BS Finance ’11
Colin O’Connor credits his passion and supportive colleagues for helping him rise steadily through the ranks to the post of
chief operating officer at ReliaQuest, the Tampa-based global cybersecurity firm. Throughout O’Connor’s career at
ReliaQuest, he has taken on new roles and challenges and excelled at every level, helping to build the company into a
leader in security model management. His contributions prove his ability as a gifted leader and motivated learner who
continues to strive for more.
O’Connor joined ReliaQuest in the summer of 2008 as an intern and one of the company’s first inside sales
representatives – progressing to outside sales and, eventually, to sales director. After graduating, he secured a full-time
position with the firm and, in 2015, he became vice president of Delivery, and the following year, vice president of
Security Operations, before achieving his current position in 2017. As COO, O’Connor is responsible for all technical
operations of the company, which include security operations, delivery management, business analytics,
engineering/development, product management and account management.
ReliaQuest has earned numerous accolades from independent organizations, industry partners, community groups and
civic leaders for its rapid growth and sustained success. It has consistently been named to various “Best Places to Work”
lists, including Fortune magazine’s Top 100 Medium Workplaces and FSU’s Seminole 100 list of fastest growing
businesses owned by alumni. In early 2016, the promise of ReliaQuest’s trajectory attracted $30 million from growth
equity investment firm FTV Capital. This year, it launched an innovation that O’Connor helped shape – a cybersecurity
platform called GreyMatter, which Fortune 1,000 organizations are rapidly adopting to better protect themselves against
cyber threats.
O’Connor also has taken leadership positions with community and industry organizations, including the Tampa Bay
Technology Forum, the Information Systems Security Association, B-Sides Tampa and InfraGard. He is a member of the
college’s Business Analytics, Information Systems and Supply Chain (BAISSC) Advisory Board and frequently advises
students on career options and shares insights he has garnered as a student and young professional.
