Occupying the C-suite doesn’t just mean steering a company through high-level decisions. To Joe Burton, tapped to helm TeleSign earlier this year, being a leader is about ensuring team members are put in a position to succeed.
“My email signature says I am the CEO of TeleSign,” Burton said. “In practice, I see myself as responsible for removing friction so all TeleSigners can experience fewer obstacles, do great work and have more fun. I hope that is my job. That’s what I try to do every day.”
In January, the Marina del Rey, Calif.-headquartered company — which provides mobile-focused solutions to safeguard companies and consumers against fraud — announced the hire of the seasoned technologist, whose previous roles included CEO of Poly and VP/CTO of unified communications at Cisco.
And, while security was of critical importance long before 2020, the digital transformation prompted by the pandemic — with individuals turning to tech to facilitate everyday tasks that they might have more routinely done in person — means safeguarding data now carries increased weight at TeleSign.
“In 2021 and beyond, we will stay true to our mission to connect and protect people and companies,” Burton said. “With the acceleration of the digital economy, this is more important than ever.”
Recently, Built In LA caught up with Burton to learn what brought him to TeleSign, what he hopes to accomplish as CEO and how the company plans to stay competitive in the digital identity space.
About TeleSign
- Customers include Salesforce, Electronic Arts, Skype and Citrix
- TeleSign’s platform serves individuals in more than 230 countries and territories
- Industries of application include gaming, e-commerce and financial services
You’ve been in the tech industry for decades. What drew you to TeleSign?
Decades? Wow, I guess that’s true, but time flies when you’re enjoying yourself! My early adulthood was an eclectic mix of jobs including asphalt paver, truck driver, lawn care specialist, Army guy and mechanic. After I finished college, I spent my early career as a software engineer, much of it in the communications industry. In my spare time, I’m still tinkering with code or working on a car or mountain bike.
So, what drew me to TeleSign? TeleSign is at the intersection of several of my personal and professional passions: Fast-growth software innovation; communications technology; and helping all consumers to have fulfilling and secure experiences in the digital economy. I feel extremely fortunate to be part of the TeleSign team.
What key goals are you looking to achieve as CEO?
I think everyone at TeleSign is excited about our mission: connecting and protecting the digital interactions between consumers and companies. My job is to be sure everyone at the company has the resources and creative space to do this in an enjoyable way.
At a high level, how has the pandemic shaped the space in which TeleSign operates? What have those effects meant for TeleSign?
The pandemic has been incredibly difficult for many people, and we never forget that at TeleSign. One of the biggest effects of the pandemic is that the digitization of the worldwide economy dramatically accelerated. The adoption of online shopping, banking, meal delivery, telemedicine, online education and other digital activities that were once handled in person has leapt forward several years in the last 12 months. Enabling and protecting these interactions is important and why TeleSign exists. For us, it feels like we are doing our part to make a tough situation a little better for people.
One of the biggest effects of the pandemic is that the digitization of the worldwide economy dramatically accelerated.”
Digital transformation was a key theme of 2020. How do you see this carrying over in 2021 and beyond? How does that impact TeleSign?
While 2020 was obviously a huge year for digital transformation, that doesn’t mean the process is over. I think it will continue to accelerate still in 2021 and beyond. TeleSign connects and protects the digital interactions between consumers and companies. For the digital economy to work with confidence, solutions from companies like TeleSign have to be there.
What does TeleSign’s product roadmap look like for 2021?
In 2021 and beyond, we will stay true to our mission to connect and protect people and companies. With the acceleration of the digital economy, this is more important than ever. We will be increasing our capacity, enhancing our products with the latest data science and AI techniques, and building solutions that are even easier to use. It is going to be an exciting year at TeleSign.
What key technologies is TeleSign eyeing in order to remain competitive in the fraud prevention and digital identity space?
TeleSign is in a unique position: We have insights on billions of phone numbers and associated communications metadata. This data, combined with our years of expertise and the latest data science and AI techniques, creates a compelling product solution for both TeleSign and our customers.
As more and more transactions happen online, the incentives for fraudsters and cybercriminals only get juicier. ”
Looking to a potentially “post-pandemic” future, what do you think will be the biggest challenges in the fraud prevention and digital identity space? How is TeleSign poised to address those?
The latest estimates suggest cybercrime cost over $6 trillion globally in 2020 and digital identity theft alone cost over $56 billion. As more and more transactions happen online, the incentives for fraudsters and cybercriminals only get juicier. Without solutions like TeleSign, these losses will continue to grow.
Today, companies are constantly balancing the need to reduce fraud losses while continuing to deliver a great customer experience. It can seem like an impossible problem to solve: Adding more security, checks, and balances may reduce fraud losses; but, those same security measures can be annoying and cumbersome to customers. It’s our mission to help end that trade off.
Using our experience, amazing team and unique position at the intersection of the digital identity and communications industries, we will continue to help our customers make online interactions both safer and easier. TeleSign is up to the challenge.
