Topic: Strategic Management

Seminar Topics

[1 CPE] FBI Cybersecurity Briefing: Safeguarding Against Modern Threats

  Presented by Nick Smith • FBI Special Agent

Join FBI Special Agent Nick Smith for a discussion on the top cyber threats of today. This presentation will cover some of the basic mitigation strategies available that users can enact right now. This discussion will also provide an overview of the FBI’s role in addressing various cyber threats.

Special Agent Nick Smith is a cyber agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Phoenix Division, focusing on criminal cyber matters including computer intrusions, malware, ransomware, and combating criminal infrastructures. Prior to working for the FBI, Nick served several cyber-related roles across government and within the U.S. Intelligence Community. He also served as a Police Officer in Ohio for several years and is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force.

Nick holds a BS in Homeland Security from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and an MS in Information Systems Engineering from the Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering. He also maintains certification as a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH).

[1 CPE] Strengthening the Cyber Shield: Private-Public Partnerships at the State and Local Level

  Presented by ACTRA

This session focuses on maturing actionable strategies and collaborative frameworks designed to help IT leaders and cybersecurity professionals navigate today’s dynamic threat landscape. As adversaries increasingly target state and local systems, Arizona’s model for public-private cooperation demonstrates how trusted partnerships, timely threat intelligence sharing, and coordinated incident response can significantly enhance cyber resilience. This session will update participants on practical timely insights into how cross-sector collaboration is being operationalized to protect infrastructure, ensure business continuity, and support a unified cybersecurity posture across the state.

Speakers:

  • Frank J. Grimmelmann, President & CEO, Arizona Cyber Threat Response Alliance, Inc. (ACTRA)
  • Ryan Murray, Deputy Director, AZ Dept of Homeland Security, CISO, State of Arizona

[1 CPE] Empowering Hawai’i’s Future: Leading IT Innovation in State Government

  Presented by Christine Sakuda • Chief Information Officer, State of Hawaiʻi

Hawaiʻi State Chief Information Officer Christine Sakuda shares her journey transitioning from private sector leadership into her current role in the state’s central technology division. Sakuda will offer insights on how she fulfills the governors’ priorities while partnering with all executive departments to develop common IT solutions and will discuss her experience of learning to work with the legislature on bills and budget priorities.

Christine Sakuda has more than 25 years of experience in leading enterprise-level IT initiatives including leading community IT systems development, managing stakeholder relations, and collaborating with IT vendors to implement a range of technology modernization projects. She is the State’s first female CIO of Native Hawaiian ancestry. She also served as the first executive director of Transform Hawaii Government (THG), a nonprofit organization dedicated to catalyzing the modernization of public services through people, processes, and technology, and as the Executive Director of the Hawaiʻi Health Information Exchange (HHIE).

[1 CPE] Heart of Agile with Aloha: Driving IT Innovation

  Presented by Bradley K. Foster, PMP, CSM, CPO, CAC, CAL • Worth Agility

Join Bradley K. Foster, founder of Worth Agility, to explore how Alistair Cockburn’s Heart of Agile—Collaborate, Probe, Deliver, Reflect, Improve—blends with Aloha’s compassion to ignite IT innovation. With 5+ years in health and aviation IT, Bradley led Hawaiian Airlines’ EDW (Microsoft-driven, real-time insights), Health Catalyst’s cloud analytics at Queens (30% efficiency gain), and Hawaii DOT’s Google CCAI demo (40% faster calls).

Learn to probe risks early, collaborate across silos, and deliver secure systems under Worth Agility’s human-centered approach, guided by DevSecOps insights from Isaac Sacolick.

Ideal for IT leaders tackling ransomware, AI, and bandwidth challenges with agility and heart.

[1 CPE] The Power of Partnership

  Presented by Aaron Smith • Vice President of Information Technology at Doyon, Limited

Technology alone doesn’t drive success—partnerships do. True innovation happens when organizations work together, leveraging expertise, shared goals, and a commitment to collective growth. By fostering strong relationships, we build solutions that are more resilient, secure, and impactful for the future.

Join us as Aaron Smith, Vice President of Information Technology at Doyon, Limited, shares his experiences on achieving success through organizational alignment. While technology provides a wealth of tools, people and partnerships are essential to achieving goals.

Aaron Smith is the Vice President of Information Technology at Doyon, Limited and the President of InfraGard Alaska. With decades of experience in IT leadership, cybersecurity, and infrastructure protection, Aaron has worked extensively in both the private and public sectors to enhance security and operational resilience. His expertise spans critical infrastructure protection, risk management, and technology-driven business transformation.

Before joining Doyon, he served as Chief Information Officer for Doyon Utilities, overseeing technology operations supporting essential services across Alaska. Aaron also has a military background, having retired from the Alaska Air National Guard, where he focused primarily on cybersecurity and network defense.

Passionate about collaboration and innovation, he believes in the power of partnerships to drive meaningful technological advancements that protect and empower organizations. Over his 20+ year career, Aaron has worked across Information Technology, Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA), and Cybersecurity in both military and civilian sectors.

