GPSEC Columbus Tech Summit Spotlights Midwest US Growth as Global Tech Leader

The 2023 GuidePoint Security (GPSEC) Columbus Tech Summit shined a spotlight on security and technology executives and organizations in Central Ohio and the Midwest U.S. on November 14. More than 100 speakers and 400 participants came together for the event presented by CDO Magazine, ComSpark, and the Central Ohio CIO Forum. It reinforces the positioning of the Midwest region of the United States as a global leader in technology.

“Columbus, Ohio, has become one of the fastest growing regions in the United States. It just passed San Francisco as the 13th largest U.S. city. Seeing all the incredible leaders from the Midwest and throughout the United States here today was very inspiring!” says Steve Wanamaker, CDO Magazine Founder and Publisher.

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The event was packed with cutting-edge discussions, tech innovations, and networking opportunities. Participants explored the latest trends and strategies shaping the future of cybersecurity and technology.

Leaders from key industry sectors like banking, technology, financial services, government, healthcare, and insurance shared thought-provoking insights and expertise on critical issues through more than 20 breakout sessions and three keynote presentations. Featured tracks included:

• AI/ML/NLP, ChatGPT & Real Use Cases

• Application and Dev/Ops Security

• Best Practices with Cybersecurity in the Cloud

• Data Categorization and Security

• Identity Access and Governance

• Leveraging Data to Drive Innovation and Threat Intelligence 

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GPSEC Columbus Tech Summit Co-Chair Ben Blanquera, Rackspace Technology/FAIR VP, Evangelist, Sr. Architect and Central Ohio CIO Forum Chair, describes the importance of security and AI: “The convergence of security and AI is here and now as we explore leveraging AI for a better humanity.” He adds, “We also need to think about security options, and make sure the security team and the business team work in concert to advance AI in its responsible adoption.”

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Sharing her take on the summit, Dr. Tonjia Coverdale, Associated Bank SVP and Chief Strategy Officer for Operations and Technology, says, "Security is a valued partner in our innovation cycles. Oftentimes, security is viewed as a blocker, but we really need a strong partnership between security professionals and the entire enterprise to be able to advance a complete solution and make true innovation happen!”

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Wells Fargo SVP and Head of Customer Data Strategy Jasmine de Gaia was impressed with the "phenomenal insights regarding driving innovation through data and in particular looking at business strategy, customer journeys, and end-to-end usage and application of data to transform the business."

Bob Fehrenbach, GuidePoint Security Sales Director, describes the summit as “a first-class event. It was very well organized. The feedback from our customers and contacts who participated has been overwhelmingly positive."

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Providing her perspective on the summit's energy and significance, Payal Thakur, JobsOhio CAO/Director of Enterprise Analytics, says: “I believe the GPSEC Columbus Tech Summit was the best security and tech summit of 2023."

"I had great discussions with many speakers who have a progressive vision and industry-wide experience, especially addressing in this pivotal time how security can partner to boost innovation while empowering employees and enhancing service and products. The plethora of vendors participating was encouraging as they serve growing needs of a dynamic world that prioritizes security more than ever,” Thakur adds.

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Anupam Srivastava, State of Ohio Department of Administrative Services CIO, feels that the GPSEC Summit highlights the vibrancy of the Columbus security scene. He adds, “Beyond the keynote presentations, there were many sessions providing thought-provoking material as well as education to attendees enabling them to stay current with new developments in the security industry. Steve Wanamaker and his team did an outstanding job in organizing the event. I’m looking forward to the next CDO Magazine event!”

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The 2023 GPSEC Columbus Tech Summit was sponsored by more than 30 leading security and technology solution providers:

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Executives speaking at the GPSEC Columbus Tech Summit included:

