Bobby AllenBobby joined Google Cloud as an Group Product Manager this past summer after 10 years of cloud computing startups. His career philosophy is that Technology is the easy part of tech. (Long version - Tech is the easy part. People are the best part. Behavior is the hard part. Humility is the worst part.). He resides in Charlotte, NC aka "Silicon South".
Teneika AskewTeneika is an engineer by nature, specializing in big data. She helps clients make the most of their data – both technically and strategically. Her mission is to improve access to big data and allow visualizations to serve as the voice of the business.
Adept at delivering detailed analytical reports, she leverages her tech savviness to create a pipeline of opportunities to pivot into data and tech careers and alleviate the technical assistance gap in entrepreneurship communities by driving growth for women and small businesses.
Brant BackesBrant Backes' IT experience is extensive. He has gone from 25Bravo (IT Network Specialist) in the Wisconsin Army National Guard to finishing his AAS in Supervisory Management to enrolling into a pilot “IT Ready” program for the Creating IT Futures Foundation, which led to his CompTIA A+ certification. From there, Brant went to HealthPartners, first as an intern and later as a fulltime Desktop Analyst Associate and finally as Desktop Analyst Principle, helping lead/mentor other Desktop Techs in his region. He then transitioned to Infrastructure Deployment Services and received his Jamf Certified Associate certificate and then his Jamf Certified Tech certificate, further expanding his knowledge of their Mac and Windows environments.
Keith BoringKeith reported to the Center for Information Warfare Training (CIWT) in Pensacola, Florida, in January 2005, while still on active duty (Master Chief). Upon transfer to the Fleet Reserve in 2006, Mr. Boring continued his work at the Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) as a Navy Civil Service civilian. As the Director for the Navy’s Credentialing Programs, Keith manages the daily operations of the Navy's Credentialing Opportunities On-Line (COOL), United Services Military Apprenticeship Program (USMAP) and MilGears. He also participates in White House and DoD credentialing task forces, DoD CIO and DoN CIO Cybersecurity workgroups, facilitates Navy Job Duty Task Analysis (JDTA), and represents the DoD within various credentialing agency advisory boards.
Mike BurrMike Burr has an extensive background spanning 25 years in Information Technology and currently works at Social Mobile, a Google Certified Partner. He has worked in the Enterprise Mobility space for the last 12 years for McAfee, Intel, Enterproid / Divide, and the last 8 years with Google on the Android Enterprise team. Mike works with the Android Eco-System to include EMM providers, Device OEMs, carriers, and ISVs to educate, enable, and support their field Sales and Sales Engineering teams. He also works directly with partner customers to advise and assist with various topics including mobile security education, implementing deployment best practice strategies, policy reviews, and many other Android items directed towards BYOD and corporate-owned deployments.
Shinesa CambricShinesa Cambric (CCSP, CISSP, CISA, CISM, CDPSE) is a Cloud Security, Compliance, and Digital Identity Architect with strategic expertise in technical design and implementation of security architecture and controls. Her experience includes designing identity management and governance solutions for cloud-based platforms, building insider threat programs, and providing unique subject matter expertise on the intersection of governance, risk, and compliance with IT and application security. Shinesa volunteers for the Dallas chapter of the Women's Society of Cyberjutsu and Cloud Girls. She is an accomplished speaker and has contributed to multiple publications, including "Shifting Security Left" and "97 Things Every Information Security Professional Should Know.
John CusimanoJohn is an electrical & computer engineer and business leader with over 25 years of experience in process control, functional safety, operational technology (OT) and industrial cybersecurity. He is currently a managing director within Deloitte’s Cyber Risk Advisory business. John has performed countless industrial control system (ICS) cybersecurity vulnerability and risk assessments. He is a voting member of the ISA 99 cybersecurity standards committee. As part of that committee, he chaired the subcommittee that authored the ISA/IEC 62443-3-2:2020 standard, "IACS Security Risk Assessment & Design". John is a Certified Functional Safety Expert (CFSE), a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Global Industrial Cyber Security Professional (GICSP), and ISA 62443 Expert.
Ryszard CzerminskiRyszard is a seasoned professional with a Ph.D. in Biophysics, and decades of experience in computational drug discovery, mathematical modeling, statistical and machine learning, and data analysis. From small startups to large corporations, he has held Lead and Principal Scientist roles in various sectors, from pharmaceuticals, to telematics, and insurance. In the pharmaceutical industry, he worked on diverse challenges, from de novo drug design to modeling antibiotic resistance. Ryszard has a genuine passion for extracting knowledge from data and building predictive and actionable models.