[1 CPE] Successfully Implementing AI in Your Office: An Interactive Discussion

  Presented by INTERFACE Advisory Council

With so many useful applications from customer service to data management and new employee recruiting, the use of Artificial Intelligence around workplaces increases every day. Information Technology professionals are now tasked with identifying AI tools to increase efficiency and find cost savings. Employees have been utilizing AI for task automation in a wide array of roles. This adoption is only going to continue to grow.

How is all this governed? What are the security practices you need to adhere to? Join us for an open panel discussion on the proper implementation of AI in your workplace. Our Advisory Council will share some of their experiences in utilizing AI applications of all types while ensuring the necessary security measures. Bring your questions to ensure you walk away with valuable insights for properly implementing AI.

Panelists:

  • Wes McEwen, Manager, IT Helpdesk, AK Dept of Commerce, Community & Economic Development
  • Brian Noonan, Director, Information Technology, Altman Rogers & Co.
  • Mischaud Scruggs, Manager, Information Technology, Assets, Inc.
  • Niel Smith, Deputy Chief Information Officer, State of Alaska

[1 CPE] How to Talk to Executives About Technology

  Presented by Dr. Ethan Benatan • Chief Information Officer, TriMet

As IT practitioners and leaders, you have deep knowledge about the benefits, risks, and costs associated with your IT operations. Yet IT is too often seen only as a cost center, as order-takers, or as a bunch of smart people who understand the things that our users see at the Service Desk. How can you increase your impact by helping your boss, their boss, executives, and the CEO understand what you have to offer? In this session, we will learn from real experience and leave with a toolkit that will help you better serve your organization –– and your career.

Dr. Ethan Benatan has led IT departments for over 25 years, spending over 10 of those years on executive teams across four different industries and overseeing IT portfolios worth up to a half-billion dollars. He currently serves as the Executive Director of IT and Chief Information Officer for TriMet, the regional transit authority in Portland Oregon, where he is proud to lead an IT team of over 100 professionals in service to the region.

Dr. Benatan is passionate about aligning IT with business needs and building effective communication between IT and internal customers. He is inspired by human potential and enjoys mentoring and teaching. He is a practiced communicator, facilitator, and trainer with skills in nonviolent communication and mindful compassionate dialog. In his spare time, he loves to nerd out on his hobbies which include billiards, flying, and salsa dancing.

[1 CPE] The Decarbonization of the Data Center

  Presented by Ian Clatworthy, Global Director, Infrastructure Product Marketing • Hitachi Vantara

Balancing the need for substantial data infrastructure with more eco-friendly policies should be top of all organizational to-do lists. Rather than a competition between corporations, these initiatives should be focused on the larger benefit of a healthier world. That’s why creating a specific data center decarbonization strategy will be key. This will range from improving the visibility and measurement of power usage, to actually reducing the carbon footprint of each operational layer. But where should organizations begin?

Ian comes from a customer background in Formula 1 and World Rallying. Having a deep understanding of technology and its benefits he took his skills into technology sales and marketing with Dell and HDS. Today he leads Product Marketing for data infrastructure technologies at Hitachi Vantara.

[1 CPE] From Back-End to Boardroom: Securing Your Seat at the Table

  Presented by INTERFACE Advisory Council

Decisions are made every day at your organization that will impact all employees. Budgets, policies procedures, and more are discussed in board rooms, on conference calls, or at a staff lunch. Who is a part of these discussions? Are you? So often Information Technology departments are not included in key decisions about the direction of an organization, and they should be.

Join the INTERFACE Advisory Council for an open discussion about securing your “seat at the table.” IT performs so many crucial services that help all aspects of a business, it makes sense that you are offering up the needed insight into technology’s role in key decisions. Join this panel discussion to hear from your peers about how you can accomplish this tough task.

Moderator: Brandon Gatke, AVP of Information Technology and Security, Portland Community College

Panelists:

  • Ed Arib, Technology Manager, Portland Police Bureau
  • Steve Hankel, Vice President of Information Technology, Johanson Transportation Service
  • Brian Hole, Deputy CISO, Legacy Health
  • Jaya Srinivasan, CISO, Director of Cybersecurity, M Financial Group

[1 CPE] The Decarbonization of the Data Center

  Presented by Ian Clatworthy, Global Director, Infrastructure Product Marketing • Hitachi Vantara

Balancing the need for substantial data infrastructure with more eco-friendly policies should be top of all organizational to-do lists. Rather than a competition between corporations, these initiatives should be focused on the larger benefit of a healthier world. That’s why creating a specific data center decarbonization strategy will be key. This will range from improving the visibility and measurement of power usage, to actually reducing the carbon footprint of each operational layer. But where should organizations begin?

Ian comes from a customer background in Formula 1 and World Rallying. Having a deep understanding of technology and its benefits he took his skills into technology sales and marketing with Dell and HDS. Today he leads Product Marketing for data infrastructure technologies at Hitachi Vantara.