THE ELECTRIC
SECTOR
BLACK SKY RESILIENCE CONFERENCE

Mike Bryson

Michael Bryson is responsible for PJM’s Operations Division, overseeing 24/7 transmission operations for real-time systems. This includes scheduling, transmission dispatch, generation dispatch, reliability coordination, training and all engineering analysis required to run the system and support the critical energy management systems.

Bryson serves on the board of PJM Technologies Inc. and PJM Repository Information Services Inc. He is also currently serving on the board of Women’s Outreach in Phoenixville, PA. Bryson was formerly on the board of directors of the ReliabilityFirst Corporation and the former chair of the board of Pope John Paul II High School. Bryson is a member of the ISO/RTO Operating Committee as well as past member of the Consortium for Electric Reliability Technology Solutions.

Bryson has nearly 10 years of military experience as a pilot. His responsibilities in the United States Army included operations planning and support, supervision and training of pilots and mechanics, and training and maintenance of tactical computer systems. He was awarded the Bronze Star for Combat Service in Desert Storm.

Bryson earned a Bachelor of Science in general engineering from the United States Military Academy at West Point, NY, focusing on computer science and electrical engineering, and has a Master of Business Administration from Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. Bryson also earned a graduate certificate in power engineering from the Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

Dave Weaver

As Vice President of Transmission Strategy, Weaver oversees the company’s transmission strategy
organization, with responsibility for transmission infrastructure investment, policy, interconnection
contracts, planning and strategy across all the Exelon Operating Companies.
Professional History: Weaver began his career with Exelon in June of 1989, starting with then individual operating company
Delmarva Power, transitioning to PECO and then consolidating to Exelon. As an officer of PECO
overseeing Technical Services, he had responsibility for distribution standards, capacity planning,
project/contract/vegetation management, reliability programs, and capital budget. He has served in
various roles throughout his career in engineering, transmission operations, transmission planning,
project management and business planning. With over 30 years of experience in the utility industry,
Weaver also served as chairperson of the North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC) Planning
Committee. Weaver currently serves as the President of WIRES, a non-profit trade association that
promotes investment in the electric transmission system.
Civic Involvement: Weaver has been involved with supporting MANNA, National MS Society, National Brain Tumor Society
and participating in many community engagement activities. He also served on the board of Philadelphia
Neighborhood Bike Works and serves on the board of Natural Lands.
Education: Weaver received his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Drexel University and is a licensed
professional engineer.

Avi Schnurr

Avi Schnurr is CEO and President f the Electric Infrastructure Security (EIS) Council.
Mr. Schnurr has reviewed severe “Black Sky” hazards to lifeline utilities for a number of state and federal government departments and agencies, including the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy, the National Security Council, Congress, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Department of Homeland Security, among others. He has been a leader in development and coordination of protection strategies for critical national infrastructures, working with senior executives of the nation’s largest power, water, and fuel companies, with other corporate sectors, and with key government and NGO stakeholders.

Mr. Schnurr has provided invited briefings for NATO, the European Union, Parliamentary Committees, government science advisors and energy ministries. He has reviewed U.S. defense policies for the Department of Defense, the White House Homeland Security Council, the National Academy of Sciences, Congress, NATO and a variety of other venues. Until the end of 2004, Avi Schnurr worked for Northrop Grumman’s Space Technology Sector in California, where he had system responsibilities for space payloads and other advanced systems and instruments, and also managed U.S. and international defense programs. He holds a number of patents in laser and optical systems and twice received the corporate Chairman’s Award for Innovation. Avi Schnurr received his M.Sc. Degree in Physics from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of California, San Diego.

Thomas O’Brien

Thomas F. O’Brien is responsible for all activities related to PJM’s Information Technology Services Division and its enterprise information security. He sits on the board of PJM Connext, a subsidiary of PJM.

O’Brien is chair of the Eastern Interconnect Data Sharing Network. He also serves on the boards of Mary’s Shelter, the Utility Employees Credit Union and the Management Executive Council under the auspices of the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center (E-ISAC).

O’Brien is an energy professional with more than 30 years of broad experience in all aspects of the electricity industry. Previously, O’Brien was employed by GPU Energy and FirstEnergy Solutions, leading and participating in deregulation, energy trading and system operations activities.

O’Brien earned his Bachelor of Arts in mathematics with a concentration in computer science from Shippensburg University and a Master of Business Administration from LaSalle University. He completed a certificate program in advanced computer security through the Stanford Center for Professional Development.

