Massachusetts’ management consulting sector advises Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, healthcare systems, and global enterprises on strategy, operations, and transformation. Cybersecurity leadership in this environment must protect highly sensitive client data, secure global advisory operations, and embed governance into fast-moving, high-trust engagements. The leaders below represent the CISOs shaping resilience across the Commonwealth’s consulting ecosystem.
Chris Mellen — Chief Information Security Officer, Charles River Associates
Chris Mellen serves as CISO at Charles River Associates, where he leads IT and cybersecurity strategy focused on organizational resilience and regulatory alignment. With a background spanning security operations, threat intelligence, and incident response, he is recognized for building strong compliance programs and guiding high-performing teams. His leadership emphasizes operational excellence, continuous improvement, and disciplined execution in client-facing environments.
Katie Abendroth — Cyber & Information Security Officer and Practice Lead, Security, Risk and Compliance, SEI
Katie Abendroth leads cybersecurity, risk, and compliance advisory efforts at SEI, bringing deep experience across information security governance, AI governance, privacy, and enterprise risk management. With a consulting career spanning multiple industries, she is known for delivering right-sized solutions aligned to organizational risk appetite while maintaining strong executive rapport. Her expertise includes large-scale program execution, fraud prevention, data governance, and cross-functional collaboration.
Charles Hausmann — Chief Information Officer & Chief Information Security Officer, Peloton Consulting Group
Charles Hausmann drives IT and security strategy at Peloton Consulting Group, a provider of integrated cloud solutions for enterprise performance management and analytics. With over 25 years of IT leadership experience, he oversees enterprise security management, hybrid cloud architecture, and scalable infrastructure strategy. His focus is on delivering secure, cost-effective solutions that enable innovation while maintaining strong governance and operational resilience.
Tyler Gilbreath — Executive Vice President & Global Chief Information Security Officer, Bain & Company
Tyler Gilbreath serves as Global CISO at Bain & Company, overseeing cybersecurity strategy for one of the world’s leading management consulting firms. His leadership spans global infrastructure, risk governance, and client data protection across highly distributed advisory operations. In addition to his role at Bain, he serves as a Cyber Advisor to Bain Capital Ventures, contributing to broader industry knowledge sharing and cybersecurity innovation.
Protecting Trust in Advisory Environments
In management consulting, trust is the product. Cybersecurity leaders in this sector must secure not only their own enterprise systems but also the confidential data of global clients navigating transformation, M&A, regulatory change, and digital modernization. These Massachusetts CISOs demonstrate how disciplined governance, secure cloud architecture, and strategic risk leadership underpin the credibility of the consulting industry.
Many of the same resilience and governance priorities extend into mission-critical environments—explore CISOs to Watch in Massachusetts’ Defense & Space Industry.