steven-rees-pullman

I am an Internationally proven professional with experience including full P&L, Business Sector and Corporate planning and execution roles. My specialities — driving revenue and organisational growth in the EMEA.

General Manager EMEA

Steven Rees-Pullman



Business decision-makers often balk at updating their [identity and access management (IAM)](https://auth0.com/blog/what-is-iam/) system, partly because of a fundamental misunderstanding of what IAM actually is. To be fair, it’s easy to confuse IAM with its most visible element: the login box. But in reality, the login box is to identity management what a light switch is to your home’s electrical system. IAM encompasses a complex set of functions that touch nearly every aspect of your business and have a measurable impact on your bottom line. Leaving an outdated IAM system in place — whether you’re managing the identities of employees, business partners, or end customers — is both costly and dangerous.

The alternative to living with this faulty wiring is to replace an in-house identity solution with a third-party system built by experts in the [Identity as a Service (IDaas)](https://auth0.com/blog/identity-as-a-service-in-2018/) field. A modern IAM solution can provide both a quick business win and long-term value by decreasing costs, increasing revenue, and making businesses more adaptable in a shifting technological and legal landscape.

![Business Value of Identity](https://images.ctfassets.net/23aumh6u8s0i/6hiKy3QBcDylVsHi8509Eq/414d9b468d1cadaa748ca38699c3e80f/iceberg_business_value)

## Modernizing Identity Reduces Maintenance Costs

Businesses that are reluctant to invest in IAM are often unaware of how much money they’re already spending on it. Maintaining an outdated, decentralized IAM system is usually a full-time job for at least one developer. In addition, dealing with identity-related issues such as lost passwords takes up the majority of your support desk’s time.

The maintenance costs of in-house Identity are high even if we only define “maintenance” as keeping the existing system running so users can log in and access resources. When businesses improve their custom IAM systems, those costs skyrocket.

Auth0 customers regularly report that if they attempted to build our features themselves, it would take an entire team of developers. For example, Gymshark saved £900,000 per year in engineer salaries when they enlisted Auth0 to centralize authentication across their apps.

The reason it’s so challenging for companies to update IAM in-house is simply that legacy, and in-house identity systems weren’t designed to do everything that modern IAM platforms can do. A startup can get by with a simple approach to IAM if all they’re doing is managing logins for their small team of employees. But that approach doesn’t scale well, especially if the company also wants to manage the login process for its customers. So when that business moves past the startup stage, and it acquires another business, their Identity needs become dramatically more complex. How will they migrate both sets of employee data to a single system when their IAMs don’t naturally integrate? How will they control access to sensitive data during the transition period, when employees are leaving and joining the business? Trying to answer these questions yourself costs time and resources, can derail important M&A deals, and erodes the experience for external users in a context where customer experience has a direct impact on the bottom line. 

## Identity Is Critical to Legal Compliance and Security

If you don’t invest in a sophisticated, secure identity solution, then you’re essentially budgeting for regulatory fines and the myriad costs associated with data breaches. Given the rise in global data privacy laws and cyberattacks, the chances that you will be impacted are only increasing.

### Identity-based attacks are a pervasive threat

Today, hackers the world over use authentication as their preferred gateway to attack. [Verizon’s 2020 Data Breach Report](https://enterprise.verizon.com/resources/reports/2020-data-breach-investigations-report.pdf) found that the most common forms of data breaches are identity-based: phishing and attacks using stolen credentials. These [broken authentication attacks](https://auth0.com/blog/what-is-broken-authentication/) mean huge expenses for businesses, in the form of application downtime, lost customers, and IT costs. The [Ponemon Institute reports](https://www.akamai.com/us/en/multimedia/documents/report/the-cost-of-credential-stuffing.pdf) that a company that falls victim to a credential stuffing attack stands to lose an annual average of $6 million (about 4.6 million pounds or 5.1 million euros). Thwarting these attacks requires IAM features such as brute force protection, multi-factor authentication (MFA), and rigorous access control.

### Identity is at the center of data privacy laws

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) made data privacy a major issue for companies in the EU and around the world, and much of what it sought to regulate concerned managing access to personal data. Many of the [biggest GDPR fines](https://auth0.com/blog/gdpr-fines-hit-these-companies-hard-heres-how-to-avoid-them/) have been issued to companies that lacked adequate access controls or failed to protect user credentials.

Since GDPR’s passage, more countries have passed laws of their own, and today, we live with an ever-evolving patchwork of international data privacy legislation. This state of affairs will only increase, which makes compliance an ongoing challenge. According to [Gartner](https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2020-09-14-gartner-says-by-2023--65--of-the-world-s-population-w), “By 2023, 65% of the world’s population will have its personal data covered under modern privacy regulations, up from 10% in 2020.”

