On the lighter side of things , we ask the industry experts what makes them tick . . . .

I have been fortunate to be surrounded by countless inspirational people throughout my career , and we have made significant contributions to the cybersecurity industry , especially relating to the role of developers in the future of software security .

However , if I had to pick just one , it ’ s hard to ignore the company I co-founded , Secure Code Warrior . The risks and sacrifices associated with starting your own business are enormous , but with almost a decade behind us now , I am immensely proud of what we have accomplished .

We have helped hundreds of companies – large and small – enable their developers to take responsibility for security and hone their secure coding skills in an impactful way . Assisting in changing the culture around secure software development is something that will continue to motivate me .

What first made you think of a career in technology ?

At a very young age , I loved taking things apart to understand them . From FM radio devices to TV remotes , no gadgets were safe in my quest to push them further ( which sometimes drove my parents crazy ).

I got my hands on a lot of old hardware and used systems from companies that had no use for it any longer . The challenge then started with how to get access to the system and data without having any logins , and that ’ s when my passion for cybersecurity started .

Early in my professional career , I also discovered I loved seeing people around me grow and get smarter , so I gravitated towards instructor and consulting roles , hoping to share that enthusiasm with others and infect them with the ‘ security passion ’ virus .

What style of management philosophy do you employ in your current position ?

I ’ ve always been a big believer in fairness and transparency . I believe I am a leader that approaches all situations with empathy but also puts the bar as high for everyone as you would for yourself , sprinkling things with a touch of humor , geek and cheekiness .

Generally , though , I treat everyone like adults . I see value in giving people the freedom to get results , not monitoring whether they ’ re making appearances between nine and five .

What do you think is the current hot technology talking point ?

At around 10 years old , I used my brother ’ s Macintosh Classic II to learn about operating systems , do basic programming , and later take the hardware apart and reassemble it . I moved on to i386 systems ( MS-DOS ) and then UNIX systems , BBS and networking technology .

Sometimes , when I speak at conferences , I hand audience members a bingo card filled with technology buzzwords that they are likely to hear throughout the day . The big hype topics used to be ‘ cloud ’, then ‘ Blockchain ’. Now , it seems those topics have morphed and now it ’ s all about the metaverse .

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