Ray DeJeanRay DeJean is the Deputy CIO at Southeastern Louisiana University where he is responsible for IT security, networks, servers, storage, and voice. He has more than 22 years of experience in designing, implementing, and securing IT systems. Ray holds a bachelors degree in Computer Science and a masters degree in Integrated Science and Technology. He is also an adjunct instructor in the department of Computer Science where he teaches courses in networking and IT security. A recognized IT security subject matter expert, Ray holds several industry certifications including Security+ and CompTIA Advanced Security Practitioner. Ray currently lives in Madisonville, Louisiana with his wife and kids.
Joe DeryJoe Dery is the VP & Dean of Data Analytics, Computer Science, & Software Engineering at Western Governors University’s College of IT, aiding over 15,000 students in finding a surgical balance of mathematics, programming, and business influence skills. Previously, he was a Senior Data Science Leader at Dell Technologies with projects spanning ML-driven sales quota allocation, sales forecasting, customer cross-sell targeting, marketing opportunity sizing, sales BI, and supply chain optimization. He advocates for decision intelligence frameworks, change management, and "improv" in analytics solutions. Dery holds a Ph.D. in Business Analytics and an M.S. in Marketing Analytics from Bentley University.
Meredith DoddDr. Meredith Dodd holds a Ph.D. in Health Psychology from the U. of Texas at Arlington where her research focused on analyzing data for a chronic pain clinic, the Productive Rehab. Institute in Dallas for Ergonomics (PRIDE). That and her later data science work supporting Army Med. Command programs within the Army Public Health Center’s (APHC) Public Health Assessment Division led to 30+ publications in peer-reviewed journals and textbooks. Later, as head of the Data Science program at Woz U, she won awards for increasing her student body and completely revising the data science curriculum. Dr. Dodd helped launch CompTIA Data+ and is involved with CompTIA’s new data pathway certifications. Currently, she is a data scientist with Strata Decision Technology.
Mignon EdorhMignon is Sure Secure’s Digital Transformation Lead with expertise in transforming the way her clients operate their cloud environments for operational efficiency and asset security. Her most recent work has enabled Federal clients to accurately tag assets in the cloud and build efficiencies that optimize performance to realize significant cost savings. Under her leadership, her teams have defined the policies that ensure security controls are implemented into the software development life cycle. Mignon also serves as Sure Secure Solutions’ QMS manager and establishes the organizations processes to provide our clients the highest-level of quality across all service areas.
Juan FernandezJuan Fernandez, a.k.a. the Chief Encouragement Officer, has improved processes/procedures and empowered individuals to be successful while delivering business outcomes via technology his whole career. As a CompTIA SME, Juan has helped maintain and revise CompTIA certifications. He is an early-stage investor in software startups, co-founder and CEO of the MSP Growth Coalition, co-chair of the CompTIA Channel Development Advisory Council, a member of the Forbes Magazine Technology Council, CompTIA Infrastructure Certification Advisory Committee, and is a Channel Futures MSP mentor. He has been featured in CompTIA World Magazine, won the HP DaaS innovator of the year award, CRN magazine's fastest growing MSP award, and was CompTIA’s 2022 Industry Advisory Leadership award winner. He is also the author of the CompTIA MSP Handbook.
Jay GagliardoJay is employed by Ricoh USA as an Education and Knowledge Consultant and serves as an on-premise/virtual instructor hosting events, managing content and supporting the overall functionality over multiple platforms for panelists and presenters delivering to groups joining via various devices.
Experienced Technical Instructor with a demonstrated history of working in the information technology and services industry. Skilled in Analytics, Instructional Design, and Enterprise Content Management. Strong information technology professional with certifications from CompTIA, Microsoft, Cisco and SonicWall.
Roy GertigRoy Gertig has 40+ years of proven leadership and management in telecommunications, networks, and intelligence systems across small to medium sized business and large enterprises, resulting in consistent success at programming for and maintaining Command, Control, Communications, and Computer Systems Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR). Roy was featured in CompTIA’s Certification Magazine and has helped maintain and revise CompTIA certifications over the years. He is retired active-duty Air Force and government contractor who served in Berlin, West Germany, when the Berlin Wall came down.
Ted Hallum
Ted Hallum enlisted as an All-Source Intelligence Analyst in the U.S. Army’s 3rd Infantry Division in 2006. After the military, he spent eight years working as an intelligence professional in the cleared defense contracting space, focusing on counterinsurgency targeting, identity intelligence, Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT), and cyber all-source analysis. His time as a contract intelligence analyst included over two years in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait to support U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) elements.
Mr. Hallum has earned a Master of Science in Business Analytics at the College of William & Mary (Raymond A. Mason School of Business) and in 2019, secured his first role as a full-performance data scientist. Today, Mr. Hallum is a Senior Defense Machine Learning Engineer at Octo.
