Introducing the “In Progress” Podcast

What is the “In Progress” Podcast?

Nothing worth building is ever finished. That’s the premise of “In Progress,” a podcast Aviatrix launched today. Our CEO, Doug Merritt, will meet with leaders from business, government, and security to talk about what it means to lead, make decisions, and build an organization in the AI era, anchored by cybersecurity insights.

Doug Merritt brings decades of network, security, and leadership experience to “In Progress.” Most recently, he served as Splunk President and CEO. During his tenure, Doug led the transformation of Splunk from an on premise, perpetual license software company with the equivalent of $220 million in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR), to a cloud-based SaaS company with ARR of $3.12 billion. He helped build the Detection Era of using security solutions like endpoint detection and response (EDR), cloud native application protection platforms (CNAPPs), cloud security posture management (CSPM), and cloud workload protection platforms (CWAPP), shrinking the time-to-detect and time-to-respond for security teams.

Now that we’ve reached the Containment Era of threats, when last year’s detection tools are not fast enough for the rising number of threats, Doug and other security experts will share survival tips, hot takes, and expert perspectives on how to approach the next set of challenges.

“In my roles as a software engineer, manager, leader, and CEO, I’ve developed core leadership principles that I practice every day,” Doug said. “These conversations are an opportunity for me and other business and security leaders to distill years of team meetings, complex product launches, crisis management, vision-casting, relationship building, successes, failures, and the daily grind into time-tested insights that will help others grow into leaders who define the space instead of reacting too late to every new wave.”

Why Share These Insights on a Podcast?

Security teams are drowning in alerts, and all security professionals, from entry-level practitioners to executives, are drowning in content. The streamlined, simple, and inherently human format of human voices on a podcast help cut through the noise. Doug and his guests will offer authentic insights viewpoints into security leaders’ biggest challenges shaped by years of brainstorming, experimenting with solutions, and measuring results.

What Will “In Progress” Conversations Focus On?

Doug and his guests will discuss the latest cloud security events: industry-changing data breaches, regulatory reactions, tech breakthroughs, major mergers and acquisitions, security conference recaps, and groundbreaking thought leadership. They’ll frame current notes in the context of evergreen principles, including:

• How understanding the foundations of security, networking, and business inform your tactical decisions

• Prioritizing both security and business speed

• Your role in the “tribe” of your company

• Cultivating curiosity in an age of distractions

• What the evolution of tech over the past 30 years indicates about the future

• Complementing human insight with AI innovation

• Career insights about rising from practitioner to leader to executive

• Stories of long-term endurance, failures that turned into key lessons, and game-changing success

The first episode of In Progress is out now, featuring insights from leading security expert Chris Hughes. Doug and Chris discuss the “Vulnapocalypse” of AI-discovered vulnerabilities, the growing pressure on CISOs and security teams, and how security leaders can respond.

Watch and listen on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you find your podcasts.