Dr. Ehud (Udi) Ganani

Dr. Ehud (Udi) Ganani, as Vice President for Strategic Programs, is responsible for the development, coordination, and management of several key programs: GINOM AI, BSX, Digital Transformation, EIS Academy, and EMP Consulting. All these programs are International.

Udi Ganani is a co-founder of Contguard Ltd., a global maritime container tracking startup. He is also a member of the SPECTRUM Group in Alexandria, VA and a Research Associate in ICT International Institute for Counter-Terrorism at IDC Herzliya.

Previously, Dr. Ganani served in senior management roles in a number of corporations providing high technology solutions for security applications. He was Chief Executive Officer and President of Rabintex Industries Ltd., served as CEO and chairman of TraceGuard Technologies Inc. and chairman of Bird Aerosystems Ltd. He also chaired the public advisory committee for Aerospace, Defense and Homeland Security for the Israeli Export Institute.
Prior to that, Dr. Ganani served as a senior manager in some of Israel’s largest and most important aerospace companies: He served as Chief Executive Officer of Israel Military Industries, Vice President of Marketing and Business Development for Rafael, and headed Rafael’s rocket motors development group.
Dr. Ganani holds a Doctorate of Science in Chemical Engineering from Washington University, St. Louis, MO and a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, Israel.

Yosi Shneck

Yosi Shneck, YSICONS founder, senior consultant, leading the Cyber entrepreneurship and business development at the Israel Electric Corp. He is the CTO of Ginom Inc.
In charge of Cyber entrepreneurship and business development, including R&D, cyber products and services development, support of the IEC’s cyber unit, marketing, and deployment worldwide. Leading the R&D projects and activities in the European research programs for more than ten years, including the FP7 and Horizon 2020 programs.

More than 46 years of experience in computer systems & technologies in utilities, including information systems, scientific applications, supper computing & communication, control systems, infrastructures & architectures, and cyber. In addition to his duties as ITC leader, he was responsible for readying the company against cyber-attack threats, including IT/OT environments. Being accountable for the cyber activity of supercritical infrastructure, Mr. Shneck is involved in many nationwide and international initiatives in this field.

His previous functions in the IEC include SVP Information and Communications and Chief Cyber Officer; Head of Information Systems and Communication Division, CIO; Member of the selection committee for an investor in the new communication infrastructure company; Head of the National Communications and Electronics unit and Deputy of the Information Systems and Teleprocessing Division; Head of R&D computer department.

Mr. Shneck has an M.A. in Business Administration and a B.A. in Computer Sciences.

Dr Chris Beck

Chris Beck is the Chief Scientist and Vice President for Policy at EIS Council, where he has worked since May 2011. He is responsible for the analysis, design, and promotion of critical infrastructure resilience for widespread, long-duration power outages initiated by Black Sky threats.

Dr. Beck is a technical and policy expert in several homeland security and national defense related areas including critical infrastructure protection, cybersecurity, science and technology development, WMD prevention and protection, and emerging threat identification and mitigation. Dr. Beck served as the Subcommittee Staff Director for Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and Science and Technology and was the Senior Advisor for Science and Technology for the House Committee on Homeland Security (CHS), US House of Representatives, where he worked from May 2005 to May 2011. Prior to CHS, he worked in the office of Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez for three years, beginning as a Congressional Science Fellow and then as a legislative assistant.

Before government service, Dr. Beck was a postdoctoral fellow and adjunct professor at Northeastern University. He holds a PhD in physics from Tufts University (2001) and a B.S. in physics from Montana State University (1994). He served in the Marine Corps Reserve for five years (1987 – 1992).

Lihi Rotem Ganani

Lihi joined EIS Council’s leadership team in 2020, serving as the Director of Digital Transformation. She is responsible for managing all the Council’s digital initiatives with the aim of building and growing the international online community, supporting new programs and initiatives. Lihi leads EIS projects related to marketing and branding, is in charge of social content, CRM implementation and the EIS academy.
Prior to joining the Council, Lihi conducted industry analysis and data strategy projects for FANS-LEAGUE, an Israeli mobile gaming start-up.
While living in Madrid, Spain, Lihi worked at the IE Business School, one
of the world’s top business schools. With a skill for creating partnerships and focusing on innovation, she was involved in organizing yearly programs, designing the startup Lab – a startup acceleration program and the Business Impact Lab – an open innovation program. She ran “Challenge weeks”, one week Design Thinking programs with leading corporates and built a marketplace involving SMEs, corporates, and students for innovation-related consulting projects focused on growth.
In Israel, Lihi served as a judicial advisor in the Israeli circuit court and worked for boutique law firms. Lihi holds a BA in Business, an LLB in Law, a Master of Laws (LLM), and an MA in Digital Transformation and Innovation Leadership

