becker was the CEO of Approva Corporation, a provider of continuous controls monitoring software, which was acquired by Lawson Software in September 2011. Prior to Approva, Becker was CEO of information security services firm Cybertrust, which was acquired by Verizon in 2007.
Other previous roles include positions with AXENT Technologies, a publicly traded information security software and services company that was sold Symantec in late 2000.
Becker holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Richmond.
“We are thrilled to announce John as the new CEO of Sourcefire. He is a seasoned technology leader with a demonstrated track record of success. John has been an active member of our Board of Directors for several years, and Sourcefire has already benefitted from his experience and leadership,” Lt. Gen. (ret.) Steven R. Polk, Chairman of the Board at Sourcefire said in a statement.
“The board is confident that John will be successful in leading the Company on the execution of its Agile Security vision,” Polk added.
According to an SEC filing, Becker’s employment agreement has an initial four-year term, with automatic one-year extensions each year thereafter, unless either party provides at least 90 days’ notice of its intention not to renew or the agreement is earlier terminated. Becker will receive an annual base salary of $460,000, subject to increase, but not decrease, in the discretion of the Compensation Committee of the Company’s Board of Directors, and is eligible for a target annual bonus in an amount up to 100% of his annual base salary, according to the filing.
In addition to naming Becker as CEO, Sourcefire announced that Kevin Klausmeyer has joined its Board of Directors as an independent director and named Chairman of the Company’s Audit Committee and a member of its Compensation Committee. From July 2003 to September 2012, Klausmeyer served on the board of Quest Software, and was chairman of its audit committee.
Klausmeyer also was Corporate Controller and Chief Accounting Officer of BMC Software and spent 13 years in public accounting with Arthur Andersen LLP. Klausmeyer graduated from the University of Texas with a BBA in Accounting.
Shares of Sourcefire (NASDAQ: FIRE) closed at $55.45 in trading on Monday. The announcement was made after the bell. The company also announced that it will release its Q1 2013 financial results after the market closes on Tuesday, April 30, 2013.
