CISO Think Tank

Dynamic and results-driven IT and Cybersecurity professional with a proven track record in risk management, compliance assurance, third-party security, and governance. Adept at building high-performing teams and implementing innovative technology compliance programs. Experienced in leading audits for global organizations, ensuring adherence to industry standards and regulations such as PCI DSS, SOC1, SOC2, ISO 27001, ITSOX, and GDPR. Skilled in developing information security policies, risk management, third-party security, and driving positive change. Holds certifications including CISA, CDPSE, and PCI Internal Self Assessor. Currently serving as Head of Technology & Cybersecurity Risk and Compliance Assurance at DoorDash, driving impactful decision-making and building scalable programs.

Mr. Richard Rushing is the Chief Information Security Officer for Motorola Mobility LLC.; Richard participates in several corporate, community, private, and government Security Council’s and working groups setting standards, policies, and solutions to current and emerging security issues. As Chief Information Security Officer for Motorola Mobility, he has led the security effort by developing an international team to tackle the emerging threats of mobile devices, targeted attacks, and cyber-crime. He organized developed and deployed practices, tools and techniques to protect the intellectual property across the worldwide enterprise. A much-in-demand international speaker on information security Richard has presented at many leading security conferences and seminars around the world.

Founded in 1906, Ingredion together with its subsidiaries, refines corn and produces sweeteners and starches. The company also provides animal feed products; edible corn oil; refined corn oil to packers of cooking oil and to producers of margarine, salad dressings, shortening, mayonnaise, and other foods; and corn gluten feed used as protein feed for chickens, pet food, and aquaculture. The company is headquartered in Westchester, Illinois.

Nitin has 25+ years of experience in performing IT, Security and Risk leadership roles for various organizations and serves as a global advisor tasked with prioritizing and evaluating trade-offs and conflicts among various security initiatives within the realm of ThoughtWorks businesses. Proven leadership with key skills like security governance, compliance, budgeting, hiring, risk management, project management, mentoring, negotiation, and problem-solving skills demonstrated throughout his career. Expert in translating between technical and business contexts; people, processes, technical aspects of technology, and in assisting organizations delivering effective, secure, and business-enabling solutions. Stakeholders/CxO advisory experience in IT/ITes organizations. Customer-focused and strategic mentality. Problem-solving and process-oriented. Nitin holds a Bachelor's degree (B.S) in Electronics engineering and Masters (PGDIT) in Information technology. He also holds the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Certified Information Security Manager (CISM) industry certifications and Board Qualified Technology Executive (QTE).

Erik Hart oversees global information security for Cushman & Wakefield, one of the world’s largest commercial real estate services firms. A recognized thought leader with more than 20 years of experience in providing information security services to various industries and organizations, he also serves in an advisory role for numerous companies and organizations in the information security field, including Mimecast, CrowdStrike, InfraGard Chicago Members Alliance and Western Illinois University. Before joining Cushman & Wakefield in 2018, he served as CISO and Director of IT Risk Management for Zebra Technologies, a provider of mobile, logistics and point-of-sale technology and systems to retail, health care, transportation, manufacturing and other industries. Erik earned his Bachelors from Western Illinois University and Masters from Western Governors University.

Cole Sinkford the Global CISO at Globalfoundries Inc. Prior to this he was GE Renewable Energy’s Global Chief Information and Product Cyber Security Officer, responsible for cybersecurity across the organization. In this role, he is responsible for all aspects of cybersecurity strategy and operations for Renewable Energy products and enterprise. Prior to his current role, Cole served as the Deputy Chief Information Security officer of Renewable Energy, establishing Renewables’ standalone Cybersecurity capabilities. Prior to that, Cole spent 3 years as part of GE’s Corporate Audit Staff, leading numerous projects and audits across the Digital Technology and business environments. Cole began his career as an Aviation DTLP located in Cincinnati, OH and now resides in Chicago, IL. Cole holds a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati.

Innovative executive that has experience making sound business decisions and can think rationally in difficult situations. Visualizes the big picture and provides proper context and perspective tailored for the target audience. Clearly articulates the mission, standards, and priorities to achieve strategic and tactical objectives.

Information Security executive with 20+ years of direct experience under DoD/Active Duty related duties and private sector. Expert in Strategic and Operational Information Security program design, measurement and execution. Certified Information Security Professional (CISSP) Certified Information Security Manager (CISM) Sans Security professional (GSEC) Masters Degree in Security management (MSM) Goals are to provide the absolute best security service to my company. To provide guidance, knowledge gained through experience to my staff and peers.