When the European Court of Justice (ECJ) [struck down the EU-US Privacy Shield](https://auth0.com/blog/schrems-2-eu-us-privacy-shield-ruled-invalid/) framework in July 2020, it highlighted how these laws can change overnight and cause severe business disruption. Businesses that invested huge sums to make their in-house IAM Privacy Shield-compliant are now faced with the daunting prospect of another overhaul with [Schrems 2](https://auth0.com/blog/schrems-2-eu-us-privacy-shield-ruled-invalid/). But IDaaS providers like Auth0 were prepared for the change, so their customers can continue doing business, uninterrupted.

## IAM Unleashes Innovation

For better or for worse, your company’s IAM platform will impact your ability to innovate. This happens in two ways. The first is simple: Every hour your developers spend on authentication is an hour they’re not improving your core product.

Most companies are familiar with this logic when making other decisions about building vs. buying microservices. For example, [Auth0’s research](https://info.auth0.com/rs/712-VXW-158/images/The%202020%20State%20of%20Application%20Assembly.pdf?utm_medium=email&utm_source=mkto&utm_campaign=state-of-app-2020-whitepaper&mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTm1JM1pEazVOamcxTURReSIsInQiOiIrVHZ3dnA5b1JBK09VbUFnUmVnTThESVpEQkZRZlErelVsV0x2VGlsTUEzeVl6dTcxKzdEakVRaHJvb3o3WFB4VjRxSXZXRU9SUjV1ZG1tQ1wvdE1rYUR1OU9vVXNvU3dFZEJZR1EzTVZsb2t5MjFzVjhsSkZjTjhUaGZjMGpmQTYifQ%3D%3D) found that when companies need to incorporate a payment tool in their app, only 26% build it themselves. The other 74% use a software-as-a-service SaaS solution like Stripe or Paypal. The same logic holds true for authentication.

Companies can reserve the resources they save on IAM and devote them to innovating. For instance, [Auth0 customer Signify](https://auth0.com/case-studies/signify/) was able to reinvest 4.8% of their sales in R&D, an investment they otherwise would have spent on authentication. According to Etienne Bertou, Signify’s principal cloud architect, “When you work with a partner like Auth0, it takes a lot off of your roadmap that should not be the focus of your R&D teams.”

Aside from freeing up resources, an IAM system can drive innovation. For example, consider the impact of centralized Identity on improving analytics and customer outreach. When a single IAM provider handles user authentication across devices and integrates seamlessly with every other system, it de-silos data to create a single source of truth about users. This idea is the heart of an [omnichannel approach](https://auth0.com/blog/why-an-omnichannel-strategy-is-critical-in-2020/) to retail and marketing.

![Omnichannel](https://images.ctfassets.net/23aumh6u8s0i/4R9jiLsQ22iKfF5nFYW5qm/5e22f180c5c980130af02a358c9d7d04/omnichannel_diagram)

Streamlining authentication also improves UX and shows users that they’re dealing with a cutting-edge business. After all, the login box is where you make your critical first impression with customers &mdash; and they’ll quickly be turned off by cumbersome form fills. When Auth0 customer [Arduino introduced social logins](https://auth0.com/case-studies/arduino/), they increased conversions by 20%, proving the value of a modern authentication experience.

## Identity Is Central to Your Business

It’s always important to make sound investments in technology, and particularly in a moment of global uncertainty. But having a secure and extensible IAM solution is one of the best defenses against that uncertainty because it makes businesses more capable of adapting to change.

Moreover, IAM is already affecting your bottom line, even if some of that impact only becomes visible when something goes wrong. Instead of waiting for an IAM emergency, start calculating all the ways your approach to Identity impacts your business. You’ll soon learn whether it’s working as a cost or as an asset.

<include src="asides/AboutAuth0" />


The Business Value of Identity


Thanks to digitization (and a lot of human effort and planning), the media and entertainment industry has transformed from a network of products to a network of services. Media and entertainment customers now enjoy media and entertainment wherever they are &mdash; via mobile apps, streaming subscriptions, and connected devices.

But all that convenience also created the login box.

Now, media companies must provide a frictionless login experience in addition to creating content and increasingly personalized experiences. Growing audience means meeting (and exceeding) customer expectations &mdash; often growing that audience one person at a time by marketing on a one-to-one basis. And all of this has to take place while minimizing data breach risks that might compromise sensitive user information.

With so much to achieve, where should media companies begin? We asked one of our Nordic partners, [Tomi Ruotimo, CEO of Houston Inc.](https://houston-inc.com/) Consulting for his perspective.