Dr.Paul Stockton

Paul Stockton is the President, Paul N Stockton LLC. He served as the assistant secretary of defense for Homeland Defense and Americas’ Security Affairs from May 2009 until January 2013. In that position, he was the secretary of defense’s principal civilian advisor on providing defense support to FEMA and DHS during Superstorm Sandy, Hurricane Irene, and other disasters. Dr. Stockton also served as DOD’s domestic crisis manager and was responsible for Defense Critical Infrastructure Protection policies and programs. In addition, Dr. Stockton served as the executive director of the Council of Governors.

Prior to being confirmed as assistant secretary, Dr. Stockton served as a senior research scholar at Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation and associate provost of the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS). Dr. Stockton was twice awarded the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service, DOD’s highest civilian award. DHS awarded Dr. Stockton its Distinguished Public Service Medal. Dr. Stockton holds a PhD from Harvard University and a BA from Dartmouth College. He is the lead co-author of “Curbing the Market for Cyberweapons” (Yale Law & Policy Review, 2013) and numerous other studies on cybersecurity issues. Dr. Stockton is senior fellow of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory and serves on the boards of Analytic Services, Inc, Idaho National Laboratory, and the Center for Cyber and Homeland Security Studies at the George Washington University.

James B. Robb

James B. Robb assumed the role of NERC’s president and chief executive officer.
In April 2018. Robb oversees NERC’s mission of assuring the reliability and security of the North American bulk power system. As president and CEO, Robb leads the Electric Reliability Organization (ERO) responsible for key programs affecting approximately 1,400 bulk power system users, owners, and operators, including those programs focused on development of mandatory NERC Reliability Standards, the Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement Program, situational awareness, event and risk analysis, reliability assessments and forecasting, and cyber and physical security. He is also responsible for the performance of the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center (E-ISAC) and key government partnerships. As CEO, he is the chair of the ERO Enterprise Executive Committee, which oversees the operations of the six Regional Entities that support the reliability mission across North America. Robb joined the ERO Enterprise in 2013 when he was appointed the president and CEO of the Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC), the Regional Entity serving the Western Interconnection. Robb has more than 35 years of experience in the energy sector as an engineer, a consultant, and a senior executive. Prior to becoming WECC’s CEO, he held three major leadership roles in the industry as Senior Vice President at Northeast Utilities (now Eversource Energy); Senior Vice President at Reliant Energy (now part of NRG Energy); and as a Partner at McKinsey & Company. During his 15-year career at McKinsey, he worked closely with prominent electric power companies in California, western Canada, the Pacific Northwest, and the Rocky Mountain states and served clients in Western Europe, South America, and New Zealand. He has been a frequent speaker at industry events on the evolution of the electric power system, cyber security, integration of variable generation, and the increasing interdependency of electric and natural gas reliability. Robb is a member of the Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council (ESCC) and serves on the United States Energy Association Board as well as a NERC trustee. In 2020 he was appointed Chair of the Group of Experts on Cleaner Energy Systems for the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. He has served on the boards of the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art in Hartford, Connecticut, the Houston Symphony, the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, and as a policy advisor to the Bay Area Economic Forum in San Francisco.
Robb earned a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University in Indiana and a master’s degree in Business Administration from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.

Scott Blevins

Major Scott Blevins (Retired) served nearly 30 years in the Kentucky National Guard. Scott served in the Signal corps throughout his military career and has both hands on and strategic planning experience on a wide array of military tactical and commercial communications equipment. Scott’s assignments included company level command, battalion operations officer, battalion and brigade S6 officer, and communications planner and network operations manager at the Kentucky Joint Forces State Headquarters.
Scott’s expertise in military communications, public safety communications, and commercial data and voice communications makes him an invaluable planner for disaster response planning. During his tenure as the Kentucky National Guard’s Communications Manager, Scott was called upon to assist in planning, providing and restoring communications during numerous floods, tornadoes and other federally declared disasters to include the 2009’s catastrophic statewide ice storm in Kentucky.
In 2016 Scott founded his own Information Technology consulting firm, Leveled Up Inc. to help leaders leverage technology in accomplishing their strategic goals.
Scott holds an MBA from the University of Louisville and a Bachelor of Science degree in Justice Administration from the University of Louisville.