DuWayne HarrisonDuWayne is a leader in PwC’s Cloud and Digital practice with over 27 years of int’l technology and cross functional leadership experience that spans management, IT, and operations for financial services, healthcare, enterprise solutions, pharmaceutical, government, nonprofit, and education clients. He has played a key role in helping senior business and technology executives understand the best ways to use existing and emerging technologies to run their enterprises, accelerate growth, and ultimately deliver greater business value to their customers. DuWayne has been a frequent speaker at industry conferences & world forums and won numerous awards.
Chris HodsonChris is the Chief Security Officer for Contentful. He oversees a global team whose charter includes cybersecurity architecture & engineering, product security and physical security. Chris is responsible for Contentful’s security strategy, and the execution of initiatives focused on managing technology risks for customers and employees. In addition, Chris is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Information Security. Prior to joining Contentful in 2021, Chris held cybersecurity leadership positions with Visa, John Lewis Partnership, Zscaler and Tanium. He holds a master’s degree in computer and information systems security from Royal Holloway, University of London. Chris is also the author of Cyber Risk Management, a No.1 business bestseller on amazon.co.uk.
Robin HuntRobin Hunt, author of CompTIA Data+, has spent 20+ years inspiring people to think something new about their everyday work life, using her love of data to help them improve. As co-founder of ThinkData Solutions, Inc., she and business partner Daniel Bishop built a woman- and minority-owned business that serves both their local community of Birmingham, AL, as well as a national and international audience. Robin has led ThinkData in the creation of customized curricula that offer a path to a data analytics career and a great starting point into data analytics and developed effective, practical courses for international brands like CompTIA and Microsoft.
Sean KirkpatrickSean Kirkpatrick has spent 20+ years in Information Technology with positions ranging from helpdesk technician to senior network engineer and cybersecurity lead. He started his career in the United States Navy, later working as a senior network engineer for defense contractors and then in computer network security. He now works as a Senior Cybersecurity Consultant with Microsoft, where he works with Azure Cloud and M365 security as well as threat hunting. He holds a M.S. in Information Security and Assurance and 16 certifications spread across IT Security, Azure, and Network Engineering. His first CompTIA certification (Network+) came in 2001. Sean is also a member of INFRAGARD and the SANS Advisory Board.
May LedesmaMay Ledesma is a Senior Technical Writer at Silicon Labs, writing and editing technical content for the company's engineering community's consumption. She co-chaired one of the company's ERGs – the Women @ Silicon Labs which aims to engage, inspire, and develop women leaders at the company. May also co-chaired the Customer Experience Committee of the company's Technical Symposium, evaluating around 50 abstracts, 12 of which were presented during the symposium. May volunteers as an SME for CompTIA certifications and serves as a member of the CompTIA Certification Advisory Council for Infrastructure, in addition to acting as a Programming Instructor and a Career Mentor for Code2College.
Robert MarlattRobert is a senior manager with the Washington State Patrol. He has over 40 years’ experience in information technology, with an emphasis in state and local government. He is a former partner with MTG Management Consultants, a former Chief Information Officer with the Washington Department of Licensing, information technology project manager, and application developer. He has interests and expertise in application planning and development, information technology security, procurement and contracts management, and still writes code.
Thomas MarrThomas Marr is a senior information systems security engineer. His lengthy experience as an information security professional ranges from supporting technology startups to Fortune 500 companies to the United States Department of Defense (DoD). Thomas is also a proud veteran of the United States Army where he served on active duty as a military intelligence analyst, specializing in signals intelligence and open source intelligence. In addition to CompTIA's CAC for Cybersecurity, Thomas also actively provides technical expertise to information security community projects as a technical reviewer for globally recognized technology books.
Pamela McComasPamela joined General Dynamics IT in 2016 and is currently a program director within GDIT’s Defense Group. Pamela holds a senior leadership role on the US Battlefield Information Collection and Exploitation System (US BICES) program where she leads the program’s business operations and a globally dispersed workforce covering project management, change and configuration management, supply chain and asset management, program administration, finance, staffing, risk, and quality. Previously, Pamela served as a solution architect within GDIT’s Defense CTO team focusing on cyber, workforce development, and program management solutions. Pamela holds a master’s degree in IT Management from the University of Virginia.
Harry McLarenHarry is an established technology leader with 15 years of experience in IT and cybersecurity. Currently focused on solving complex cyber-related problems at SenseOn as a Senior Product Manager and Security Engineering Squad Lead. Security Operations subject matter expert and "Blue Team" obsessed! Active member (and founder) of the Scottish cyber community Cyber Scotland Connect.
Brandon MillerBrandon Miller is the data analytics and integration lead at PeoplesBank, A Codorus Valley Company. He has worked in various data roles for over 20 years including data management, data warehousing, data quality and data governance. Brandon holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science Business Information Systems from Shippensburg University. Brandon is currently a member of the CompTIA Advisory Council and holds CompTIA Data+ and Security+ certifications.
