Portrait
Since being founded in 2007, Secusmart GmbH has developed into the global expert in secure communications it is today. Secusmart, a BlackBerry® subsidiary since the end of 2014, has been providing German government agencies, ministries and other official bodies with anti-eavesdropping solutions for mobile devices for more than eight years.
Secusmart is managed by its founder Dr Christoph Erdmann and Daniel Fuhrmann, who has been working for the company from the outset. Under their leadership, Secusmart has steadily grown and now supplies its trusted solutions to more than 20 governments worldwide.
Thanks to its spirit of innovation and development skills, Secusmart will continue to enjoy success by further transforming the provision of secure mobile communications for many years to come.
Management Board
They’re the brains behind the winning idea of smart, easy-to-use mobile security systems, an idea which resulted in the founding of Secusmart in 2007. Prominent politicians and leading business people have been putting their trust in Secusmart’s innovations ever since.
Founder and Managing Director
Dr. Christoph Erdmann is the founder and managing director of Secusmart GmbH. Since 2014, he has also been Senior Vice President at BlackBerry and is responsible for the secure communication division within the parent company.
After studying electrical engineering, he completed his doctorate at RWTH Aachen University in the field of digital signal processing. For his dissertation he received the renowned E-Plus promotion-prize in 2004 and the Borchers Plaque from RWTH Aachen University in 2006.
From 2004 to 2007 he worked as Technology Manager at Nokia. In 2007, he founded Secusmart GmbH, based in Düsseldorf, together with Dr. Hans-Christoph Quelle. There, he pursued the goal of making previously unprotected mobile communication both secure and easy to use.
With technical know-how and entrepreneurial spirit he made Secusmart a leading specialist for secure mobile communication, whose products are used today by governments and companies all over the world.
Christoph lives near Cologne with his wife and five children.
Managing Director
In addition to the company founder, Daniel Fuhrmann has been part of Secusmart’s management team from the very beginning. Holding the position of COO at Secusmart until the end of 2015, he joined Dr Christoph Erdmann as a managing director in January 2016.
Before joining Secusmart, he was active in product management at Nokia Siemens Networks, after having assumed various management positions in research and development at Nokia. Daniel studied electrical engineering and information technology at the RWTH Aachen University. He loves playing football and is quite an accomplished runner — having numerous marathons under his belt. He also enjoys skiing with his wife and two children.
Management Team
Secusmart is committed to protecting people’s right to private telecommunications. Our experts work tirelessly to ensure top-notch security and are always one step ahead of the pack.
Marketing Director and Spokeswoman
As Secusmart’s marketing director and spokeswoman, Swenja Hintzen is the management team member responsible for all of Secusmart’s communications. Swenja previously worked for the agency bachmann-kern & partner in the areas of new business and press relations, and held a variety of marketing and sales positions for the D’art Design Gruppe. She studied economics at university, before later gaining a BA in Advertising and Communications Management. She enjoys playing tennis and cooking.
Head of Interdisciplinary Product Management Team
Reinhard Schumak joined Secusmart in 2015 and is responsible for the company's interdisciplinary product management team. His professional interests are in the areas of new product development, product innovation, and Agile methodologies. Before joining Secusmart Reinhard held product and engineering positions at several venture funded companies in the Boston Massachusetts area. He has an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University and undergraduate degree from Harvard University.
Head of Product Management
Keith Balasingham is a member of the management team and the head of product management. He has over 17 years of experience in a range of technological fields, including many years in various key roles with BlackBerry’s well-known Product Security organisation. He is currently studying for an Executive MBA at the Ivey Business School in London, Ontario (Canada). Keith actively played basketball for many years and continues to follow the game passionately today. He currently lives in Waterloo, Ontario, with his wife and son.
Chief Sales officer
Jörg Goronzy is the chief sales officer (CSO). Before joining Secusmart, he ran his own interim and sales management company for a period of three years. His previous positions include ten years at Versatel, where he was promoted to divisional manager for business customers throughout Germany. The economics graduate likes to spend his little amount of free time with his two children.
Chief Business Development Officer
Carsten Michel has been a member of the Secusmart management team as the chief business development officer (CBDO) since 2012. Previously, he was involved in planning and designing new business smartphones for Nokia in the area of portfolio management. He has a degree in business administration from Georg-Simon-Ohm FH University of Applied Sciences in Nuremberg, Germany.
Head of Research and Development
Gordon Loeffler is a member of the management team and the head of R&D. Prior to joining Secusmart, he spent over 16 years working in the Nokia Siemens Networks R&D departments, where he led international development programmes. He studied at the University of Waterloo in Canada and the TU Braunschweig University of Technology in Germany. A trained ski instructor, passionate runner and sailor, he has come to love the flat Rhineland area. In his spare time, he enjoys nothing more than going on excursions with his two children.
Director of Business Operations
Thomas Mrotzek is a member of the management team and the director of business operations at Secusmart. He gained many years of product management experience at Nokia Siemens Networks, having previously held various positions in research and development at Nokia. The qualified engineer studied electrical engineering at the FH Aachen University of Applied Sciences. From Germany’s Rhineland, he loves to travel. He is a passionate singer and manages a gospel choir in his spare time.