Haystack Solutions Names Tabitha Flax CEO as Cybersecurity Hiring Models Face Growing Strain
College Park, MD, April 9, 2026 — The cybersecurity industry has long struggled with a talent shortage. Increasingly, some leaders argue the bigger issue is how talent is identified and where it is placed.
Haystack Solutions is building its business around that idea.
The company announced today that it has appointed Tabitha Flax as Chief Executive Officer, bringing in a veteran of cybersecurity workforce development to scale an alternative approach to hiring and training talent.
Flax, who previously held leadership roles at ISC2, SANS Institute, and ISACA, has spent more than 20 years working to expand access to cybersecurity careers and improve how organizations connect with qualified candidates.
Her appointment comes as employers continue to face unfilled roles, high training costs, and hiring models that rely heavily on credentials and prior experience. These signals may overlook capable candidates and fail to align talent to the roles where they can succeed.
Haystack’s platform, CyberGEN.IQ, evaluates cognitive aptitude to identify individuals most likely to succeed in cybersecurity and match them to the roles where they will perform best. The approach enables employers, training providers, and workforce programs to make more targeted decisions about hiring, development, and career pathways.
According to the company, the platform achieves 97% predictive accuracy, allowing organizations to better align training investments with likely success, reduce attrition, and improve workforce readiness.
“Credentials and training will always play an important role in cybersecurity. What’s been missing is a reliable way to identify who is most likely to succeed and where,” said Tabitha Flax, CEO of Haystack Solutions. “When we pair capability with the right role and the right training, we see much stronger outcomes.”
Haystack is working with enterprise, government, and workforce development organizations, as well as training providers, to improve how cybersecurity talent is identified, developed, and placed.
“The challenge isn’t just finding talent. It’s placing people in roles where they can perform and grow,” said Doug Britton, Board Chair at Haystack Solutions. “Bringing more precision to that process changes how organizations build teams.”
Under Flax’s leadership, the company plans to expand its platform and partnerships as it works to scale its model across the cybersecurity workforce ecosystem.
About Haystack Solutions
Haystack Solutions is a cybersecurity workforce intelligence company focused on improving how talent is identified, developed, and deployed. Its platform, CyberGEN.IQ, helps organizations assess cognitive aptitude, match individuals to the right cybersecurity roles, align training investments, and build stronger teams. To learn more, visit www.haystacksolutions.com