Tim NilesTim Niles has worked in various IT roles over his career, from desktop support to business intelligence to IT leadership. His current role is Leader of People Analytics Engagement at Cisco. In addition to holding several CompTIA certifications, he has helped CompTIA maintain and revise certifications over the years and is a member of the CompTIA Executive Advisory Board. Tim obtained his bachelor's degree in information technology from Central Michigan University and earned his MBA with a focus in technology leadership from Michigan State University.
Hardik ParekhAs a CISO at Five9, Hardik is responsible for company-wide global cybersecurity strategy and execution. Prior to Five9, Hardik developed and matured security programs at companies like DellEMC/RSA, Intuit, Amazon, and Splunk. He also serves on advisory boards of innovative startups and CompTIA. Hardik brings two decades of global cyber security experience and a builder mindset. His previous experience includes developing product security and enterprise security - including Identity and Access Management, compliance, and building a modern, highly automated Security Operations Center at Amazon as the Physical Retail unit's CISO. He co-authored the OWASP Software Assurance Maturity Model 2.0, promoted OWASP SAMM 2.0 as a conference speaker, and has contributed to many industry standards.
Jo PetersonJo Peterson is the Vice President of Cloud and Security Services for Clarify360. An engineer by trade, Jo has been helping clients architect cloud solutions since 2009. Jo holds multiple AWS, Azure and Google certifications as well as CCNA and CCNP. She is currently in process on her CCSP and CISSP. Jo has a Master’s Degree in Information Technology as well as an MBA, is an Air Force vet and the founding co-chair of cloudgirs.org. Jo is a member of the Forbes Technology Council and serves on CompTIA’s Infrastructure Advisory Board. Jo has provided social media thought leadership and independent analyst insight to brands such as Intel, HPE, IBM, SAP, Cisco, Splunk, Dell, Ericsson and others at events such as vmWorld, Think, Discover, AWS reinvent, Google Next and many others.
Tenette PrevatteTenette Prevatte is the Academic Dean for Computer & Information Technology programs at Fayetteville Technical Community College in Fayetteville, NC. She has over 25 years of industry experience with network security. She has been a Subject Matter Expert (SME) for CompTIA for over 10 years, assisting with exam development for industry exams. She also serves on the CompTIA Infrastructure Certification Advisory Committee and the CompTIA Subject Matter Expert Advisory Committee. She has served as a technical editor for numerous higher education textbooks in subjects such as network security and digital forensics. She holds an MBA from Campbell University and 20 graduate hours in Computer Science from Radford University and the University of North Carolina at Pembroke.
Anthony
PutorekAnthony has over 30 years in the IT industry and 9 years with Microsoft. He is part of a dynamic team within Microsoft’s Cloud Operations & Innovation division, with a focus on Technical Skilling in Microsoft's Datacenter Communities.
Arron StebbingArron Stebbing is a Principal Technical Trainer at Veeam Software, he is responsible for creating and implementing comprehensive training programs and educational strategies that align with business objectives and address skill deficiencies. He is a member of CompTIA's Technical Advisory Committee and a Subject Matter Expert for exam development. Additionally, he is certified in the LEGO® Serious Play® method, which he uses to bring creativity and innovation to the business world. With 19+ years of experience in the IT industry and a background in building and operating cloud service provider environments, Arron excels in communicating technical concepts to executives and educating technical teams on delivering business value.
Susanne Tedrick"Susanne Tedrick currently works as a Technical Trainer at Microsoft. In her work, Susanne delivers skills-based, outcome-driven training on the Azure platform for some of Microsoft’s leading enterprise clients. Susanne is a Microsoft Certified Educator and a Microsoft Certified Trainer.
Susanne performs community service work for several non-profits, including serving as Chair of the Advancing Tech Talent and Diversity Executive Council for CompTIA and coalition member for NPower's Command Shift initiative. Susanne is also the host of Wiley’s Diversity in Tech webinar series."
Lew ThorneLew is on a mission to love, lead, teach and accelerate the lives of many! Lew serves as Director of Cybersecurity in the Financial Services Industry and as Adjunct Faculty of Continuing Education in Computer Science, Cybersecurity and Project Management. He is an accomplished, results-focused professional with a history of success aligning program activities to achieve organizational objectives on a global scale. Lew is also a seasoned instructor and contributor to educational program development, certifications and training. Lew earned his MSc from the University of Salford (UK), SCPM from Stanford University (US), MCPM from George Washington University (US) and holds multiple professional credentials including those with CompTIA, PMI, ISC2, and ScrumAlliance.
Brandon Umland has over 20 years experience in IT, Security, Privacy, Compliance and Audit in both the Insurance and Financial Services industries. Brandon holds a Bachelor's degree in Information Technology with a focus on Information Security from Western Governors University. He has been working with CompTIA since 2017 as an SME and maintains over 30 certifications across IT, security, privacy, compliance and audit.