LIFT, empowered by Women in Security

What LIFT, empowered by Women in Security does

LIFT, empowered by Women in Security is a nonprofit community initiative operating under the Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) Colorado Chapter. Founded in 2021 and headquartered in Denver, Colorado, LIFT serves women pursuing or advancing careers in cybersecurity across all levels, backgrounds, roles, and generations. The organization provides free membership with no barriers to entry and runs a structured annual Mentorship Program (June–December 2026) alongside monthly meetups, professional development sessions, recreational activities (hikes, golf, yoga, sip & paint, dragon boat training), and social gatherings. Governance is provided by a volunteer board (LIFTSQUAD) led by President Billie Mohrbach, VP and co-founder Erika Jones, co-founders Yiping Sun and Mary Hayden, and Executive Advisors Yvette Florez and Larisa Thomas.

LIFT does not develop proprietary technology; its 'products' are programmatic services — the Mentorship Program and a calendar of community events — delivered in person across the Colorado region, primarily in the Denver metro area and Colorado Springs. The operating model is community-led: members are engaged through the Denver Cloud Security Alliance Meetup, Twitter (@csa_co), LinkedIn (CSA Colorado), and direct email at [email protected].

LIFT operates as a program of CSA Colorado, relying on corporate sponsorships as its sole revenue stream. Sponsors are recruited through a published sponsorship prospectus and segmented into Platinum and Gold annual tiers, plus event-level sponsorships. Sponsors include Structured and TD SYNNEX at the Platinum tier, and Proofpoint and Plante Moran at the Gold tier, with additional event sponsors such as Druva, Juniper Networks, Abnormal Security, Reliaquest, Recorded Future, Varonis, Mimecast, Kiteworks, Mitiga, and Upwind. Geographic scope is Colorado, with no international footprint disclosed.

Name

LIFT, empowered by Women in Security

Legal name

Cloud Security Alliance Colorado Chapter (CSA Colorado)

Website

https://csacolorado.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

LIFT, empowered by Women in Security is a Denver-based nonprofit community program under the Cloud Security Alliance Colorado Chapter that supports women in cybersecurity careers through free membership, mentorship, and community events across Colorado.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Denver

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Sponsorship: LIFT generates revenue through corporate sponsorships at Platinum and Gold tiers, as well as individual event sponsorships. Sponsors support monthly meetups, annual events, mentorship programs, and activities like hiking, golf, yoga, and social events.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

LIFT delivers a free, membership-based community program for women in cybersecurity that combines a structured mentorship program (monthly one-hour sessions, June–December 2026 cohort) with a rotating calendar of community events including networking meetups, professional development sessions, and recreational activities such as hikes, golf lessons, yoga, sip & paint, and trivia nights. Programming is funded by corporate sponsorships and offered at no cost to participants, with no barriers to joining.

Product overview

LIFT is a nonprofit community program under the Cloud Security Alliance Colorado Chapter that empowers women across all stages of their cybersecurity careers. The organization offers a structured mentorship program and hosts diverse community events (professional development, networking, recreational activities) to foster connection, expand networks, and create opportunities. There are no membership fees, ensuring equal access for all participants.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• LIFT Mentorship Program

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• StructuredcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPlatinum sponsor and event sponsor for LIFT events including hikes and the LIFT Mentorship Program (June-December 2026). Supports the Colorado cybersecurity community development initiatives.
• DruvaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for LIFT Mentorship Program (June-December 2026).
• TD SYNNEXcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for LIFT Mentorship Program (June-December 2026). Also sponsored 2024 Golf Lesson 4 at Broken Tee Golf Course. Platinum-level annual sponsor.
• ProofpointcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for 2025 Sip & Paint @ Different Strokes and 2024 Sip & Paint event. Gold-level annual sponsor.
• Juniper NetworksminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-sponsored 2025 Sip & Paint event with Proofpoint.
• Plante MorancoreGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for 2025 Career Development event, 2025 Yoga event, and 2024 Golf Lesson 3. Gold-level annual sponsor.
• DirsecminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-sponsored 2025 Career Development @ Plante Moran event.
• UpwindminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for 2025 Dragon Boat training @ Sloan's Lake.
• Abnormal SecurityminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for 2024 Trivia at Reivers Bar & Grill.
• ReliaquestminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for 2024 Golf Lesson 1.
• Recorded FutureminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-sponsored 2024 Sip & Paint event with Proofpoint.
• VaronisminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for 2024 Golf Lesson 2 at Broken Tee Golf Course.
• MimecastminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for 2024 Fall (Leaf peeping) Hike 3 at Bruin Bluff Trail, Lair o' the Bear.
• KiteworksminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for 2024 Quick 6 Golf Tournament.
• Blink OpsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-sponsored 2024 Quick 6 Golf Tournament with Kiteworks.
• MitigaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for 2025 Trivia Night @ Reivers Bar.
• Cloud Security Alliance (CSA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLIFT is an initiative empowered by Women in Security under the Cloud Security Alliance Colorado chapter. CSA is the world's leading organization dedicated to defining and raising awareness of best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment. CSA harnesses subject matter expertise of industry practitioners, associations, governments, and its corporate and individual members to offer cloud security-specific research, education, certification, events and products.
• Colorado = SecurityminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartner organization providing the Regional Master Calendar of Colorado security events. Co-hosted 2025 and 2024 summer picnics with CSA Colorado LIFT.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• ISACA: Global professional association for IT governance, risk, and cybersecurity — comparable as a membership-based cybersecurity professional organization, though focused on a wider audience.
• SANS Institute: Largest cybersecurity training and certification organization with diversity scholarship programs — adjacent as a major player in cybersecurity workforce development that competes for the same sponsorship dollars.
• (ISC)²: Global professional association for cybersecurity professionals with women's initiatives, certifications, and chapters — comparable in serving the cybersecurity community, but with much broader scope than LIFT.

Direct peers

• Black Girls in Cyber: Community-driven organization supporting underrepresented women in cybersecurity careers via mentorship and networking — closely aligned with LIFT's diversity-and-career-development focus.
• Women in Security and Privacy (WISP): Nonprofit advancing women in security and privacy through community events, mentorship, and education — direct peer to LIFT given the closely aligned women-in-security focus.
• The Diana Initiative: Nonprofit focused on supporting and empowering women in information security through community events, scholarships, and conferences — highly comparable to LIFT's women-in-cybersecurity focus.
• Women's Society of Cyberjutsu (WSC): Nonprofit that supports women in cybersecurity through training, mentorship, and community events — operates a comparable grassroots community model targeting the same audience as LIFT.
• Women in CyberSecurity (WiCyS): A leading global nonprofit dedicated to advancing women in cybersecurity through mentorship, networking, and career development — directly comparable mission and programming model to LIFT, but at national scale.

Emerging players

• AnitaB.org: Nonprofit focused on advancing women in technology through community, events, and career programs — comparable in mission and community-driven model, though broader than cybersecurity.

Others

• Girls Who Code: Nonprofit building a pipeline of women in technology — adjacent rather than direct, but shares the women-in-tech empowerment mission and corporate sponsorship model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/csa_co
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/csa-lift

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about LIFT, empowered by Women in Security