![Headshot of Tomi Ruotimo, CEO of Houston Inc.](https://images.ctfassets.net/23aumh6u8s0i/3NYv1ZHycLe4eaQxi6LuBx/91e28da1c0953dee5385b49c9c97bca1/tomi-ruotimo-ceo-houston-inc)

Tomi founded Houston in 2003 with the vision to help companies design and build digital services to solve specific business problems. Fifteen years later, Houston has 100  employees and have helped companies like Finnish media giant Alma Media, Finnair and Konecranes digitise their offerings. Working with Houston and Auth0, [Alma Media](https://auth0.com/learn/alma-media-sees-30-total-savings-seamless-brand-access/) achieved 30% total savings by providing seamless access across their brands.

**Why is identity important in the Nordics?**

The European Commission ranks Denmark, Sweden, and Finland as the EU's most advanced digital economies, with the highest levels of [digitization](https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/desi). According to Reuters, the region also leads the world in paying for [online news](http://media.digitalnewsreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/digital-news-report-2018.pdf?x89475).

Working with large, multi-brand media companies, we know identity can seem incredibly complex. It's about choosing the right solution for the use case, and giving Nordic media companies a clear roadmap toward turning their free users into paying subscribers.

**What is your answer to "_where do I begin with identity management_?"**

The answer is always: with a good user experience. Your login box is the gateway, and making it as easy as possible for people to sign in is the first step toward conversion. In the case of multi-brand media companies, users should also be able to securely switch between brands or services without having to sign in a second time.

From a technical point of view, the most difficult challenge is merging customer information from different brands and login types into one customer profile. For this, you need verified emails. [The right identity provider can walk you through this process and make identifying single customers much quicker](https://auth0.com/blog/solving-5-media-industry-challenges-with-auth0-identity-solutions/).

Then on the front-end, it's all about reducing friction for the user. Consider [Single Sign On (SSO)](https://auth0.com/single-sign-on/) across brands and features like social login to simplify registrations and logins for end users.

**What about media companies looking for identity management beyond the basics?**

Identity is a great tool for learning about your users, while also complying with data privacy and security laws like GDPR. The key is first-party data, collected directly from the user, with their consent. This doesn't mean companies should ask for a user's life story right away. Customers are turned off by a long sign up form: 86% of users will [quit at registration](https://auth0.com/blog/progressive-profiling/) if the form is too long, while reducing form fields from 11 to 4 increases conversion rates by 120%.

We often recommend "Progressive Profiling," an identity feature that allows media companies to collect information over time, as users interact with their platform. The first time a user signs in, you might just ask for their name and email. The second time, you could ask for their location to improve the experience. The third time could be topics of interest, etc. Ultimately, your goal is to get high-quality information from your users without pushing them away so you can personalize their experience.

**How can media companies use the customer data they've collected?**

Along with our partners like Auth0, we typically recommend that media companies integrate their identity solution with marketing or analytics platforms, so they can deliver personalized messages, content, discounts, etc.

[Media companies](https://auth0.com/media-publishing/) can also use identity data to identify frequent users, and offer them a premium experience or simply message them in a different way. In a similar way, media companies that appeal to a wide demographic can tailor their experiences for different audiences, and make sure they're collecting the appropriate data for each age group. People will want to use your service more if you provide the right content. Netflix and Amazon do this well.

**What advice do you have for media companies investing in identity?**

Look at your business needs, and ask: should I build my own identity platform, or invest in a ready-made product? Auth0 has a good resource with [20 questions for Build or Buy](https://auth0.com/learn/build-or-buy-20-identity-management-questions/). There is always opportunity cost to committing your own resources to identity management. If you choose to buy, find a partner who understands your business and processes, and can validate the right approach to the service, both at the technical level and in the user experience.

The bottom line: if turning free users into subscribers, and monetizing interactions with those subscribers is the goal, then identity is step one.

## About Steven Rees-Pullman

Steven Rees-Pullman is General Manager of Auth0, a leading Identity-as-a-Service platform that secures more than 2.5 billion logins per month. More information can be found at <https://auth0.com/>.

## About Tomi Ruotimo

Tomi Ruotimo CEO and Founder of [Houston Inc.](https://houston-inc.com/) Tomi is an innovative idealist, disruptive thinker, but also known as "enfant terrible of business". He has over 30 years experience in IT. He has founded Houston Inc. which, alongside with a sibling organization called Houston Analytics are one of the leading IoT software consultancy organizations in Scandinavia.