Dr. Rob Spalding, Brig Gen, USAF (Ret)

US Air Force Brigadier General (ret) Robert Spalding is the founder and CEO of SEMPRE, the only technology company created to connect, protect and secure what matters most: information and communication vital to critical infrastructure. Rob is a former White House National Security Council senior director for strategic planning, serving in senior positions of strategy and diplomacy within the Defense and State Departments for more than 26 years. His innovation while serving in the White House has led to a reset in national security and public policy regarding telecommunications in the US as well as globally. Rob is the author of two books, “STEALTH WAR: How China took over while America’s elites slept” and “War Without Rules.”

Paul Williams

Paul Williams is a highly experienced Senior Technology & Operations Resilience Advisor, expert in defining operational resilience strategy that ensures alignment and underpins successful implementation. He currently operates as an Independent Contractor (via Phoenix Resilience Ltd) where he provides Board level strategy, training and advises on cyber and operational resilience, with particular focus on UK Financial Regulations.

Mr. Williams is an industry recognized thought leader in the development of operational resilience strategy. He has held a number of senior Operational Risk & Resilience positions including 8 years at the Bank of England where he established himself as a leading authority in cyber, technology, operational risk & resilience and 3rd party risk management.

Ranger Dorn

Ranger Dorn is the Exercise Coordinator for the EIS Council and has helped with the development and delivery of EARTH EX as well as Black Sky Exercises since 2017. He is a founding member and Managing Partner with Utility Response Training Associates, LLC, providing training and exercises to utilities as well as private and public organizations throughout the US.Ranger served on Regional and National Incident Management Teams from 1997 to 2016, in the positions of Operations Section Chief, Deputy Incident Commander, and Incident Commander, responding to several incidents of national significance. Ranger is a Master Exercise Practitioner – MEP and has developed and delivered exercises from Tabletop to Full Scale nationwide, including evaluating a state response for a National Level Exercise. He has provided ICS training and course development to organizations throughout the US for FEMA, EMI, the National Sheriffs Association, the National Domestic Preparedness Coalition Inc, the US Coast Guard, several large electric, gas, and water utilities, as well as state and local government agencies.

Dr. Sally Leivesley

Dr Sally Leivesley is an advisor to companies and governments on catastrophic risk. She has spoken on ‘Black Hole events’ in previous EIS conferences and to the Baker Institute and is a specialist in the survival of populations, governments and infrastructure under extreme threats including nuclear war, CBRNE, cyber and natural disasters. In recent years she has chaired international scientific meetings on risks of emerging nuclear weapons, Covid-19, infrastructure resilience and hazardous near-earth objects. In the Cold War she trained as a scientific advisor with the British Home Office and exercised in the civil defence bunkers under London on maintaining life and infrastructure across the UK. In Australia she was the first civilian director of a disaster recovery unit and held government appointments for reforms of emergency services and health and safety. She has been contracted on nuclear power plant incidents – TMI, Chernobyl and Fukushima. As an international media commentator for BBC World Service and other news outlets she has commentated on the Chinese spy balloon over USA nuclear missile site, uranium package at London Heathrow airport, cyber;
terrorism; aviation losses; nuclear reactor disasters; Kabul 2021 evacuation; South China Sea; Polonium-210 and Novichok poisonings, Beslan siege; Iran; DPRK; USA Presidential security abroad; Covid-19, unexplained incidents such as MH370 and chemical incidents. Dr Leivesley holds memberships with the Register of Security Engineers and Specialists, IABTI, and RUSI and has authored three international patents in materials to counter explosives and chemicals.

Gil Keini

Founder of KC&M, Trinity Software & Beyond, and Firmitas Cyber Solutions. A Product Management Expert focused on business goals and results.

Gil, is a seasoned Product Management expert, business manager, and innovator having a distinguished track record of working with large multinational companies as customers and partners. Specializing in leading the ideation, design and development of high-throughput, high-load, and high-availability systems, as well as cyber protection of cyber-physical systems and critical infrastructure.

