The Cyber Guild Celebrates the 'Who's Who' of Cybersecurity at Annual VIP Awards Reception

ARLINGTON, Va., Oct. 5, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Cyber Guild held their third annual VIP Celebration and Awards ceremony on the evening of October 3 at the Army Navy Country Club, Arlington, where they honored cybersecurity VIPs from across the industry.

Each year, The Cyber Guild recognizes individuals who emulate the purpose of organization by helping to advance cybersecurity as part of the "fabric of everyday living". Debbie Sallis, founding Executive Director of The Cyber Guild shares, "The Recognition Awards are truly peer recognition for those considered the "Who's Who" in cybersecurity. Our premier event Uniting Women In Cyber, now in its fifth year, is receiving recognition for its diversity focus and commitment. We are excited for our future plans and growth."

When accepting the Emerging Leader Organization award, Amy De Salvatore, Partner at NightDragon, shared, "NightDragon knows that the best innovation comes from inviting diversity into our lives and our workrooms. On behalf of NightDragon, I am honored to receive this award and we stand in solidarity with the mission that to win the war on cyber we must activate diverse and nontraditional thinking and design security into the fabric of our tools and infrastructure."

Jon Check, Executive Director Cyber Protection Solutions, Raytheon, an RTX Business, and Cyber Guild Luminary who presented the Changemaker award said, "I am honored to present the Changemaker award. Security and innovation are at the heart of what we do at Raytheon. I am proud to be a part of The Cyber Guild to build a sustainable ecosystem and to help increase diversity of talent and thinking at all levels of cybersecurity."

The awards were presented by past honorees and Cyber Guild luminaires. 2023 honorees are:

Ambassador – Respected advocate and powerful connector, who activates leaders and decision makers to enable positive change across the private and public sectors. Shawn Henry, Chief Security Officer, CrowdStrike, presented by Bryan Ware, Chief Development Officer, ZeroFox, and Cyber Guild Luminary. 

Changemaker – A leader who is advancing the U.S. ecosystem by setting new standards, implementing new technologies and/or educating organizations and the greater community about the importance of cyber.  Dr. Kim Young-McClear, U.S. Coast Guard veteran. Presented by Jon Check, Executive Director, Cyber Protection Solutions, Raytheon Technologies, and Cyber Guild Luminary

Warrior – An energetic personality who creates trusted relationships to get ahead of adversaries and who solves current and emerging threats by applying innovative technology and maintaining sustaining robust networks.  Kristie Grinnell, SVP and CIO, DXC, and Cynthia Kaiser, Deputy Assistant Director FBI, Cyber Division. Presented by Kiersten Todt, Managing Partner, Liberty Ventures Group, and Andrea Little Limbago, Senior Vice President, Research and Analysis, Interos, and Cyber Guild Luminary. 

Alliance leader – An individual disrupting business as usual, educating organizations and the greater community about the importance of cyber hygiene, implementing security standards and advocating for engagement. Jen Sovada, President public sector, Sandbox AQ, and Mandy Satterwhite, Managing Director, Accenture Federal Services, Cyber Growth and Strategy Lead. Presented by Simone Petrella, CEO NK2 and Cyber Guild Luminary and Mark Montgomery, Executive Director of Cyber Solarium Commission.org, and Cyber Guild Luminary. 

Emerging leader – Company – An organization role modeling the advancement of cybersecurity, and diversity, in the broadest sense; investing and delivering new technologies, ways of working and dynamic partnership to help safeguard organizations impacted by cyberattacks and to grow a sustainable cyber workforce.  Amy De Salvatore, Partner, NightDragon presented by Poupak Afshar, CEO, Easy Dynamics.

Emerging leader – Individual -- Individuals with an entrepreneurial mindset who through their leadership and advocacy are rapidly becoming influential within the cyber community. Zach Oxendine, Engineering Technical Program Manager, Microsoft, and Kim Gajewski, Principal Consultant, Mandiant. Presented by Michael Dent, CISO, Fairfax County Government, and Tatyana Bolton, Security Policy Manager, Google, and Cyber Guild Luminary.  

About The Cyber Guild
The Cyber Guild Inc is a 501C C3 public charity, and a 501C6 business association. Founded in 2019, The Cyber Guild has deep roots in promoting cybersecurity sector diversity and inclusion with Uniting Women in Cyber. The Cyber Guild serves companies from all sectors of the industry, from small businesses and startups to Fortune 100 companies, as well as service providers, academic institutions, and nonprofit organizations by advancing cybersecurity as part of the "fabric of everyday living", within their communities, networks and or organizations.  For more information, visit: https://thecyberguild.org/.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Event photographs are available upon request.

MEDIA CONTACT: 
The Cyber Guild 
Debbie Sallis
[email protected]

SOURCE The Cyber Guild, Inc.