Leadership Team - Protect, Detect, and Respond

Sami Elalem

Business Development Specialist

Sami's Bio

Sami Elalem brings a sharp focus on cybersecurity, compliance, and client success to his role in Business Development at Rimstorm. With a background in strategic outreach and a knack for simplifying complex regulatory requirements, Sami helps organizations navigate CMMC, NIST, and other federal compliance frameworks through Rimstorm’s GovCon Enclave platform. His commitment to clear communication and results-driven partnerships makes him a trusted resource for both government contractors and channel partners alike.

Ben Gerenstein

President & CEO

Ben Gerenstein is the CEO and Founder of Rimstorm. As CEO, Ben is responsible for managing all of Rimstorm’s teams and operations as well as setting the overall vision and strategic direction for the company.

Ben's Bio

Ben is a serial entrepreneur who has grown, cultivated and sold a number of successful IT companies, including, an MSP located in the DC metro region. He has received numerous awards over the years, including multiple wins of the Fantastic 50 Award presented by the Virginia Chamber of Commerce to the fastest growing companies in the state.

Ben’s passion for technology began while pursuing has Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science at Colgate University. Throughout his career, Ben has had extensive experience as a cybersecurity analyst, senior network engineer and compliance professional. He was Director of Network Systems at Dow Jones and his technical experience includes heading a cybersecurity audit team for the US Naval institute. In addition, Ben has an MBA and is also a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP).

In the early days of CMMC, Ben also attended the first CMMC Provisional Assessor (PA) classes given by the Cyber-AB and became one of the first PAs. He also participated in the Cyber-AB Exam Objectives Working Group and is a Certified CMMC Assessor (CCA) and a Certified CMMC Professional (CCP).

Erik Briceño

President & CEO

Erik has been steering the direction of how Managed IT Services are impacting business operations from Manassas, VA to Washington, D.C.

Erik's Bio

Erik Briceño is Rimstorm’s Chief Operating Officer (COO). As COO, Erik oversees the daily operations as well as provides support in the creation and implementation of strategic visions for Rimstorm, in collaboration with the CEO, to achieve sustainable long-term growth.

Aside from Rimstorm, Erik is the owner of V2 Systems, Inc., one of Northern Virginia’s leading Information Technology Managed Service Providers. He is an inspiring leader for its employees and instrumental business partner for its customers.

Prior to joining V2 Systems in 2002, Erik was a co-founder and COO of Ampcast.com, a leading provider of online resources servicing over 5,000 independent musical artists. At Ampcast.com, Erik spearheaded all aspects of corporate development, funding, strategic vision, and business development for the firm.

From 1997 to 1999 Erik held the position of Acoustic Systems Engineer for Electric Boat Corporation, a leading defense contractor. In this role, Erik was responsible for the acoustic fidelity of two noise critical systems and components in the US Navy’s nuclear submarine systems. Erik holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Vanderbilt University and a Masters of Business Administration from George Mason University.

Chris Waskowich

Chief Information Officer

Chris Waskowich, Chief Information Officer of Rimstorm. Offering innovative Managed IT Services for two decades.

Chris's Bio

Chris Waskowich is a the Chief Information Officer (CIO) for Rimstorm. He is a certified expert in leveraging technology to deliver quality managed IT services for Rimstorm’s clients. He is dedicated to guiding his clients through the maze of matching business need to technology potential, which includes process standardizing, workflow optimization, budget forecasting, training and generally answering the all important question, “How can we use technology to do things better?”

Along with Erik Briceño, Chris was a co-founder and CTO of Ampcast.com, a leading provider of online resources servicing over 5,000 independent musical artists, and was responsible for managing and executing the entire technical infrastructure of site.

Prior to Ampcast, Chris was an Acoustic Engineer for Electric Boat Corporation from 1995 to 1999 and led the development and administration of custom software designed to track and analyze the overall acoustic performance of submarines.

Chris holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and Material Science from the University of Connecticut and a Master of Science in Technology Management from George Mason University.