Bringing proven experience that encompasses comprehensive consulting services in product management, business modeling and planning, market and technology analysis, business development, and cybersecurity training. He excels in aligning business strategies with operations management to achieve maximum impact with minimal resources. As a growth-focused thought leader, Gil guides diverse teams in deploying innovative technical projects, establishes strategic partnerships, and drives continuous improvement across business operations.

In his role at Firmitas Cyber Solutions, Gil led the development of innovative cybersecurity solutions to protect mission-critical systems, serving as CEO, CTO, R&D lead, Chief Product Officer, and Sales/Marketing Lead. His leadership in these areas underscores his ability to execute sound decisions in complex environments and drive operational efficiency.

Gil’s core competencies include technology and innovative solutions, machine learning algorithms, executive leadership, project management, data-driven solutions, and R&D management. His exceptional interpersonal, communication, and organizational skills are complemented by expertise in budget management, product development, and resource allocation.

Gil holds an MSc in Molecular Genetics & Cancer Research, bringing a unique scientific perspective to his strategic and technical expertise.

Benj Korson

Benj Korson, CEM, is a Manager of Resilience and Mitigation with IEM’s Homeland Security and Emergency Management Sector, with over eighteen years of emergency management experience ranging from international disaster response operations, spearheading the development of federal response plans, and leading a local Emergency Management Division through a series of severe and catastrophic incidents. Mr. Korson has supported catastrophic preparedness and planning efforts across the nation, including local emergency operations plans, local and federal continuity of operations plans, local and state hazard mitigation plans, utility and energy sector exercises, and regional operations plans, to include long term regional power failure plans and exercises at both the federal and local level. Mr. Korson is focused on working collaboratively on building more resilient communities.

Mary Lasky

Mary D. Lasky is the Executive Vice President for the Foundation for Infrastructure Resilience (FIR) and a member of the InfraGard National Member Alliance Board. She served as Chairman of the InfraGard National Disaster Resilience Council (NDRC) from 2017 through 2023. She is the lead editor and author of “Powering Through: Building Critical Infrastructure Resilience (2021)” looking at threats, impacts, consequences and preventative measures organizations can take for long term power outages and “Powering Through: From Fragile Infrastructure to Community Resilience (2016)” an action guide on being prepared if there is grid failure.

Mary is a Certified Business Continuity Professional (CBCP). She is on the Foundation for Resilient Societies Board of Directors. Mary is serving on the NARUC Emergency Preparedness, Recovery, and Resiliency Task Force and it Black Sky Subcommittee. She is a past president of the Community Emergency Response Network Inc. (CERN) in Howard County, Maryland. While she was president, CERN received two FEMA grants on being prepared for a nuclear attack. She is a Past President of the Central Maryland Chapter of the Association of Contingency Planners (ACP).

Mary has been the Program Manager for Business Continuity Planning for the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) and is currently the senior advisor for the program. At APL, Mary has held a variety of supervisory positions in Information Technology and in business services. For many years, she was adjunct faculty of the Johns Hopkins University Whiting School of Engineering, teaching in the graduate degree program in Technical Management.

She is the recipient of the InfraGard Linda Franklin National Achievement Memorial Award and the FIR Lifetime Achievement Award.

Mary served as president of the APL Woman’s Club from 2007 to 2009. She serves on the Grassroots Crisis Intervention Board of Directors and had previously served on the Grassroots Board and as president from 2014 to 2017.

Christopher M. Pilong

Christopher Pilong, Sr. Director - Operations Planning, is responsible for the Transmission Operations Department, Generation Department and Outage Analysis Technologies Department. These departments perform near-term transmission outage analysis and approvals, generation outage analysis and approvals, annual Black Start Unit commitments, as well as gas-electric coordination, near-term load forecasting, solar forecasting and wind forecasting. The teams also perform seasonal reliability assessments and coordinate directly with the Market Services Division and System Planning Division.
Previously, Pilong worked as the director of the Dispatch Department and was responsible for the oversight of the dispatchers who operate and maintain the reliability of PJM’s portion of the Eastern Interconnection. The team operates the grid in accordance with NERC and PJM policies. In addition, the team oversees the Real-Time Energy and Reserve markets.
Pilong also worked as the manager of the Reliability Engineering Department at PJM performing day-ahead transmission outage analysis, as well as real-time coordination of grid activities with neighboring RTOs and ISOs.
Pilong has a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering from Lehigh University and a Master of Business Administration from Villanova University.

