Bobby Ford

Bobby Ford is the Chief Security Officer (CSO) at Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), a global technology leader.
Bobby leads the Cybersecurity and Digital Risk Management (CDRM) organization responsible for protecting HPE’s digital assets and accelerating its growth as the edge-to-cloud company. Since he joined in 2021, Bobby has been leading the shift to a risk-driven approach to cybersecurity. Under his leadership, CDRM has matured its capabilities to protect the enterprise through automation and strategic tooling, expanded its scope to include the delivery of secure cloud services, and created a Cybersecurity Center of Excellence. The COE serves as the engagement function for the organization and strategically connects cybersecurity expertise across the company.
Bobby is a strong believer in providing mentorship, building diverse teams, creating talent and gifting opportunities for those who might otherwise be overlooked. His vision has resulted in successful, innovative programs that develop new cybersecurity professionals from unlikely candidate pools.
In his 20-year private-sector career, Bobby has held executive-level positions for large global organizations across multiple industries, including technology, aerospace and defense, consumer goods, and life sciences. With his deep technical expertise and risk management oversight skills, he has helped organizations minimize cyber risks and fuel growth. He has lived and worked in North America, Europe, and Southeast Asia.
Prior to HPE, Bobby served as the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) for Unilever, based in London. He also held the position of CISO at Abbott Labs in Chicago, IL and Exelis Inc. in McLean, VA.
A veteran of the US Army, Bobby served in South Korea and Washington DC. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from George Mason University, and a Certificate in Executive Leadership from both the University of Maryland Robert H. Smith School of Business and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He holds several cybersecurity industry certifications, including Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and NSA Information Assessment Methodology.