<include src="asides/AboutAuth0" />


If You Want More Paying Subscribers, Invest in Identity



> EDITOR’S NOTE: Welcome to the EMEA Blog Takeover, where our EMEA employees take over the Auth0 blog to share success stories from the region. This week, you’ll meet our thought leaders across the pond, discover some of our most compelling use cases, and read about the trends that influence how we do business.

We grew 241% in Q1 2019 vs. Q1 2018 in EMEA. Nearly 30% of that growth came from expansion, which is a direct result of our stellar and growing Customer Success team. We drove more pipeline through the channel and more PR coverage through the media. We set goals in key areas, and we delivered on them.

There’s a massive amount of teamwork that goes on here every day, but I want to touch on three areas that are particularly critical to our success: freedom and space to grow; a localized approach; and a London hub.

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## Nearly 30% of Auth0’s Business, with Freedom and Space to Grow

I’m very fortunate that I work with a group of people who recognize they’re based in America, and they need expertise in other markets. They’ve recruited a team that’s very European, with good diversity across the region, and trust them to build a scalable, and sustainable business. We have an appropriate amount of autonomy to make decisions, and it has paid off.

<include src="TweetQuote" quoteText="Auth0 grew 241% in Q1 2019 vs. Q1 2018 in EMEA."/>

In 2017, from an EMEA perspective, we accounted for between 18-20% of the business. Now, we’re creeping up toward 30%, working with enterprise customers like [Whitbread](https://auth0.com/learn/whitbread-secures-1-2-billion-hotel-website-with-auth0/), [The Economist Group](https://auth0.com/blog/the-economist-wins-2019-kuppingercole-european-identity-and-cloud-award/), and [Nando’s](https://auth0.com/learn/nandos-case-study/).

**Auth0 2018 Revenue by Geography**

![Auth0 2018 Revenue by Geography](https://images.ctfassets.net/23aumh6u8s0i/6ZA7zSHrFD81RGoh568VVC/0003d43d40ab634a9948abb380e6574a/emea-growth_auth0-revenue)

## A Localized Approach for Each Unique Market

Europe is not one region, and we recognize the need and strength of diversity to properly address local markets. We know the markets well, and we have a good set of skills that have helped us reach out to those markets and develop them appropriately. We recently launched a [German version of our website](https://auth0.com/de/), use European laws as opposed to US laws on our contracts, and generally embrace all the things that make us more European friendly.

We have people all across Europe with local language skills. Having someone just down the road who speaks your language, and can share success stories from other customers in the area that you can benefit from as an organization, is priceless. Local knowledge allows you to offer something above software sales and truly add value to the organization, much more than a supplier can.

<include src="TweetQuote" quoteText="Auth0 recently launched a German version of their website - https://auth0.com/de/"/>

So far this year, we’ve added more than 20 new employees in EMEA. Here are some of our recent hires.

<include src="ProfileCard" picture="https://cdn.auth0.com/blog/emea-growth:kevin-switala.png" name="Kevin Switala" title="Enterprise Account Executive" location="Frankfurt, Germany" body="Kevin Switala is responsible for sales strategy in the DACH region, and collaborates with the regional team to gain market share, build the partner network, and expand local brand awareness. He has been in IT industry sales serving Central European Markets for the past 10  years. Prior to Auth0, Kevin was regional sales manager for BeyondTrust, a leader in Privileged Access Management, where he increased qualified pipeline in the DACH region. Follow his travels and food adventures on Instagram @swilalaa."/>

<include src="ProfileCard" picture="https://cdn.auth0.com/blog/emea-growth:mathias-conradt-square.png" name="Mathias Conradt" title="Senior Solutions Engineer" location="Stuttgart, Germany" body="Mathias Conradt engages with Auth0 prospects to understand their technical requirements and guide them to the best identity solution. He has more than 20 years of experience in software engineering and business process management with several certifications. Prior to Auth0, Mathias was managing director for a boutique software company in Germany and Hong Kong, in charge of key accounts such as Atos Origin, Bayer, Blue Cross Blue Shield, China Telecom, Dräger, META Group/Gartner, Philips, SAP, Unilever, and Vodafone. He is a frequent speaker at industry events, and contributes to the Auth0 blog on technical topics (e.g. custom social connections for Verimi and netID). Mathias enjoys sports, sport shooting, motorbiking, playing video games, and reading cyberpunk novels. "/>