Rob Schwartz

Rob Schwartz is the former President, CEO, and Director of Anterix (NASDAQ: ATEX), where he led the company’s transformation into the nation’s leader in private wireless broadband communications for critical infrastructure, with a focus on electric utilities.
With over 30 years of leadership experience in telecommunications and energy, As CEO of Anterix, Rob drove the innovative approach that resulted in utility partnerships across the nation, and a vibrant ecosystem of over 100 companies providing critical solutions and applications that leverage these broadband private wireless networks. He founded the Utility Broadband Alliance (UBBA), now the leading utility-led forum for private broadband networks.
He serves on the boards of the Keystone Energy Board, Massachusetts Energy Transformation Advisory Board. Rob holds degrees from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and The George Washington University School of Government & Business Administration. He has received multiple industry honors, including the Keystone Leadership Award and the Utility Broadband Alliance Chairman’s Award.

Davison Scott

High-Altitude Electromagnetic Pulse (HEMP/HAEMP) Design, shielding and assessment:
• Power Grid/Substation Hardening
• Military Command and Control Facilities
• Critical Infrastructure/Civil Infrastructure Hardening
• Industrial Infrastructure Hardening
• HEMP hardened Electrical and Backup Power Generation
• HEMP-hardened Generator/Battery/Inverter Systems
• HEMP-hardened Mechanical/Filtration Systems
• HEMP-hardened underground bunker facilities
• Shield Effectiveness Testing

Hospital and Medical Research EMI/EMF Engineering, Shielding, and Assessment Services
Davidson is and has been the EMI Engineer-of-Record for dozens of projects in this domain

EMI/RFI for Nanotechnology/Semiconductor/Research Facilities:
The Next-Generation of Nanotechnology, Semiconductor/Research facilities require new electromagnetic field abatement approaches and mitigation standards to ensure the full-capability of Next-Gen tools is assured.

Radio-Frequency Assessment and Safety Services (RFI/EMI):
Davidson brings vast experience working on this issue, and has been the engineer of record for RFI/EMI for high-profile projects (GSA Rooftop RF Safety Assessments, World Trade Center). Davidson has developed Assessment tools and 3-D modeling to provide state-of-the-art in compliance and RF engineering and RF exposure

Technical Project Management
Davidson is also an experienced project manager. A successful PM knows that project management goes beyond a detailed Gantt Chart – rather it requires a fully-resourced, costed, and accountable process that is constantly updated. With highly technical elements of projects that involve electromagnetic or other abstract physical elements, it is easy for architects and facility designers and planners to lose control over key parts of a project. Davidson can assist in these situations and bring PM plans back into control.

Kevin E. Jackson

Kevin E. Jackson is a visionary CEO, Chief information Security Officer (CISO), and cybersecurity entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience as a technologist and security practitioner. He is the founder and CEO of Level 6 Cybersecurity, producer of a revolutionary, industry-specific predictive intelligence platform for cybersecurity strategists. Kevin is a business management leader with a diverse background in information systems development and integration, hardware/software engineering, management consulting, IT infrastructure management, compliance management, and general project management. Kevin is experienced in both government and commercial sectors including pharmaceuticals, finance, defense, healthcare, electric power utilities, manufacturing, telecommunications, and academia. A happily married father of five, Kevin resides in southwest Ohio and enjoys writing novels and playing music (guitar and drums) in his spare time.

Ron Carstens

Ron Carstens, Director – Utility Performance Assessment, provides oversight of the performance of the natural gas and electric maintenance and operations units. His team is responsible for the implementation of best practices and tools to drive performance improvement and shared practices across the Exelon OpCo's.
Previously, Ron was the Director – Distribution System Operations at Baltimore Gas & Electric Company, that included the Operations Control Center (OCC), Outage Management (OMU), Emergency Preparedness (EP), Consolidated Dispatch (gas, electric, and customer), and Emergency Response (field - gas first responders).
Ron has also held various other leadership roles at BGE in the Field & Meter Services, Customer Planning, Electric Distribution System & Reliability Planning, Project Management, Field Resource Management, and Customer Reliability Assurance organizations.
Ron earned a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Maryland and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Baltimore. He is a Professional Engineer in Maryland and retired-PMP.

