Mark Thornton

Background

About Mark Thornton

There are three things I truly love outside of my love for my family. I love to cook, I love to eat, and I love to travel. I want to taste everything around the world. Well, almost everything (I can do without eating bugs). I also want to create excellent meals. Not for public accolades or recognition, but because I love to see the smile on people's faces when they taste something I made that truly blows their minds. Food and travel are my hobbies of passion, but what drives me is education. I want to learn as much as I can for as long as I can. It is the reason I decided to be a part of the Cybersecurity Bootcamp at Georgia Tech. I just wanted to get an idea of what cybersecurity entailed. This is also the reason I have restarted my drive to acquire as many IT-based certifications as I can. The bulk of my career was spent in the hospitality industry. I learned so much in my more than 20 years in hotels and convention centers. I went from an entry-level technician to a Project Manager to a Business Manager in less than two years. Although I was young, I was in charge and it felt amazing. I put together huge shows for some of the world's largest corporations while also learning how business works. I learned how to create and manage budgets. I learned how to forecast, analyze data, measure risk, speak with people of all levels (stakeholders and CEOs to maintenance engineers and housekeepers), and more importantly, I learned how to be a good leader. Leadership, communication, and a healthy appetite for knowledge are the main ingredients that make me, ME!