Russ Gritzo

Russ Gritzo is the Chief Information Security Officer of SMSI, promoted into the role from within the company according to reporting published in September 2026.

Career path

Gritzo's professional background began with a period in the nuclear sciences before he moved into cybersecurity work.
Over the following two decades he built cybersecurity programs and carried out penetration testing on government networks.
By October 2024 he held the title of Cybersecurity Program Manager at Strategic Management Solutions LLC, working as a cybersecurity consultant focused on the federal government.
CSO Online reported in September 2026 that SMSI had promoted Gritzo to Chief Information Security Officer.

Public talks

On October 10, 2024, Gritzo presented How to Excel in an Information Security Career Beyond Your Technical Skills over Zoom as part of Cybersecurity Awareness Month programming organized by Mount Saint Mary College's Center for Cybersecurity, which hosted two public talks that month by local security leaders.
In the talk, Gritzo argued that technical skill alone does not determine success in information security, pointing instead to interpersonal qualities as equally important to a career in the field. He told attendees that narcissistic and ego-driven colleagues "are impossible to work with," noting that such people keep information to themselves, grab all the glory, and create a toxic environment. Gritzo also told the audience that maintaining physical and mental health supports productivity, creativity, and teamwork across a security team, describing good health as critical to a team's overall success. At the time of the talk, he described himself as a cybersecurity consultant focused on the federal government.