Curtis Ivins

Curt is head of PCS, LLC after retiring from a full career in the U.S. Army as a senior Military Intelligence officer. His extensive professional and educational background with Masters in both Intelligence and Emergency Management enables his leadership of PCS, founded in June 2023 with a focus and passion for the safety, security and well-being of communities in a high-risk & complex modern era. PCS has excelled in a focus on Critical Infrastructure Security-Centric and All-Hazards Resiliency, especially within the Energy Sector, and as active participants in EIS, NCEMA, DRI, IAEM, INFRAGARD, FIR, and BCI.

Timothy Schwarz

Tim has been working in the EMS SCADA and Advanced Application space for the past 15 years. He has worked on multiple EMS projects including Exelon's EMS Consolidation project to the OSI platform that commissioned in 2020. He currently manages the Exelon team that maintains the EMS database, displays, network model, and advanced applications. Tim has a BSEE from Bucknell, an MBA from Maryland and is a licensed Professional Engineer in DE and DC.

Susan Ginsburg

Susan Ginsburg is the co-founder and CEO of Criticality Sciences, Inc., delivering resilience metrics and mitigation software and services to critical infrastructure providers. A lawyer, she previously served as Senior Counsel and Team Leader on the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (9/11 Commission), on the Homeland Security Quadrennial Review Advisory Committee, and on the Rice-Chertoff Secure Borders Open Doors Advisory Committee. She served as Chief of Staff to the Undersecretary for Enforcement at the Department of the Treasury, and in prior roles at the Department of State, US House of Representatives, and as a Law Clerk to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit as well as practicing law. She has testified numerous times in the Senate and House and published books and articles on national and homeland security. She serves on the American Bar Association’s Standing Committee on Law and National Security, the Executive Committee of CIGRE, and the Emergency Preparedness and Security Committee of the American Water Works Association.

Tag Short

Tag Short joined Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) in July 2006 and has held various pivotal roles within the organization. Currently serving as a Consulting Advisor in External Affairs – South Region, he previously held the position of Director of Balancing, Generation, and Interchange Operations for the MISO Balancing Authority Area. His extensive experience includes serving as the Director of Operations and External Affairs Liaison, as well as nearly five years as the Director of South Region Operations based in Little Rock, AR, where he oversaw Reliability Coordination and Reliability Support Engineering. Throughout his tenure at MISO, Tag has held various control room positions, allowing him to develop a comprehensive understanding of the complexities of power system operations, making him a respected figure in the industry.
 Prior to joining MISO, Tag dedicated 20 years to PSI Energy/Cinergy/Duke Energy, all in System Operations, progressively taking on roles of greater responsibility and ultimately advancing to supervisory positions. Tag has nearly four decades of industry experience.
Tag has served various working groups at SERC: Former Chair of the Reliability Coordinator Working Group and a former member of the Reliability Risk Working Group.
At MISO, he’s been the operations representative for the North American Transmission Forum, MISO’s liaison for both the Reliable Operations Working Group and the Electric & Natural Gas Coordinated Task Force (sunset).

Dr. Ronen Hoffman

Accomplished academic, public figure, manager, diplomat, and entrepreneur with extensive expertise in organizational leadership, think-tanks management, community relations,leadership and resilience development, education, international relations, and public policy.

Notable positions include serving as Ambassador of Israel to Canada, Member of Knesset and the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Co-Founder and Founding General Director of the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism, Director of the Herzliya Conference, Personal Aide to Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, Advisor to the Minister of Defense, and Coordinator of the Israeli delegation to peace negotiations with Syria.

Founder of Kimama Educational Programs (Kimama Camps) and developer of the ELI (Exploration, Leadership & Innovation) program at Tel Aviv University.

Craig Glazer

Steven E. Bieber

Steve Bieber is Water Resources Program Director for the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG). Mr. Bieber manages COG’s water resources programs including the regional Anacostia Restoration Partnership, the Blue Plains Intermunicipal Agreement, water quality programs, water security programs, drought management, long term infrastructure planning, and other environmental programs for local governments and utilities in the Washington, DC area. He has more than 30 years of experience working in the water sector and has been with COG since 2003.

Mr. Bieber is an active volunteer, serving on the Board of Directors for the Faith Based ISAO and as a past President of the Board of Directors for InfraGard National Capital Region.

Mr. Bieber holds a B.S. in Zoology from Michigan State University, an M.S. in Oceanography from Old Dominion University, and an MPA degree from the University of Baltimore.