Chris Rajca

Senior Sales Executive

Chris Rajca, Senior Sales Executive, specializes in Managed IT Services from Manassas, VA to Washington, D.C.

Chris's Bio

Chris Rajca is dedicated to working with organizations to identify opportunities to improve and enhance the management and security of their IT systems. This is done by assessing and understanding their requirements and business model to make qualified and budget-friendly recommendations. For Chris, relationship building is key.

Prior to joining Rimstorm, Chris was the Director of Business Development at Capital Computers & Networks as the lead sales representative. In this capacity he provided client generation, account and marketing management, contract development as well as establishing and leading company sponsored seminars and networking events.

From 1989 to 2010, Chris worked at Freddie Mac, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, as a Technical Analyst, Manager of Operations and Director of Operations. Though originally hired to assist in the development of Freddie Mac’s new tax system, he eventually advanced to lead the support of their financial systems using PeopleSoft Software. After several years of development and support, Chris moved into a management role for these systems as well as providing management support for an Incident/Problem Management Support Group helpdesk.

Chad Jordan

Account Manager

Marc Wilcox

Service Desk Manager

Jeremiah Best

Vice President of Operations

Jeremiah brings over 18 years of experience in the MSP / Compliance industry including both senior technical and service operations / management roles.

Jeremiah's Bio

He is a service visionary and has led highly regarded Network Systems Engineering and Service Delivery teams across multiple departments. As Vice President of Operations Jeremiah is responsible for ensuring adherence to all Policies and Procedures for Rimstorm and its clients. Looking for efficient, scalable, and secure ways to execute large scale operations is his specialty.

Jeremiah is a graduate of George Mason University and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Technology. When not in the office he can be found rock climbing the “local” areas. Jeremiah and his wife run a side project focusing around mental health and letting people know it’s ok to seek help. His passion for mental health can be seen in his leadership style.

Dan Lhotka

Chief Engineer

Dan Lhotka Bio

Dan Lhotka is the Chief Engineer for Rimstorm’s MSP services. He is our lead troubleshooter and the go-to team member for figuring out a client’s nuanced issue and then developing a customized solution for them. From something as small as getting a “smart TV” to work to a design of a complex virtualized server infrastructure, Dan has experience working with a vast degree of technology. Dan began his career with Rimstorm as a hardware technician and worked his way to Chief Engineer. Prior to joining Rimstorm, Dan worked at many non-technical jobs, building computers in his free time.

Dan attended Virginia Tech. He is a Microsoft Certified Professional and holds several Amazon Web Services certifications.

Chris Rajca

Senior Sales Executive

Chris Rajca, Senior Sales Executive, specializes in Managed IT Services from Manassas, VA to Washington, D.C.

Chris's Bio

Chris Rajca is dedicated to working with organizations to identify opportunities to improve and enhance the management and security of their IT systems. This is done by assessing and understanding their requirements and business model to make qualified and budget-friendly recommendations. For Chris, relationship building is key.

Prior to joining Rimstorm, Chris was the Director of Business Development at Capital Computers & Networks as the lead sales representative. In this capacity he provided client generation, account and marketing management, contract development as well as establishing and leading company sponsored seminars and networking events.

From 1989 to 2010, Chris worked at Freddie Mac, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, as a Technical Analyst, Manager of Operations and Director of Operations. Though originally hired to assist in the development of Freddie Mac’s new tax system, he eventually advanced to lead the support of their financial systems using PeopleSoft Software. After several years of development and support, Chris moved into a management role for these systems as well as providing management support for an Incident/Problem Management Support Group helpdesk.

Tina Bapapor

Director of Sales & Marketing

As the Director of Sales and Marketing for Rimstorm, Tina brings over decades of versatile experience to the table, with a particular focus on federal government contracting.

