Mary Kotch doesn’t fit the mold of a typical tech executive. At once a hard-edged cybersecurity strategist and a nurturing educator, she’s just as comfortable chairing a boardroom cybersecurity committee as she is explaining machine learning models to undergrads or biking up a Pennsylvania mountain trail with her daughter.
With over two decades in the C-suite—most recently as Executive Vice President and Chief Technology and Information Security Officer at Core Specialty Insurance—Kotch has quietly reshaped the rules of engagement for women in technology. She has led global digital transformations across the insurance and financial sectors, implementing predictive AI, zero-trust architecture, and multi-continent shared service centers. And yet, when asked what she’s proudest of, her answer is immediate: “Teaching,” she says. “And helping other women see that they belong in this field too.”
The walls of Kotch’s professional life are lined with accolades: a Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Technology by the U.S. Diversity Council; a Constellation Research Business Transformation 150 awardee; former CIO of Validus Holdings; and CTO for AIG in Latin America and North America. But it’s not the titles that define her—it’s her impact.
In an industry long criticized for its lack of female leadership, Kotch is a rare voice of authority who has led thousands of technologists across five continents while personally mentoring dozens of women entering cybersecurity and cloud engineering. At Core Specialty, she’s spearheaded the development of a cutting-edge AI cyber defense engine, trained on platforms like OpenAI, Darktrace, LLaMA, Microsoft Sentinel, and Proofpoint. The platform doesn’t just detect breaches—it predicts them, often hours or days in advance.
“We’ve reached a point where defense alone isn’t enough,” she explains. “We need systems that learn, systems that think. And that only happens when people with diverse minds are building them.”
Into Mary’s Leadership
Kotch’s belief in diverse minds is more than rhetoric. For 15 years, she has been teaching as an adjunct professor—currently at Penn State University, where her students engage with real-world cyber incidents, design risk models, and even experiment with AI-driven threat detection. Her summer internship programs at Core Specialty give undergraduates hands-on access to enterprise tools like Microsoft Purview, allowing them to analyze data loss incidents, model insider threats, and collaborate with industry threat hunters.
“Mary leads like an engineer and teaches like a storyteller,” says one of her former students. “She’s the reason I decided to stay in cybersecurity.”
That mentorship is woven into every corner of her life. Kotch helped fund an early childhood education initiative in honor of her mother, and regularly speaks at STEM events aimed at empowering young girls to enter tech. She’s chaired innovation and risk committees for both public companies and start-ups. And her leadership always comes with one eye on sustainability—whether that’s operational resilience or human potential.
When she’s not advising boardrooms or lecturing on AI ethics, Kotch unwinds through movement. She mountain bikes with her daughter on local trails and runs 5Ks with her family and friends. “That balance grounds me,” she says. “I’ve written white papers in my head halfway through a climb.”
Her family—husband Dr. Mike Kotch and their two children—are her steadying force. “They know that my work is intense,” she says. “But they also see what it’s about. Building, protecting, mentoring. And yes, sometimes crashing a few servers on a Saturday night lab test.”
For Mary Kotch, cybersecurity isn’t just a career—it’s a platform. A platform to build safer digital ecosystems. A platform to drive more equitable workplaces. And most importantly, a platform to teach.
“Women don’t need more permission to lead,” she says. “They need more proof that they already belong here.”
With leaders like Kotch in the spotlight, that proof has never been more clear.
Quotes by Mary Kotch
· “You can build billion-dollar systems and still make time for a bike ride with your daughter.”
· “My proudest moments aren’t the titles—they’re the people I’ve helped bring into the room.”
· “We don’t just stop cyber threats. We stop uncertainty.”
