Tampa, Fla. – Today, Governor Rick Scott highlighted job creation at Sunera LLC, an IT and data risk consulting firm in downtown Tampa. This February, Sunera announced plans to expand its headquarters and create more than 40 new jobs with a capital investment of almost $1 million. Sunera has two locations in Florida, and has created more than 120 jobs for Florida families statewide.

Governor Scott said, “We are excited to celebrate Sunera’s expansion in Tampa and job creation across our state. Florida’s economy is booming and more than 865,000 private-sector jobs have been created since December 2010. We will continue working to make Florida the #1 state in the nation to grow a business and create jobs.”

Sunera, headquartered in Tampa, is a trusted security and privacy advisor to some of the world’s largest companies, with 230 employees in offices throughout the US and Canada. Sunera’s employee base has nearly doubled in the past three years. The 40 new high-skill, high-wage opportunities in Tampa will support the growth of the firm’s Cyber Security, Data Privacy and Information Technology Security and Assessment practices. As part of its growth in Tampa, Sunera recently moved to new offices on the 17th floor of the Fifth Third Center in Downtown Tampa.  The space also serves as the headquarters for Cyber Risk Management, LLC (“CRM”), Sunera’s holding company.

Yong-Gon Chon, CEO of Sunera and CRM, said, “We are proud to be adding dozens of high-skill, high-wage jobs to downtown Tampa, as well as dozens more across the state. These new jobs are essential to support the work that Sunera does every day, helping Florida’s top enterprises with their data risk management. To meet market demand, we’ll recruit experienced professionals from around Tampa Bay and top talent from our military bases and outstanding local universities.”

Joel A. Schleicher, CRM’s Founder and Chairman, said, “CRM was founded to address the growing cyber threats facing today’s organizations to protect client data, intellectual property and meet compliance requirements. We have quickly become a premier provider of these services in the U.S. and Canada and envision being the national market leader in the years to come. With the support of Tampa, Hillsborough County, and the State of Florida, Sunera and CRM will continue to grow rapidly and support the high demand for services. We’d like to thank the governor and the state for their continued support and for their recognition today.”

EFI president & CEO Bill Johnson said, “As a result of Governor Scott’s business-friendly policies, we are seeing more and more companies thriving in Florida. Congratulations to Sunera on this expansion and we look forward to their continued success.” 

The project was made possible through strong partnerships between Enterprise Florida, Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, Hillsborough County, the City of Tampa and the Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corporation.

Florida Department of Economic Opportunity Executive Director Jesse Panuccio said, “Companies like Sunera are helping to grow the information technology industry in Florida and we applaud its commitment to expanding in the Tampa area.”

“We are proud to have Sunera call Tampa home,” said Mayor Bob Buckhorn, City of Tampa. “Sunera is setting the standard for business and technology risk consulting and has distinguished itself as one of Tampa Bay’s Top Workplaces for 2015.  They are attracting exceptional talent to our city and we look forward to supporting their continued success here.”

“Information security companies like Sunera are playing a big part in Hillsborough County’s technology industry growth story,” said the Honorable Sandy Murman, Chair of the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners. “We’re very pleased that they have chosen to stay and grow in this community, and we deeply appreciate the high value jobs they continue to bring here.”

“Sunera’s success further demonstrates Hillsborough County’s competitiveness as a destination for the nation’s top cybersecurity organizations and technology risk consulting practices,” said Dr. Ronald Vaughn, Chair of the Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corporation and president of the University of Tampa. “We are confident that, as Sunera grows, this community will continue to provide the workforce and business assistance they’ll need to thrive.”

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Sunera LLC, a subsidiary of Cyber Risk Management, is headquartered in Tampa, Florida.  It is a leading provider of IT and Data Risk Consulting Services throughout North America. Sunera’s primary consulting service lines include Information Security, Data Privacy, PCI Compliance, IT Audit and Advisory, and IT GRC.  Additional services include Internal Audit, Sarbanes-Oxley Assistance and support, and financial advisory. Founded in 2005, Sunera is dedicated to helping organizations achieve and sustain effective corporate governance.

Enterprise Florida, Inc. (EFI) is a partnership between Florida’s businesses and government leaders and is the principal economic development organization for the state of Florida.  EFI facilitates job growth for Florida businesses through recruitment and retention, international trade and exporting, promotion of sporting events, and capital funding programs to assist small and minority businesses.

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