Tina's Bio

With a track record of driving growth and cultivating strategic partnerships, Tina has successfully navigated diverse industries, from startups to Fortune 500 companies. Tina’s expertise lies in identifying market trends, crafting compelling strategies, and executing impactful campaigns, all while ensuring compliance and efficacy in the federal contracting arena. This experience underscores Tina’s commitment to delivering unparalleled value and peace of mind in safeguarding digital assets. At Rimstorm, we’re not just selling products; we’re pioneering peace of mind in an ever-changing digital world.

Jeremiah is a graduate of George Mason University and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Technology. When not in the office he can be found rock climbing the “local” areas. Jeremiah and his wife run a side project focusing around mental health and letting people know it’s ok to seek help. His passion for mental health can be seen in his leadership style.

Steve Foerster

Chief Technology Officer

Steven Foerster is Rimstorm’s Chief Technology Officer (CTO). As CTO, Steve provides technical leadership through the implementation and supervision of projects to ensure all of Rimstorm’s technical aspects are in alignment with its business strategy.

Steve's Bio

He has overall responsibility for the hardware, software, cloud services and other technology used by Rimstorm and deployed to its customers. He also ensures Rimstorm’s technical solutions are deployed in a secure, reliable and scalable manner with repeatable, streamlined processes and procedures

Steve holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Brigham Young University and an M.S. in Computer Science from the Georgia Institute of Technology. His background includes spending 5 years as a Principal Engineer leading development of offensive cybersecurity networking and infrastructure tools. He was a Computer Information Research Scientist at Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Laboratories and Principal CNO Software Engineer at ManTech. He is an Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP). His software contributions have been accepted into open source projects including StreisandVPN, libNTRU, RaspAP, and the python websocket-client and python-for-android modules.

Dallas Smith

Systems Engineer

Dallas's Bio

As Systems Engineer, Dallas Smith is responsible for managing client needs on a broad spectrum of technologies. It is his job to oversee the lifecycle of day-to-day technical problems as well as manage projects to enhance usability and security for our clients.

Prior to Rimstorm, Dallas started his own company “Tech Doctor” which focused on bringing a high-level of IT experience to the residential market.

Dallas is passionate about fatherhood and scouting. He has 2 aspiring scouts who push him to be better every day.

Dallas holds an AA degree in Network Systems as well as numerous industry certifications from CompTIA, Microsoft, and from industry leading hardware manufacturers.

More About Dallas

Kids? Pets? 2 kids ages 9 and 7, 2 dogs Buffy and Copper, and 1 very sour cat named Violet.

Favorite Movies/TV shows? Gladiator, The Patriot, 300, Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, True Detective, The Witcher.

What do you want to do when you’re retired? Travel everywhere.

Any languages you’d like to learn? Currently working on German.

With unlimited funding, what would you invent? A hot tub time machine.

Favorite Quote? “There is nothing impossible to him who will not try.” -Alexander the Great

Favorite Books? The Richard Sharpe series by Bernard Cornwell

Favorite Music/Artist? Grunge, hard rock, metal, & industrial

Kelly Weist

VP of Marketing

Kelly’s Bio

As Vice President of Marketing for Rimstorm, Inc., Kelly Weist is responsible for making sure the people and business owners of Northern Virginia, Maryland and DC come to know how Rimstorm can help them solve their technology challenges so they can focus on their vision.

Prior to Rimstorm, Kelly was Associate Director of Marketing for Wholesale Screening Solutions, where she played a key role in the marketing strategy that helped grow and position the company prior to its sale and eventual merger with SJV Data Solutions. She was then instrumental in the brand launch of InformData, now one of the largest national background screening data providers. Previously, she worked for Penn National Gaming as Advertising Manager and prior to that she worked as an Independent Marketing Consultant for various industry brands in the fields of entertainment, healthcare and government contracting.

Kelly is passionate about giving back to the community and currently serves as a board member of HeroHomes, a local nonprofit that builds homes for disabled veterans and their families in Loudoun County, Virginia.

She is a trusted leader with over 20 years of experience that spans marketing, digital media and communications at leading organizations. Kelly holds a bachelor’s degree from Ohio Wesleyan University.

More About Kelly

Kids? Pets? I have three boys and two cats who are the joys of my life.