An exceptional, multifaceted, global executive, strategist and technology expert who has transformed companies in a variety of industries, including the New York Stock Exchange. Award-winning Chief Information and Technology Officer with deep experience on many boards and in university classrooms. • Versed in the latest advances in technology software and hardware. • Brings a multidisciplinary perspective and imagination to transforming industries from the bottom up in complex and highly competitive industries. • A visionary leader who often breaks free of conventional thinking and encourages others to do the same to create innovative strategies. • Valued for the exceptional ability to utilize existing and find new, substantial ways to use technology to improve and impact businesses, achieve company goals, reduce costs and develop people. • A creative problem-solver who generates first-in-industry business initiatives. Leader and manager of highly successful teams, who inspires and motivates people to perform at their highest levels. • Trusted advisor to top management. • A clear, persuasive communicator skilled at cultivating and fostering partnerships. • Extensive experience teaching university-level computer science courses. • Government clearance from major federal security, intelligence and law enforcement agencies for addressing cybersecurity/counter-terrorism issues.

Genuine Cable Group (GCG) is a major value-added distributor of wire, cable, and related products to a variety of niche markets, including Industrial Automation, Building Infrastructure, Communications and Industrial OEM. GCG also has cable assembly operations and is proud to be a leading wire and cable provider to the U.S. Navy.

Ken Kazinski is the manager of Abbott Laboratories Attack Surface Management team and has over twenty years of experience in the field of cybersecurity. His current cybersecurity focus is in application security, which is enhanced with his substantial knowledge of system security in both government regulated and non-regulated industries. These environments have provided him with a deep contextual understanding on the impact of security in a variety of organizational environments. In his role at Abbott, Ken provides leadership, program vision, and integration guidance on attack surface areas, including Threat and Vulnerability Management, Application Security, Cloud Security, Mobility, and Brand Reputation. As an Air Force veteran with a Master of Science in Cybersecurity, Ken has used both his professional and educational experience to create critical application security programs at multiple Fortune 100 companies. Prior to joining Abbott, Ken managed application security for Johnson Controls, Power Solutions division. His professional and military experience has provided him with the opportunity to work and live in multiple countries around the world.

Joined Health Care Service Corporation, the nation’s largest customer owned health insurer offering Blue Cross Blue Shield plans in Illinois, Montana, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Texas, in September of 2017 as DVP Information Security Architecture and Design. In this role, John was responsible for driving the future state Cyber Security Architecture with a focus on securely enabling HCSC’s use of the public cloud for sensitive workloads, overall modernization of HCSC’s Member facing and Enterprise Identity & Access Management products and enhancements to Cyber Defense capabilities. Promoted to Deputy CISO / Head of Information Security for Health Care Service Corporation (HCSC) in Fall of 2021. John is responsible for delivering a fiscally responsible and pragmatic Information Security program that securely enables the HCSC enterprise, systems development entities, and strategic initiatives. He is an Information Services Security thought leader with over twenty-five years combined experience with Fortune 500 firms in life sciences, healthcare and consumer products industries. Actively participates on Executive Customer Advisory Boards and Healthcare Industry Executive Leadership forums. John has a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Temple University and holds CISSP certification.

Arun DeSouza is an award-winning thought leader with more than two decades of experience in global security leadership and organizational transformation. Working as CISO, DeSouza's areas of expertise include strategic planning, risk management, identity management, cloud computing, and privacy. DeSouza has also earned numerous industry accolades, including Top Global CISO by Cyber Defense Magazine, Top 10 InfoSec Professional by OnCon, and induction into the CISO Hall of Fame by the global Cyber Startup Observatory. Arun DeSouza's proven ability to set the strategic direction for security within the organization aligns with enterprise stakeholders to build strategic roadmaps and implement flexible security solutions.

Dr. Eric Chan-Tin is an associate professor in the Department of Computer Science and the Founding Director of the Loyola Center for Cybersecurity and Privacy at Loyola University Chicago. He received his Ph.D. degree from the University of Minnesota and his B.A. from Macalester College. His research areas are in network security, distributed systems, privacy, anonymity, and at the intersection of cybersecurity and social sciences. He has received over $5.5 million in funding from federal agencies such as NSF, NSA, and DoD, and from industry partners such as Motorola Solutions Foundation, Dr. Scholl Foundation, and Halliburton. He has published over 45 peer-reviewed papers. In 2020, he was recognized as a Master Researcher. He has given multiple talks at national and international academic and industry conferences.

