Overview
The digital transformation of the energy industry has been accelerating and is seen as the key to increasing reliability and efficiency and making energy more affordable. The emergence of smart grids, the digital oil field and the data analytics driven sustainability enterprises across the energy sector are critical to the growth of a modern global economy. Cyber threats, especially ones that can result in significant loss of physical assets, financial loss and data theft, remain a persistent challenge that will grow with the expanding digital transformation of the industry. The development of best practices especially inspired by leading industry such as finance and defense, advances in technology and most importantly the education pathways for skilled talent and executives will be the topic of the half-day symposium.
Keynote Speaker
Alex Phillips, CIO, NOV
Alex Philips is the Global Chief Information Officer at National Oilwell Varco (NOV). He is responsible for overseeing all aspects of Information Technologies, Systems, Applications and Security in support of NOV’s business plan and strategic goals. Alex joined National Oilwell Varco in 1997 as an IT Implementation Engineer and subsequently held roles as IT Infrastructure Manager, Director IT Security, and most recently Chief Information Security Officer. He successfully led the IT integration of 300+ acquisitions while the company grew from 4,200 to 35,000+ computer users. Alex has a Master’s of Business Administration and Management from Rice University. He serves on various Customer Advisory Boards for vendors that NOV has collaborated with.
Keynote Speaker
Robert Smith, National and Homeland Security, Idaho National Laboratory
Best Practices and Cybersecurity Value Chain Panel
Panel Description:
Cybersecurity application in various industries and economic segments are varied and best practices for their implementation not only reflect different maturities of the industries but also the nuances of each application. This panel discussion will highlight the cybersecurity challenges in a range of industries and applications and the best practices towards their implementation.
Moderator:
- Arthur Conklin, Associate Professor, Information System Security, University of Houston
Panelists:
- Marty Edwards, Director of Strategic Initiatives, International Society of Automation
- Jonathan Pollet, Founder & CEO, Red Tiger Security
- Stuart Wagner, Sr. Dir., IT Security & Compliance, Enterprise Products
- Bryan Owens, Principal Cyber Security Manager, OSIsoft
Cybersecurity in the Energy Industry Panel
Panel Description:
Cybersecurity for the various elements of the energy industry are being aggressively constructed and implemented. While some of the most significant disruptions have targeted the electric grid and the private networks of oil and gas producers, opportunities to harden the full value chain of oil and gas energy production and distribution as well as downstream refining and electric power generation and transmission. These various aspects of the energy industry and the implementation of cybersecurity will be discussed.
Moderator:
- Chris Bronk, Assistant Professor, Information System Security, University of Houston FORBES BLOG
Panelists:
- Rebekah Mohr, Security Manager, Accenture Security
- Chris Spirito, Nuclear Cybersecurity Consultant, Idaho National Laboratory
- Greg Rogers, Sr. Director, Pipeline and Facility Control Systems, Enterprise Products
- Tyler Williams, External Innovation & New Venture Development, Shell
Education and Training Opportunities Panel
Panelists:
- Arthur Conklin, Associate Professor, Information System Security, University of Houston
- Aron Lazka, Assistant Professor, Computer Science, University of Houston
- Claudia Neuhauser, Associate Vice President/Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Technology Transfer, University of Houston