Kamal Balwani, Cardinal Health Principal, Software Engineering, Pharma; Ben Blanquera, Rackspace Technology/FAIR VP, Evangelist & Sr. Architect, GPSEC Columbus Tech Summit Co-Chair, Central Ohio CIO Forum Chair; Justin Bumbico, Columbus Metropolitan Library Director, Information Technology; Gary Cao, CAO Advisory Analytics Strategist & Implementation Partner; Susan Carroll-Boser, White Castle CIO; Dan Clark, Abnormal Security Sales Engineering; Tracie Cleveland Thomas, Key Bank SVP, Digital Transformation; Jim Connolly, Columbus Blue Jackets; Travis Cornett, Toyota Material Handling Cybersecurity & Risk Manager; Tonjia Coverdale, Associated Bank SVP, Chief Strategy Officer, Operations & Technology; Chris Crites, Diebold Nixdorf Director, Cyber Security Operations & Incident Response; Jasmine de Gaia, Wells Fargo SVP, Head, Customer Data Strategy; Sushil Deore, Wells Fargo Principal Engineer; Sean Deuby, Semperis Principal Technologist; Furey DiDomenico GuidePoint Security Sr. Security Consultant - Vulnerability Management; Craig Dornon, Bread Financial VP, Chief Operational Risk Officer; Sean Erikson, Grange Insurance VP, Enterprise Architecture, Emerging Tech & Enterprise Automation; Steve Farley, Nationwide VP, Infrastructure & Operations; Michael Farrar, City of Westerville CIO; Junell Felsburg, Columbus Foundation Sr. Director Cybersecurity & Infrastructure; Rob Felsburg, Updox/EverCommerce Director, Security; Keith Fields, SentinelOne Sr. Sales Engineer; Anthony Fisic, Battelle CISO; Dave Fordham, ProcessUnity Director, Partners and Alliances; Adam Frumkin, Franklin County Data Center CIO; Michael Fulton, Vernovis CIO; Matt Godsted, 84.51 Director, Enterprise Security; Lacy Gruen, Secureworks Director, Product Marketing; Shad Gunderson, Corelight Security Engineer; Mark Harris, GEICO Sr. Director, Engineering; Todd Henley, Northwest Bank VP, Chief Data Governance & Privacy Officer; Kirk Herath, Office of Ohio Governor Mike DeWine Cybersecurity Strategic Advisor; Bryan Holmes, Andelyn Biosciences VP, Digital & Technology Solutions; Brett Hudspeth, Humana IT VP, Clinical & Interoperability Segment CIO; Schlaine Hutchins, Mettler Toledo Head, Information Security & Governance; Tony Iacobelli, Splunk Sr. Manager, Advanced Response Team; Brett Jones, Delinea Sr. Sales Engineer; Mike Jones, Nationwide VP, Cybersecurity Shared Services; Gautam Kanaparthi, Normalyze Head, Product; Jason Keirstead, Cyware VP Threat Defense, Engineering; Jamie Knobles, Immersive Labs Manager, Sales Engineering (North America); Laura Koester, Cardinal Health Engineer, Enterprise Logistics IT; Shravan Kotha, Attorney General of Ohio CDAO; Kathleen Kuczma, Recorded Future Sr. Sales Engineer; Joe Lammers, Cintas Director, IT Portfolio; Mark Lance, GuidePoint Security VP, DFIR & Threat Intelligence; Mick Leach, Abnormal Security Field CISO; Ramu Lingala, Liberty Mutual Insurance VP, Technology; Josh List, GuidePoint Security Practice Lead, Vulnerability Management; Adam Luck, IGS Energy Sr. Director; Larry Maccherone, Contrast Security Dev(Sec)Ops Transformation Architect; Eric Magnus, Sysdig Director, Sales Engineering; Kelly Marlow, Nationwide Associate VP, Digital Workplace Experience; Connie Matthews, ReynCon Founder & CEO; Angelo Mazzocco, AVAAP Vice President, Advisory Services, GPSEC Columbus Tech Summit Co-Chair, Central Ohio CIO Forum Founder; Kayne McGladrey, Hyperproof Field CISO; Will McGuire, The Hillman Group Director, Information Security; Jana Moore, Belron CISO North America; Wanda Miles, Exabeam Sr. Security & Compliance Program Manager; Warner Moore, Gamma Force Founder & CEO; Bryan Mundy, City of Westerville Network Operations Manager; Bart Murphy, OCLC Chief Technology & Information Officer; Rich Nagle, The Ohio State University AVP, CISO; Joe Otten, Fifth Third Bank Sr. Director, Information Security; Mike Nichols, Elastic VP, Security Product Management; Hari Palakkal, Eversana VP, CoEs & Enterprise Applications; Nathan Paquin, GuidePoint Security Managing Security Consultant, Application Security; Scott Peachey, Invesco Global Head, Data Governance; Lacey Picazo, ZoCo Design CEO; Matt Prezbindowski, Liberty Mutual Insurance Director, Cybersecurity Data & Analytics; Jasmine Ramaradjou, State of Ohio Department of Public Safety CIO; Ervan Rodgers II, Designer Brands Sr. VP, CIO; Matt Scheurer, Financial Services Industry AVP, Computer Security & Incident Response; Dan Shah, IGS Energy Manager, Data Science; Brian Shea, MedOne Healthcare Partners CIO & Lexington Clinic Interim CIO; Jeffrey Sheen, CAS Senior Innovation Manager; Chris Sibila Financial Center First CU CIO; Michal Slominski, The Wasserstrom Company VP, Information Technology; Gregory Skinner, NiSource VP, IT Utilities Systems; Matt Snider, U.S. Urology Partners CIO; Orlando Sprockel, Cameron Mitchell Restaurants Director, IT; Anupam Srivastava, Department of Administrative Services State of Ohio CIO; Jen Swearingen, AON Global Security Leader; Payal Thakur, JobsOhio CAO/Director, Enterprise Analytics; Rick Trout, Sarnova Director, Infrastructure & Security; Juan Torres, Franklin County Board of Commissioners CIO; Tom VanWinkle, Bread Financial VP, Technology & Operations; David Vasquez, Nationwide Insurance VP, Enterprise Data Strategy & Enablement; Steve Verrilli, Proofpoint Sr. Technical Sales Manager; Jason Videll, Red Canary Channel CISO; Phil Waugh, WIZ Cloud Partner Sales Specialist; Rob Walk, Tenable Sr. Security Engineer; Victor Wieczorek, GuidePoint Security VP, AppSec & Threat & Attack Simulation; Spencer Wood, Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency Cybersecurity Advisor; Kris Woods, CAS Director, Continual Improvement; Tim Woods, FireMon VP, Technology Alliances; Lenny Zeltser, Axonius CISO; and Joy Zhao, Nationwide Insurance AVP, Analytic Technology & High Performance Computing Practice.