SOURCE: Executive Alliance

June 16, 2008 08:47 ET

Innovation, Leadership and Collaboration in Information Security Plays Critical Role in Organizations' Success

Top IT Executives in the Mid-Atlantic Region Recognized for Their Achievements

ATLANTA, GA--(Marketwire - June 16, 2008) - Executive Alliance, creator and provider of premium leadership recognition forums and events worldwide, announced today the winners of the Information Security Executive (ISE) Mid-Atlantic Awards 2008.

The Ritz-Carlton in Pentagon City, Washington, DC was the place to be on the evening of Thursday, June 12, 2008, where industry leaders and project teams in the Mid-Atlantic region in government, academic and the commercial sectors were honored for their achievements in information security and the change they are bringing to their organizations.

The Information Security Executive and Project of the Year awards are given to deserving candidates for positive contributions to their organizations and outstanding accomplishments to the industry through risk management, data asset protection, regulatory compliance, privacy, and information security.

Robert Lentz, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Information and Identity Assurance, U.S. Department of Defense, took home the ISE Executive of the Year Award in the Government/Academic category. He was recognized for the exemplary manner he has held his prominent position and his approach to providing leadership to federal entities and the private sector, breaking new ground and encouraging cooperation and collaboration.

The ISE Executive of the Year Award in the Commercial category went to Chris Tignor, Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer, Capital One, for his integrated, but separate approach to security and compliance, his technical and people skills, and business savvy in communicating the risks and returns of his work to senior management.

In addition to the aforementioned winners, four other finalists for the Executive of the Year Award were showcased during the event. In the Government/Academic category -- Michael J. Castagna, Chief Information Security Officer, U.S. Department of Commerce and Jerry Davis, Deputy Chief Information Officer for IT Security, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). In the Commercial category -- Deven Bhatt, Chief Security Officer, Airlines Reporting Corporation and Larry Brock, Chief Information Security Officer, DuPont.

New this year, the ISE Mid-Atlantic Project of the Year Award, recognized outstanding information security projects completed in the past 12 to 18 months. Team achievement was rewarded for each project

The project team at Temple University won the ISE Project of the Year Government/Academic category for their TUsecure Identity & Access Management Project. Accepting the award was executive sponsor Sheri Stahler, Associate Vice President, Computer services, and her team Ramana Chamarty, Ken Ihrer, Michael Mays, and Joshua Wharton.

Winning the Project of the Year Award in the Commercial category was Northrop Grumman Corporation with the Cyber Threat Analysis and Intelligence Phase 1 Project, executive sponsor Timothy McKnight, Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer, and his team Jeffrey Stuzman, George Bakos, Bryan Krekel, Randall Heins, Mark Leary, and Michael Starr.

Mischel Kwon, Chief IT Security Technologist, U.S. Department of Justice, was named the ISE Mid-Atlantic People's Choice Award Winner for 2008. She received the honorary mark of respect from the community of peers attending the event who voted her as the executive with the most exemplary attributes of a leader in the security industry.

"The stature of the ISE Awards in the IT industry is growing," said Marci McCarthy, CEO of Executive Alliance. "The winners of this year's Project of the Year, People's Choice, and Executive of the Year Awards have demonstrated new and innovative solutions as well as the highest level of industry standards."

About the Sponsors

ISE Mid-Atlantic Forum and Awards 2008 is the property of Executive Alliance, Inc. and is brought to the business community by the following: Megabyte Sponsor -- Passlogix, StoneSoft, and Symantec; Kilobyte Sponsors -- ArcSight, ChosenSecurity, Courion, Fortify, nCircle, Ounce Labs, Qualys, Reconnex, Verdasys, Voltage Security; IT Security Education Sponsor -- Security University; Media Sponsors -- InformationWeek Magazine and Infosecurity Magazine US Edition.

About Executive Alliance

Executive Alliance is recognized worldwide as the premier organization for creating leadership recognition forums that honor and celebrate outstanding achievements of executives in different industries. These forums facilitate deep relationships and provide visibility for executives and their companies while offering access and insight to the key people leading these industries.

Recognized by Morgan Keegan as the largest, most widely recognized awards program for IT security executives, the Executive Alliance ISE Award Program Series includes these regions and cities: Southeast/Atlanta; Central/Dallas; Mid-Atlantic/Washington, DC; United Kingdom/London, England; West/San Francisco; Northeast/New York City; and National/Washington, D.C. Included in the Executive Alliance series is the Data Center Executive of the Year Awards (DaCEY). For more information, visit www.execalliance.com www.infosecaward.com www.datacenterawards.com.