From Breach to Brand Trust: Jeff Nulsen on Rebuilding and Scaling with AI
In this episode of Margins and Mandates, Jeff sits down with Jeff Nulsen, a seasoned marketing executive, to unpack how heΒ ...
Senior Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer, N-able
Search every verified Jeff Nulsen interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote β each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Jeff Nulsen, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at N-able, has discussed the company's growth and rebranding following its spinout from SolarWinds in 2021. He stated that the company grew from approximately $300 million to $500 million during that period. Nulsen noted that the spinout occurred after the December 2020 SolarWinds cyber attack, which he described as a nation-state breach of SolarWinds software, not of N-able's software, but which affected N-able by association. He said the company prioritized product and infrastructure security during the spinout. Nulsen described events as a key marketing pivot for rebuilding brand trust, and said the company branded its data protection product as Cove with a calming tone rather than using fear-based messaging. He also stated that N-able debated a point-solution versus platform strategy, advocating for acquiring point solutions and using the platform narrative for cross-selling. In 2025, Nulsen promoted N-able's Empower 2025 conference in Berlin, highlighting content tracks on automation, M&A, growth, sales, disaster recovery, and cyber defense, and said he would host a panel on future MSP industry trends. During a LinkedIn Live discussion on the 2025 MSP Horizons Report, Nulsen stated that 90% of MSPs are actively considering M&A as a growth strategy, and that 49% of surveyed MSPs expect more than 20% growth in managed services revenue. He said MSPs should avoid commoditization by focusing on best-of-breed technology stacks and differentiating through verticalization and specialization. Nulsen also noted that less than 10% of MSPs are selling AI as a service, though many use it internally, and that the percentage of MSPs moving into the co-managed space rose to 37% from 17% the previous year.
“I joined in May of 2021, two months before we spun off from a company called SolarWinds. That was a very significant shift for the company as you can imagine β a lot of new people, new technology, new process and an entirely new leadership team.”
“We went from about $300 million at the time to about $500 million now β so it's been quite a journey.”
“SolarWinds in December of 2020 had been the target of what at that time was the largest nation-state cyber attack in the history of cyber β there was a successful breach of SolarWinds software, not of SolarWinds MSP or N-able software, but because of association N-able was assumed by many to have been breached.”
“Because we sat next to this company that just experienced the biggest cyber attack, we got to see what that was like β the FBI in your office for a couple months β so during the spin we prioritized above all else ensuring that our products and our infrastructure was secure.”
In this episode of Margins and Mandates, Jeff sits down with Jeff Nulsen, a seasoned marketing executive, to unpack how heΒ ...
We know you don't need any more convincing but CMO Jeff Nulsen has THREE reasons why he thinks you can't miss EmpowerΒ ...
Our MSP Horizons Report 2025, helps you gain an advantage on your competition and a better understanding of what yourΒ ...
Connect with SolarWinds MSP: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SolarWindsMSP Twitter: https://twitter.com/SolarWindsMSPΒ ...
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