Mike Buratowski’s Post

The Home Depot celebrates 45 years since the first store opened its doors. This company truly lives its values and it is such an honor to be a part of the journey as we enter into the third chapter of growth. In celebration of 45 years here is some THD trivia for you. Did you know the first signs were orange because "We painted our signs on bright orange circus-tent canvas, which cost a fraction of the more common electric lighted signs" - Bernie Marcus. Other names considered were: Cashsaver, Savexx, Homex, Valumart, Save Center, Do it & Save, Bad Bernie's Build All, and my personal favorite Bad Boy Home Center! #orangeblooded, #THD, #WhereDoersGetMoreDone

I was having a discussion with one of my mentees the other day and she asked if I had planned out my career steps to get where I am today. While some of it was driven by what I wanted to do as type of work, a bigger portion was due to the following: Having great mentors - Jeff Salyards, Brian Ford Sr., Jim Jaeger, Marios Damianides and Peter George are just a few that come to mind that if I hadn't been fortunate enough to cross paths with them, my life would be very different than it is today. To them and many others I am eternally grateful. Being prepared when opportunity knocks - This is where I had a bit of input on. Attending "Cyber Cop 101" at NW3C, Inc. and getting my CFCE from IACIS: International Association of Computer Investigative Specialists were my start in computer forensics. Obtaining my Masters degree. Completing the CISO program at Executive Education at Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College. All those have been stepping stones for where I am and where I want to be. But the most important factor is... Don't be afraid to take the leap - I still think back to when I was a police officer. While it was a very difficult job it was a stable career. Do my 25-30 years, get a guaranteed pension, retire in late 40s or early 50s, and then get a job to ride our the rest. I had no idea what it meant to be a contractor for the DoD. No idea what working with the government would mean. No clue what it would mean going from the 80k employee company of GD to the 200ish people of Fidelis and so forth. This doesn't mean I jumped at every opportunity, but I trusted my family's input, mentor coaching and the all important gut feel. I hope some of this is helpful to others who are earlier in their career or don't have a mentor to hear this from. Have a great week everyone.

At Gartner Security conference and just got to listen to Bear Grylls speak about resiliency. What a great reminder to #NeverGiveUp. Living through and leveraging Failure, Fear, Fire and Faith to face the giants. All of us face tough times. We just need to go a little bit farther.

Renewed my CISSP! Thankful I don't have to take that test again! Have a great holiday weekend everyone.

You’ve seen me post about the great things that The Home Depot Foundation does for our communities and veterans. This week 240 THD technology associates and vendor partners descended on Active Heroes, Inc. retreat just outside of Louisville KY to spruce up the 140+ acre property. This retreat is for veterans and first responders who need to get away and reconnect with their families and friends. Painting buildings, building fire pits, outdoor furniture and playground are just a few of the things the team accomplished. Many hands make for light work is true. Over $3.2 million was raised for this event. A special thank you to Palo Alto Networks , CrowdStrike , and Tanium for being diamond sponsors and partners in living our values. Thank you to all of our other cyber vendor partners who supported this event. Corelight BigID Forcepoint Mphasis Defy Security Qwiet AI EY MDSi, Inc. PwC SailPoint I did this post on the bus back by memory so if I missed anyone please comment and I’ll add you. https://lnkd.in/eX3jMg5Y

The Home Depot Foundation taking care of our #Veterans and fighting homelessness. More than 300 volunteers put in the work to upgrade 68 tiny homes. There is a reason our associates take a lot of pride working for THD. Yes we sell hammers 😉, but it's about giving back and being a part of the communities we serve. $500M already invested to veteran causes and on the way to $750M. #OrangeBlooded https://lnkd.in/eRj7bXBT

This is what it means to be an associate at The Home Depot. The Home Depot Foundation is an incredible organization that does amazing things on a grand scale, but it is the local community impacts that make me so proud to be a part of this company. A local store in Cheyenne has less than 100 employees, yet about 25% of them worked on projects. That percentage would be even higher but the store has to run as well ;-). #TeamDepot #LivingTheOrangeLife #TheHomeDepot https://lnkd.in/eE-E7ngm