Favorite Movies/TV shows? The Sound of Music, Atypical, Game of Thrones, The Sopranos, Friends, Schitt’s Creek, The Real Housewives.

What do you want to do when you’re retired? Community Theater, Write a Novel

Any languages you’d like to learn? French

With unlimited funding, what would you invent? A dating app for people on the autism spectrum.

Favorite Quote? “Enjoy life. This is not a dress rehearsal.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

Favorite Books? The Goldfinch, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, The Reason I Jump.

Favorite Music/Artist? Madonna, Lady Gaga, Mumford & Sons, anyone with an acoustic guitar.

Jamie Greene

Controller

What are your specialties here at V2? Accounting.

When not working, what do you enjoy in your free time? Traveling, kayaking and hanging out with the family.

Spouse? Kids? Pets? What are they like? Jenny is my Cairn Terrier. She runs the house.

Favorite Movies/TV shows? The Wire/Cop Out/Stepbrothers.

What do you want to do when you’re retired? Not work and travel.

Which would you rather fight: A horse sized zombie duck or 50 duck-sized zombie horses? 50 duck-sized zombie horses.

Favorite Quote? “Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you” – Ruth Ginsburg

Favorite Music/Artist? Depends on the moment, but certainly not the new stuff that people call “Pop” and “Country”.

Norman Nogales

Network Engineer

How long have you been in the IT industry? 12 Years.

How long have you worked at V2? 1,544 days, 7 hours, 13 minutes and 12 seconds.

What are your specialties here at V2? Hosted solutions, Network Support, Apple Support, Server and Desktop support. (Unofficial: Ping-Pong)

When not working, what do you enjoy in your free time? I sit on my chair and wait until the next work day.

Spouse? Kids? Pets? What are they like? I have one daughter, she is amazing.

Who would you like to meet alive or dead and why? Nikola Tesla, compare notes on death ray.

Favorite Movies/TV shows? Transporter, Spiderman (2002), Constantine, Matrix, Sherlock.

What do you want to do when you’re retired? Travel with family.

Any languages you’d like to learn? English, Mandarin, Russian.

With unlimited funding, what would you invent? Spacecraft able to travel and colonize other galaxies… also a Self-cleaning toaster.

Which would you rather fight: A horse sized zombie duck or 50 duck-sized zombie horses? 50 duck-sized zombie horses. 50 more times the fun, 60% less dangerous.

Favorite Quote? “Mmmm… unexplained bacon.” Homer Simpson

Favorite Books? Harry Potter, Tuesday with Morrie, Atlas Shrugged, The Time Traveler’s Wife.

Favorite Music/Artist? Michael Jackson, Ludwig van Beethoven, Frédéric Chopin, Diplo, Celia Cruz, Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett

Erin Wallace

Systems Engineer

How long have you been in the IT industry? 13 years

How long have you worked at V2? 4 year

What are your specialties here at V2? Being 150% awesome

When not working, what do you enjoy in your free time? I enjoy playing video/card games with family & friends, playing piano and producing music into the late night.

Spouse? Kids? Pets? What are they like? Two dogs (Logan and Izzy) and a rabbit named Emmett. Logan is a human trapped in a dog body, Izzy will do anything for you to throw a ball. Emmett is probably the chillest rabbit on the planet.

Who would you like to meet alive or dead and why? Albert Einstein so I could try and understand what he thought about the nature of reality.

Favorite Movies/TV shows? Pulp Fiction, Ex Machina, Cabin in the Woods, The Wire

What do you want to do when you’re retired? Own a futuristic space-themed bar/winery on the West Coast.

Any languages you’d like to learn? Japanese, Spanish

With unlimited funding, what would you invent? A device that could convert sunlight energy with the same efficiency as plants.

Which would you rather fight: A horse sized zombie duck or 50 duck-sized zombie horses? The horse-sized zombie duck and then tame it because zombies are awesome.

