Press Release
Thrive Appoints Nicholas J. Smolansky as Chief Legal Officer
New Executive Appointment to Oversee Legal, Compliance, and Government Affairs
Boston, MA, July 16, 2025 – Thrive, a global technology outsourcing provider for cybersecurity, Cloud, and IT managed services, today named Nicholas J. Smolansky as Chief Legal Officer (CLO). As the company continues to expand its leadership amid gangbuster growth, Smolansky will counsel Thrive’s growing executive team and lead its legal affairs.
With over two decades of experience leading legal teams and providing counsel through mergers and acquisitions in the technology industry, Smolansky brings a breadth of knowledge in scaling high-performing teams and managing complex transactions, legal affairs and human resources for leading organizations. Before joining Thrive, Nicholas served as Chief Legal Officer for Transfix Inc., where he grew the legal team and co-developed the company’s strategy for an announced initial public offering via a merger with a SPAC.
“As Thrive continues to grow, it’s important that we bring in the right experts who share our vision for building out our NextGen services through strategic investments, high-impact acquisitions and a culture of commitment and success,” said Bill McLaughlin, CEO of Thrive. “Nick has lived this vision in past roles, and I know he will bring the same enthusiasm to our executive team. Thrive only stands to benefit from his depth of experience in navigating strategic M&A activity and strong track record for propelling company growth.”
Thrive has been bolstering its leadership team amid what is set to be a record year for the company. Since November of 2024, Thrive has named Kristina O’Connell as Chief Marketing Officer, Kimberly Saturley as Chief People Officer, Ben Reich as Chief Financial Officer, and appointed Bill McLaughlin as CEO. With this team in place, the company continues its expansion into new geographies and service lines, with the goal of becoming the go-to MSP/MSSP for the mid-market.
“Thrive is unmatched when it comes to its quality of services, depth of knowledge, and strategic vision for the industry,” said Smolansky. “There couldn’t be a more exciting time to join this company, and I look forward to contributing to its culture of excellence and its ambitious plans for the future.”
If you’re interested in learning more about open positions at Thrive, visit the careers page.
About Thrive
Thrive delivers global technology outsourcing for cybersecurity, Cloud, networking, and other complex IT requirements. Thrive’s NextGen platform enables customers to increase business efficiencies through AI, standardization, scalability, and automation, delivering oversized technology returns on investment (ROI). They accomplish this with advisory services, vCISO, vCIO, consulting, project implementation, solution architects, and a best-in-class subscription-based technology platform. Thrive delivers exceptional high-touch service through its POD approach of subject matter experts and global 24x7x365 SOC, NOC, and centralized services teams. Learn more at www.thrivenextgen.com or follow us on LinkedIn.
Contacts
Hannah Johnston