<include src="ProfileCard" picture="https://cdn.auth0.com/blog/emea-growth:kris-imbrechts.png" name="Kris Imbrechts" title="Enterprise Account Executive" location="Betekom, Belgium" body="Kris Imbrechts is responsible for revenue growth and new customer acquisition in Benelux and the Nordics. He has more than 20 years of sales management experience with global companies like Oracle, SAP, and Dell. Prior to Auth0, he was key account executive at ForgeRock selling identity solutions to companies in the Benelux region. Kris is a trainer at Belgian sportclub, Team Impact, where you can join him for Muay Thai."/>

<include src="ProfileCard" picture="https://cdn.auth0.com/blog/emea-growth:yvo-van-doorn.png" name="Yvo VanDoorn" title="Senior Solutions Engineer" location="Amsterdam, Netherlands" body="Yvo van Doorn is a technical expert for Auth0 customers seeking to understand the benefits of identity and cloud. He has more than a decade of system administration experience, and manually built and configured bare-metal servers for the first part of his career. Prior to Auth0, Yvo was mission critical engineer at Schuberg Philis, where he specialized in designing and implementing public cloud/SaaS-first solutions for clients in the Benelux region. Yvo is also one of the main organizers for Devopsdays Amsterdam, which attracts more than 500 people every year. Find Yvo sipping a hoppy IPA, exploring the great outdoors, or celebrating Dutch heritage with food and sport."/>

<include src="ProfileCard" picture="https://cdn.auth0.com/blog/emea-growth:matt-gibson.png" name="Matthew Gibson" title="SMB Account Executive" location="London, United Kingdom" body="Matthew (Matt) Gibson acquires new small and medium-sized accounts through direct sales of Auth0’s Identity-as-a-Service (IDaaS) platform in Northern Europe. He has been in business development and sales serving EMEA markets for nearly five years. Prior to Auth0, Matt worked in IT Security at Varonis, where helped organizations protect their data from insider threats, and understand and achieve compliance with  PCI, HIPPA, and GDPR. Outside the office, Matt enjoys playing or watching sports, and socializing with friends."/>

<include src="ProfileCard" picture="https://cdn.auth0.com/blog/emea-growth:charlotte-pichereau-square.png" name="Charlotte Pichereau" title="Account Development Rep" location="London, United Kingdom" body="Charlotte Pichereau works side-by-side with Account Executives to drive meetings with target accounts in France, Middle East, UK. She has more than 10 years of experience in sales and building strong customer relationships. Prior to Auth0, Charlotte was account manager at Inside Marketing, a lead generation company focused on IT and Marketing, where she was responsible for customer growth and retention for Oracle, SAP, Exclusive Networks, and Pulse Secure. Charlotte enjoys simple, good food, dancing, and celebrating her Caribbean heritage."/>

<include src="ProfileCard" picture="https://cdn.auth0.com/blog/emea-growth:frederic-lormeau.png" name="Frederic Lormeau" title="Account Development Rep" location="London, United Kingdom" body="Frederic (Fred) Lormeau is responsible for sales account development in the Nordics and Benelux regions. He has been in the business development sector for more than five years. Prior to Auth0, Fred was business development manager EMEA for Inside Marketing, where he led a team of eight business development reps and secured renewals with Oracle, Gigamon, Rocket Software, Malwarebytes, and other enterprise clients. Follow his travels adventures and acroyoga moves on Instagram @fredbcbg"/>

## A Truly European Business with a London Hub

We hire the best talent regardless of location, and our employees live all over the world. At the same time, we have headquarter offices in Seattle, London, Buenos Aires, Sydney, and Tokyo. We are remote-friendly, but it's important that we also provide spaces where people can come together and work face-to-face.

Over the last few years, software companies have migrated from along the M4 corridor, back into the center of London. It's a hotbed of talent: people who don't have cars, but have fresh ideas, and want to be involved in innovative, fast-growing organizations, as opposed to the old behemoths.

Sitting in London, particularly on the Waterloo side, where coworking spaces are springing up every day, is a distinct advantage for recruiting. And whether we're hosting our colleagues from Seattle, or a customer day, it's easy to get to us in Central London – and conversely, it's easy for us to get to our customers, whether via train, plane, or other means.

As a company, we chose London to tap into the energy. We favor experimentation, innovation, and the people who come with new ideas, wanting to contribute, and make a difference, versus showing up to grind through a day's work.

We hope you’ll want to join Auth0 as an employee, customer, or partner. There are so many areas where we continue to get better and do more, and we’re looking to hire more talented people for our team.

Want to join the Auth0 team in EMEA? [Visit our Careers page here](https://auth0.com/careers/positions?locations=EMEA).

<include src="asides/AboutAuth0" />

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Steven Rees-Pullman

The Business Value of Identity

If You Want More Paying Subscribers, Invest in Identity

How We Achieve 241% YOY Growth in EMEA

Try for free today