Dana Wolf is the Head of Products for OpenDNS, a leading cloud-delivered network security company that helps some of the world’s largest companies keep their users safe online. With over twelve years of experience in information security, Wolf has worked on both the engineering and product side of security organizations. In her current role, Wolf leads the product management, product marketing, user experience, and design teams. She is passionate about building, mentoring, guiding, and empowering the next elite group of leaders in the technology industry.
When did you become interested in security?
My dad was an engineer and tech became a large part of my world from a young age. Growing up, my two sisters and I performed computer backups as part of our regular chores. All three of us were very involved in his work, which sparked my interest in pursuing a career in this industry.
Early in my career, I worked as an engineer during the day and spent my nights and weekends studying for my MBA from Northeastern University. Through balancing business studies with a technical job, I realized that I had a knack for translating between technical people and customers.
After many years as an engineer, I branched out to product management, while staying in the security industry. This ultimately led me to my position as Head of Products for OpenDNS.
What are your thoughts on the lack of women in security?
I think things are slowly changing. There are now programs like security-focused summer camps for girls, which try to address the gap between the number of men and women in security.
When I was younger, I was the only woman in my Computer Science major in college and the only female engineer at the majority of my previous jobs. Being the only woman for so many years, I had to be strong and argue for what I believed in, something that helped me achieve success.
How can organizations support women and diversity in the workplace?
OpenDNS is incredibly community-driven and works with groups such as Girls Who Code, which inspires a younger generation of girls to pursue careers in technology, and Spark, a non-profit that engages underserved 7th and 8th grade children. We also host unofficial “Women of OpenDNS” happy hours to get together after work and connect.
It is important to have a diverse group of people in any department of any organization, especially women in engineering. My team is eight women and twelve men, all of whom have a technical background paired with creative skills. Having a group of people who think exactly the same way does not set you up for success. By integrating a diverse group of people with differing personalities and opinions, you are able to come up with the most creative solutions possible. I believe that a melting pot of diverse and interesting people allows them to challenge one another; in some cases conflict produces the best, most creative results.
What advice do you have for other women in security?
My philosophy is to provide mentorship to others, which helped me get very far in my career. I learned important values from many of my mentors. I speak with them one-on-one, share advice, and guide them in their careers.
What is your biggest accomplishment?
I am incredibly proud of the way my team helps design products, and how focused we are on our customers.
Our approach is about adding value and solving problems. My job is to make sure we have a crystal clear focus on making products that will continue to earn our customers’ business year after year. Across the board, my team is incredibly focused on the needs of the security professionals using our product, so we consistently talk to our customers and learn from them. I am proud that we design alongside our customers and truly become partners with them, ultimately creating a unified culture around what we are delivering.
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