As an entrepreneur, he landed in the world of technology and software development when he became a partner in the company MediaPost Email Marketing. Despite his degree in Law, he specialized in Digital Marketing, Ecommerce Management, User Experience (UX), Digital Product Leadership & Product Management (PM), Growth Marketing, Data Analytics and, more recently, in Management of Exponential Business (XBA). As the CMO of senhasegura since 2018, he leads the brand's internationalization project in more than 50 countries, focusing on North America (USA), Europe (DACH) and the Middle East. He is also a speaker (Digitalks 2017/18/19; SEBRAE; Gartner IAM - Las Vegas - & Gartner Symposium - Orlando - USA 2022/23; Think Tank NYC and Chicago 2023; Cybersecurity Summit Brazil 2023; and etc) and a teacher (Comschool; Mirago; FATEC; etc.).

Grant Ecker is the Founder and Chairman of the Chief Architect Forum, and most recently the Vice President Chief Enterprise Architect at Danaher where he partnered closely with the architects across the company to lead strategy development, establish technology standards and to identify opportunities for modernization and transformation.  Prior to Danaher, Grant was the VP, Global Head of Architecture at Walgreens Boots Alliance, and he held a similar role at Medtronic. Earlier in Grant’s career he held architecture and management roles with expanding responsibility at Lowe’s and General Mills.  Grant is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach, he received an MBA from University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management, and his BS in Computer Science from Washington University in St. Louis.  Grant is a board member of the Women in Architecture initiative and he holds various board advisory roles out of Chicago, Illinois. Please connect with Grant at

Dr. Fred Kwong has been in the information security and technology field for the past 20+ years in working in education, financial, telecommunication, healthcare, and insurance sectors. He is an award-winning thought leader in security and currently works at DeVry University where he currently serves as the VP and Chief Information Security Officer. He is a member of several advisory boards and is a frequent speaker at national security forums on cyber security and information technology and is often asked to consult on matters of security and leadership. In addition to working at DeVry, Fred serves as a Board member at the DuPage Habitat for Humanity and a Board member and Director of Communications at Chicago Infragard. He received his Bachelor of Arts in psychology and professional communications, Master of Business Administration in management information systems from Roosevelt University and holds his Doctorate in organization development from Benedictine University. Fred has earned several certifications including the CISSP, CISA, CISM, CDPE, PCIP, PMP and ITILv3f.

Casey Collins has been an entrepreneur and software executive for over 18 years. Earlier in his career, he founded, developed, and exited two companies responsible for manufacturing and distributing mobile applications in the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. For the past 7 years, he has served in a variety of commercial and sales leadership roles at AppDynamics, a Cisco Company, and Zscaler. He co-founded EliteOps in 2023 to help the world's best companies become more proactive, agile, and resilient in the areas of network security, cloud security, and secure data optimization and visibility.

Grant Ecker is the Founder and Chairman of the Chief Architect Forum, and most recently the Vice President Chief Enterprise Architect at Danaher where he partnered closely with the architects across the company to lead strategy development, establish technology standards and to identify opportunities for modernization and transformation.  Prior to Danaher, Grant was the VP, Global Head of Architecture at Walgreens Boots Alliance, and he held a similar role at Medtronic. Earlier in Grant’s career he held architecture and management roles with expanding responsibility at Lowe’s and General Mills.  Grant is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach, he received an MBA from University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management, and his BS in Computer Science from Washington University in St. Louis.  Grant is a board member of the Women in Architecture initiative and he holds various board advisory roles out of Chicago, Illinois. Please connect with Grant at

An exceptional, multifaceted, global executive, strategist and technology expert who has transformed companies in a variety of industries, including the New York Stock Exchange. Award-winning Chief Information and Technology Officer with deep experience on many boards and in university classrooms. • Versed in the latest advances in technology software and hardware. • Brings a multidisciplinary perspective and imagination to transforming industries from the bottom up in complex and highly competitive industries. • A visionary leader who often breaks free of conventional thinking and encourages others to do the same to create innovative strategies. • Valued for the exceptional ability to utilize existing and find new, substantial ways to use technology to improve and impact businesses, achieve company goals, reduce costs and develop people. • A creative problem-solver who generates first-in-industry business initiatives. Leader and manager of highly successful teams, who inspires and motivates people to perform at their highest levels. • Trusted advisor to top management. • A clear, persuasive communicator skilled at cultivating and fostering partnerships. • Extensive experience teaching university-level computer science courses. • Government clearance from major federal security, intelligence and law enforcement agencies for addressing cybersecurity/counter-terrorism issues.