When business landscape changes, young and seasoned professionals are faced with the recurring challenge on how to support and guide their organizations on this journey! To be successful in this directive, the discussions and actions plans must extend beyond the technical goals towards business-centric strategies which align with the vision of the leadership team, the guidance from the board of directors, and expectations of stakeholders and inventors. This is a gap that many technology and information security professionals recognize...but don’t know how to resolve.
What does this mean for their careers and growth prospects?
Join us for an engaging panel discussion with prominent technology and information security leaders on how their MBA (Master of Business Administration) has uniquely positioned them to successfully build this bridge from the Tech Room to the Board Room! If you have often thought about pursuing an MBA or are interested in learning more about how it can help drive forward your career, sign up for this event to connect with past alumni who have completed the program.
The panelists will share personal stories of their thoughts and experiences - why did they enrol in the program, what was the journey like, the impact on their careers and professional development, and others.
The Panel:
● Moderator - Sandeep Sidhu (Visiting Professor, Beedie School of Business, Simon Fraser University)
● Panelists:
Andrew:
Dr. Andrew Gemino is an award-winning teacher who has twice received the Canada Trust Distinguished Teacher award from the Beedie School of Business and also received two teaching awards during his years at the University of British Columbia. Andrew's academic research focuses on information technology project management, business systems analysis and the design of technology-mediated collaborative environments that includes examining how corporate teams can best collaborate using technologies such as instant messaging. Andrew holds a National Sciences and Research Council of Canada (NSERC) grant to study the effective communication of information system requirements. He is also the co-founder of a software company that develops commercial software for professional sports teams in the NHL and NBA, as well as automated employee scheduling for sports and entertainment companies. Andrew also provides his expertise to the Surgeon Information System Working Group for the Provincial Surgical Oncology Council which is affiliated with the BC Cancer Agency. An accomplished bass and piano player, Andrew played for many years in a local rock and roll band, a gig he says was "more than fun".
Greg:
Greg brings over 20 years of experience in technology. For the past decade, Drazenovic has spearheaded the technology initiatives with Canaccord Genuity, a leading independent global investment bank focused on growth companies with operations in 10 countries worldwide with over 1 Bn in annual revenue. As Vice President, Enterprise Infrastructure, Drazenovic is a change agent for the firm and oversees all matters concerning cybersecurity, business continuity, data centres (cloud and on-premises) and automation. Drazenovic earned his MBA from SFU, a degree from BCIT and holds a number of certifications such as CISSP, CISA and CISM.
Sandeep
Sandeep Sidhu’s leadership credo is “I will leave this world a little better than I found it”. Sandeep Sidhu (Grewal) is the Director of Client Services and advisor to the Chief Information Officer at Simon Fraser University (SFU). SFU is Canada's leading comprehensive university with vibrant campuses in British Columbia's largest municipalities - Vancouver, Burnaby and Surrey. Sandeep’s mission is to foster positive relationships, modernize SFU’s systems, and develop effective IT capabilities. Her portfolio includes management of three campuses from developing strong partnership with Academic and Administrative units, Audio Visual technologies, desktop services and operational support.
She is also a Visiting Professor at the Beedie School of Business and Chair of the national Higher Education Special Interest Group including 38 Universities. Sandeep has Masters degrees from both the University of Western Sydney and the University of Canberra and is a graduate from the Beedie CIOCAN Leadership Development Program. Sandeep has chaired several BCNET committees and has hosted the annual BCNET conference. Beyond higher education, Sandeep has over 16 years of consulting experience in the private sector in developing Strategic and services management portfolios across financial institutions, utility sector and government agencies. In her personal life, she enjoys long road trips and American muscle cars.
Theresa
Theresa specializes in advising organizations how to effectively design, implement, and transform their operations in a strategic and business centric manner. As the former head of GRC (Governance Risk Compliance) for notable technology companies such as Cogeco Peer 1 and Hootsuite, she led the cybersecurity, enterprise risk management, and compliance directives for their various business platforms. She is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) and holds an MBA by trade, but has found her passion driving forward compliance and cybersecurity programs from the tech room to the boardroom. Her focus includes strategy planning and execution, accreditation readiness and deployment (such as SOC 1, SOC 2, ISO 27001, PCI DSS, HIPAA, FedRAMP, NIST CSF, and COBIT). In her spare time, Theresa volunteers her expertise towards various professional, community, and humanitarian causes.
Venetia:
Venetia is an Information Security professional in the Market Research Industry. She leads security, compliance and privacy efforts for the Rival Technology’s insight platform. Prior to joining Rival, Verdicchio was Senior Manager, IT Security and Compliance, at Hyperwallet, a Vancouver-based fintech company acquired by PayPal in 2018. Her specialization is governance, risk, and compliance with a focus on data protection and audits, including SOC 2, PCI-DSS, and ISO 27001. Venetia is a graduate of the University of British Columba (BA) and holds an MBA from Simon Fraser University.
The Details:
Lunch is will be served, please contact verdicchio.v@gmail.com with any questions or dietary concerns
*ISACA Members: Please enter your membership ID as a promo code to receive a complimentary ticket to this event.