The Skandalaris Center is proud to announce our newest National Council member, Andrew Rubin, CEO and Co-Founder of Illumio. Andrew is an alumnus of Olin who graduated with a BSBA in Finance in 1998.

When asked what he is looking forward to the most about being involved with the Skandalaris Center, Andrew said, “I’m most excited to have the opportunity to hopefully give back to the university and the students, to repay a tiny portion of the incredible gifts I was given and the opportunities they created for me.”

Illumio’s mission is to ensure organizations can realize a future without catastrophic breaches.  As chief executive officer and co-founder of Illumio, Andrew is responsible for the overall strategy, vision and execution of the Company’s mission. With deep expertise in segmentation, network security and regulatory and compliance management, Andrew is a frequent participant in panels, articles and podcasts for leading industry events and publications. Goldman Sachs named Andrew as one of the “100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs” each year since 2015 as part of its Builders & Innovators program. Originally from Brooklyn, NY, Andrew now lives in Silicon Valley with his wife, daughter and 2 dogs.

“Andrew brings a unique perspective to our National Council,” shared II Luscri, Managing Director and Assistant Vice Provost for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. “While at Washington University, he was the first undergraduate student to win the Olin Cup, a business plan competition through the Skandalaris Center. He understands how important it is that the programs, services, and classes we offer will foster the right environment for the entrepreneurial mindset.”

In the following Q&A, Andrew shares his experience and entrepreneurial background.

Please share a little bit about your professional journey – how did you get to where you are now?

After holding a series of sales, sales engineering and product leadership roles in networking and security technology companies, 8 years ago, along with our CTO & co-founder I started Illumio. Recognizing that the traditional cybersecurity model was no longer enough, we started Illumio to deliver Zero Trust segmentation and help customers recognize a future without catastrophic breaches.

What is your favorite thing about entrepreneurship and innovation?

Two things that I believe are inextricably linked come together into my favorite part of entrepreneurship; helping customers solve important problems in new and different ways, while having the ability to create solutions from a blank piece of paper and driven entirely by the customer’s voice. I believe this is where true innovation lives and entrepreneurship enables it to happen.

What advice would you give to someone considering creating a startup or entering a career in entrepreneurship?

My mentors have shared many pieces of advice with me, but the most common and impactful has always been to ensure you’re solving an important and pervasive problem. You can’t build a large, sustainable, durable and valuable company if you’re not solving a big problem or participating in a big opportunity.

How else have you been involved at WashU?

My participation in the Olin Cup was my fondest and most vivid memory of my time at WashU. It still stands out as the most important non-credit class activity I did while there. More recently I have spent time with the Bay Area Alumni Association and participated in and led some of the events.