Favorite Quote? “The unexamined life is not worth living” – Socrates

Favorite Books? Maybe someday. (That’s not a book title)

Favorite Music/Artist? Drake, Future, Noah Shebib, Big Sean, Beyonce

Bruce Quinn

Systems Engineer

How long have you been in the IT industry? 10 years

How long have you been working at Rimstorm? 1 year

What are your specialties here at V2? Customer support, desktop support, hardware and anything anyone needs done.

When not working, what do you enjoy in your free time? Bowling, homebrewing, video games, mowing the lawn and annoying my friends.

Married? Yes. 9 years strong!

Kids? Pets? What are they like? 2 kids, one boy and one girl. The boy is a lover and the girl is a fighter.

Favorite Movies/TV shows? Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, Super Troopers, Futurama, American Dad, The Simpsons

What do you want to do when you’re retired? Never work again! Also, brew beer and hang out with the wife.

With unlimited funding, what would you invent? A cure to all disease, an all in one cure.

Which would you rather fight: A horse sized zombie duck or 50 duck-sized zombie horses? My experience with horses is they tend to hold grudges. I’ll take my chances with the one, horse sized zombie duck. Maybe it will be a small sized horse.

Favorite Quote? “Maximum Effort!” – Deadpool or “Living well is the best revenge.” – George Herbert

Favorite Books? Enders Game (anything from Orson Scott Card), Tuf Voyaging (George RR Martin’s other book), The Incarnations of Immortality series (Peirs Anthony) and Marvel comics.

Favorite Music/Artist? Punk, some 80s, all 90s and some 2000s music.

Victor Hunter

Systems Engineer

How long have you been in the IT industry? 16 years

How long have you been working at Rimstorm? 6 years

When not working, what do you enjoy in your free time? Video games, Starting arguments on social media and fortifying couch forts with my daughter.

Married? No chance Lance.

Kids? Pets? What are they like? Two dogs: Brigadier General Peepers McGuiness and Sir Cosmo Kramer. One daughter: Olivia. She’s the greatest.

Favorite Movies/TV shows? Forest Gump, Big Trouble in Little China and Goonies

What do you want to do when you’re retired? invent the teleporter finally after putting it off for all these years.

Any languages you’d like to learn? Klingon and Mandarin.

With unlimited funding, what would you invent? Well, the teleporter obviously.

Which would you rather fight: A horse sized zombie duck or 50 duck-sized zombie horses? That’s an extremely personal question I’m not comfortable discussing.

Favorite Quote? “You’re about as useful as a one-legged man in an arse kicking contest.” – Dad

Favorite Books? a Kindle

Favorite Music/Artist? NOT Drake, Future, or Noah Shebib

Leilani Dooley

Senior Systems Engineer

How long have you been in the IT industry? 15 years

How long have you worked at V2? 12 years

What are your specialties here at V2? AWS, Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft Active Directory

When not working, what do you enjoy in your free time? Playing GW2 with Husband. Trying new recipes. Exploring New York State and New York City.

Married? Yes

Spouse? Kids? Pets? What are they like? Input error.

Who would you like to meet alive or dead and why? Elon Musk. So I could charm him into giving me a free Tesla S and installing his new home solar system into my soon to be house. Also to find out how to get involved with his space program.

Favorite Movies/TV shows? The West Wing, Voyager

What do you want to do when you’re retired? Travel everywhere with the Husband.

Any languages you’d like to learn? French, Russian, Arabic

With unlimited funding, what would you invent? Faster than light spacecraft engine.

Which would you rather fight: A horse sized zombie duck or 50 duck-sized zombie horses? The horse sized zombie duck because numbers are the only way the zombies win.

Favorite Quote? “I don’t like quotes.” – Anonymous

Favorite Music/Artist? Christmas carols

Leadership

The Rimstorm Leadership Team

Ben Gerenstein

Erik Briceño

Steve Foerster

Jeremiah Best

Tina Bapapor

Chris Waskowich

Chris Rajca

Sami Elalem

Chad Jordan

Marc Wilcox

Dan Lhotka

Happy to help!

Protect, Detect and Respond in a Prudent and Practical Manner