Fortinet Continues to Support Women in their Careers with LPGA and NIL Player Sponsorships
New Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) and NIL Student Golf Athlete Sponsorships Expand Fortinet’s Commitment for Women in Tech to other Professions
SUNNYVALE, Calif., Sept. 07, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --
News Summary
Fortinet® (NASDAQ: FTNT), a global leader in broad, integrated and automated cybersecurity solutions, today announced the sponsorship of two Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) players – Alison Lee and Andrea Lee – and two Stanford University student athletes – Rose Zhang and Rachel Heck – building on the company’s commitment to support the advancement of women in their professions to foster inclusivity and diversity.
Through Fortinet’s Training Advancement Agenda (TAA) and the Fortinet Training Institute programs, Fortinet provides cybersecurity training and career opportunities to anyone interested in transitioning to, or growing their career, in the cyber field. These four player sponsorships are an extension of these Fortinet initiatives to empower all individuals to reach their full potential in large part by supporting women in their professions.
Fortinet Supports Women and the Community Through Corporate Sponsorships
Through the LPGA and NIL sponsorships, Alison Lee, Andrea Lee, Rose Zhang and Rachel Heck will serve as Fortinet’s global brand ambassadors. These athletes share Fortinet’s commitment to drive innovation and are trailblazers advancing in their professions:
Alison Lee – Alison, currently 47th in the world, is one of the top American golfers competing globally with one career professional win. Alison started her golf career early and rose through the ranks of the AJGA. In 2013, she was awarded AJGA player of the year and followed that up by winning the inaugural ANNIKA Award in 2014 as the country’s most outstanding female collegiate golfer.
Andrea Lee – A former AJGA Player of the Year, Andrea turned professional in 2020 after winning more times at Stanford University than any other player in women’s golf history.
Rose Zhang – A student at Stanford University, Rose has won the US Girls Junior, US Women’s Am, NCAA Championship, been named the AJGA Player of the Year twice (2020 and 2021).
Rachel Heck – Rachel is a former AJGA Player of the Year (2017) and ANNIKA Award winner as a Freshman at Stanford University in 2021. She also has been the top-ranked cadet in Stanford’s ROTC program for the Air Force for the past two years.
“We’re excited to welcome a talented group of women as Fortinet brand ambassadors who represent shared values, including innovation and dedication,” said Renee Tarun, Deputy CISO at Fortinet. “Through these new sponsorships, we continue to build on Fortinet’s efforts to support women in their careers and look forward to working with our ambassadors to further this mission.”
The partnerships with these athletes further extend Fortinet’s involvement with a diverse group of organizations focused on benefitting local communities and closing the cybersecurity skills gap worldwide. For example, Fortinet is an Official Cybersecurity Partner of the Kroger Queen City Championship kicking off September 8, 2022 and host of the second annual Fortinet Championship PGA TOUR tournament taking place in Napa, California at the Silverado Resort, September 15–18, 2022.
As part of the company’s dedication to the community, Fortinet has designated proceeds from the Fortinet Championship to benefit nonprofit organizations in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM); diversity and inclusion; and reskilling programs, including organizations like non-profit WINE WOMEN, focused on advancing women in their careers.
Advancing Women in Tech Through TAA and Fortinet Training Institute Initiatives
Through Fortinet’s longstanding commitment to closing the cybersecurity skills gap, the company has focused on training, mentoring and expanding opportunities available to women worldwide in the cyber field.
By partnering with organizations like Women in Cybersecurity (WiCyS) in the US and WOMCY in Latin America, Fortinet has made its Fortinet Training Institute’s training and certifications available to members of these communities and organizations free of cost.
Fortinet’s WEMS Organization (Women Empowering and Mentoring for Success) is committed to uplifting women at Fortinet to achieve success and strive to provide opportunities to connect with and support each other. These opportunities are facilitated with programs that contribute to the personal and professional development of members. Through mentoring and networking, Fortinet promotes inclusion, collaboration, development and career growth.
Supporting Quotes
“It’s an honor to partner with Fortinet and represent the company during the 2022-2023 LPGA Tour season. With their support, I look forward to continue growing as a professional athlete and appreciate the opportunity in helping me to advance in my profession this season.”
-Andrea Lee, professional golfer and member of the LPGA Tour
“I’m excited to represent Fortinet and the company as a brand ambassador. As a NIL student athlete, having the industry-leading cybersecurity company’s support is motivational and I will carry that excitement with me throughout the season.”
-Rachel Heck, student athlete at Stanford University
Additional Resources
Read about the Fortinet Championship Security Summit and Tech Expo here.
Learn more about FortiGuard Labs threat intelligence and research and Outbreak Alerts, which provide timely steps to mitigate breaking cybersecurity attacks.
Learn more about Fortinet’s FortiGuard Security Services portfolio.
Learn more about Fortinet’s free cybersecurity training, which includes broad cyber awareness and product training. As part of the Fortinet Training Advancement Agenda (TAA), the Fortinet Training Institute also provides training and certification through the Network Security Expert (NSE) Certification, Academic Partner, and Education Outreach programs.
Read more about how Fortinet customers are securing their organizations.
Engage in the Fortinet User Community (Fuse). Share ideas and feedback, learn more about our products and technology, and connect with peers.
Follow Fortinet on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram. Subscribe to Fortinet on our blog or YouTube.
About Fortinet
Fortinet (NASDAQ: FTNT) makes possible a digital world that we can always trust through its mission to protect people, devices, and data everywhere. This is why the world’s largest enterprises, service providers, and government organizations choose Fortinet to securely accelerate their digital journey. The Fortinet Security Fabric platform delivers broad, integrated, and automated protections across the entire digital attack surface, securing critical devices, data, applications, and connections from the data center to the cloud to the home office. Ranking #1 in the most security appliances shipped worldwide, more than 595,000 customers trust Fortinet to protect their businesses. And the Fortinet NSE Training Institute, an initiative of Fortinet’s Training Advancement Agenda (TAA), provides one of the largest and broadest training programs in the industry to make cyber training and new career opportunities available to everyone. Learn more at https://www.fortinet.com, the Fortinet Blog, and FortiGuard Labs.
FTNT-O
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