Massachusetts’ research sector sits at the intersection of biotechnology, life sciences, advanced computing, and translational science. Organizations in this space manage highly sensitive intellectual property, regulated data, and globally distributed research environments. Cybersecurity leadership here must balance scientific velocity with rigorous governance, protecting discovery pipelines without slowing innovation. The leaders below are shaping resilient, research-aligned security programs across the Commonwealth.
Julia Chang — Chief Information Security Officer, Flagship Pioneering
Julia Chang serves as Chief Information Security Officer at Flagship Pioneering, where she leads enterprise-wide security strategy across a dynamic portfolio of biotech and life sciences ventures. With more than a decade of experience in information security, she builds scalable, risk-based programs that integrate threat intelligence, security architecture, data protection, identity, and incident response. Her approach embeds cybersecurity directly into research, IT, legal, and operational functions—ensuring that breakthrough science is supported by adaptive, innovation-ready protection aligned with regulatory and business demands.
Ben R. Howard — Vice President of IT & Cybersecurity, Inari
Ben R. Howard leads IT and cybersecurity at Inari, overseeing infrastructure, incident response, identity and access management, and enterprise security operations. He has built and matured security programs grounded in the NIST Cybersecurity Framework, formalizing vulnerability management, device standards, security monitoring, and awareness training. With experience spanning biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, he combines operational execution with strategic leadership to support secure scientific advancement in fast-growing research environments.
Spencer Brennan — Associate Director of IT & Cybersecurity, Cue Biopharma
Spencer Brennan leads IT and cybersecurity initiatives at Cue Biopharma, supporting cloud, infrastructure, and secure systems operations in a research-driven organization. With a background in enterprise deployments, virtualization, networking, disaster recovery, and cloud adoption, he emphasizes reliability, scalability, and service alignment. His experience across consulting and life sciences environments positions him to strengthen operational efficiency while safeguarding sensitive research and corporate systems.
Daryl Rinaldi — Chief Information Security Officer, Cellarity
Daryl Rinaldi brings a multidisciplinary background in cybersecurity, IT management, engineering, and software development to his role as CISO at Cellarity. With deep experience supporting biotech and life sciences organizations, he provides strategic cybersecurity guidance and program leadership, including security assessments, fractional CISO services, and ongoing security program management. His work emphasizes structured governance, practical risk reduction, and alignment between research operations and enterprise security strategy.
Protecting Innovation at the Edge of Discovery
In Massachusetts’ research ecosystem, cybersecurity is inseparable from scientific progress. Leaders in this sector must defend intellectual property, regulated data, and collaborative research platforms while enabling rapid experimentation and growth. Their work reflects a commitment to resilience, compliance, and innovation—ensuring that groundbreaking discoveries are supported by security programs built to scale with ambition.
To see how similar governance and compliance priorities apply in highly regulated product environments, explore Cybersecurity Leaders to Watch in Massachusetts’ Pharmaceuticals Industry.