Leadership

Dr. Soloman Almadi is currently a professional engineering principal scientist in OT cybersecurity, process control systems, digital transformation programs and open process automation at Saudi Aramco. Dr. Almadi holds a PhD in simulation and computing. He is an inventor who is credited for over 25 inventions and technology game changer for which he received different regional/international awards and recognitions. In addition, he has published over 50 papers and was elevated to Fellow by the International Society of Automation in 2024 for his significant contributions in the automation and cybersecurity profession. Dr. Almadi also serves on the executive board of the International Society of Automation. He is also adjunct professor and research advisor at the King Fahad University of Petroleum Engineering where he teaches graduate courses in cybersecurity, IIoT and digital transformation. 

 

Marco Ayala has over 28 years of experience where he designed, implemented and maintained process instrumentation, automation systems, safety systems and process control networks. With around two decades focused specifically on industrial cybersecurity, he has led efforts to secure the oil and gas (all streams), maritime port, offshore facilities, and chemical sectors, supporting federal, local, and state entities for securing the private sector. Marco is highly active in the International Society of Automation and is a longtime member. He is a 22-year Senior Member and a certified cyber instructor for ISA (ISA/IEC 62443) with volunteering commitments and contributor to the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Area Maritime Security Committee (AMSC) Gulf of America (Mexico) cybersecurity committee in a sworn-in role to the USCG as Chair of Threat Intelligence and Cybersecurity for the outer continental shelf (OCS). Marco is an InfraGard member since 2014, and currently serving as the President for the Houston Members Alliance.

Alan Bryant has enthusiasm for solving problems and managing projects in the energy sector. His career began in Midland, Texas, where he discovered the impact of automation strategies on productivity and data quality. Over the years, he has led significant multidiscipline projects and the development of alarm management programs. He has also been instrumental in advocating for and implementing company-wide standards to improve downtime and operational costs globally. 

Outside of his fieldwork, Alan is dedicated to shaping the future of automation standards, serving as a voting member on ISA standards committees. His professional skills include project management, automation, alarm management and developing technical standards, with domain knowledge in PLCs, DCS, instrumentation and SCADA.

Alexa Burr is a service-oriented executive with wide-ranging government relations and policy advocacy expertise. Ms. Burr has a proven record of advancing regulatory and trade policy priorities in national and global forums. Ms. Burr is currently the founder and president of a boutique consulting firm, ASB Global Strategic Advisors LLC. Ms. Burr and the firm specialize in strategy development and execution, fostering strategic relationships both domestically in the U.S. and internationally to help clients successfully navigate complex global markets.   

Prior to establishing ASB Global Strategic Advisors LLC, Ms. Burr was the vice president of standards & segment services in the Global Industry Services (GIS) Division at the American Petroleum Institute (API). Ms. Burr’s responsibilities included overseeing the strategic direction of API’s standards development, global engagement, safety programs, statistics department, and its intellectual property and distribution arm. In the role, Ms. Burr developed, directed and implemented strategies to grow international relationships and API offerings.  

Prior to API, Ms. Burr worked at the American Chemistry Council in various roles where she oversaw the strategic direction of Responsible Care® program and led international advocacy efforts on a range of issues.

Francisco Diaz-Andreu has worked for Repsol, an oil and gas company in Spain, for many years. He was the chair of the instrumentation and control department in the engineering division of the company and has also worked as a procurement director. 

Nick Erickson is a strategy-oriented leader with extensive experience in process measurement and control solutions built upon business partnerships. Currently, he serves as a Technical Account Manager at AWC, Inc. in St. Louis where he focuses on developing business plans and expanding customer relationships in the automation and controls sector. Previously, Nick held key roles at Mead O’Brien, Inc., including Operations Director, where he was responsible for all IT and ERP systems and support, customer Project Management, and sales support initiatives. 

With a strong background in sales engineering, Nick has consistently driven growth and solution-oriented action across various industries. He holds dual Bachelor's degrees in Business Administration and Information Systems from Maryville University. Nick is actively involved with industry-oriented professional organizations: the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering, as well as both the International Society of Automation and Master Brewers Association of the Americas where he has held multiple leadership positions. 

Colleen Goldsborough recently became an industry sales manager for United Electric Supply, where she has worked for over 12 years. Prior to this role, Colleen was a sales engineer for 10 years working with customers from end users, OEMs and Integrators in many different markets, including, but not limited to, water/wastewater, food and beverage, oil and gas and process and control. 

Sherry is a product manager for cloud-based design software at Rockwell Automation. Previously, she was a control systems engineer in RA’s customer project delivery organization, and received an undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering from Cleveland State University. Her ISA involvement has included chairing the Young Professional Committee and serving on the boards of the Cleveland section and Process Measurement and Control Division.

David Lee has nearly 40 years of industrial experience. In his early career he held positions in automation engineering and operations management. Since then, he has worked predominantly as an operator performance consultant and is currently president of User Centered Design Services.

Robert M. Lee is a recognized authority on industrial cybersecurity. He is CEO and co-founder of Dragos, a leader in cybersecurity for operational technology (OT) environments. Robert is a member of the World Economic Forum's subcommittees on Cyber Resilience for the Oil & Gas and Electricity communities. He has testified to Congress on critical infrastructure cyber threats. He is a member on the Reserve Forces Policy Board and the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and he serves on the National Cryptologic Foundation board. Robert began his pioneering work in OT cybersecurity as a U.S. Air Force Cyber Warfare Operations Officer tasked to the National Security Agency. For the SANS Institute, he built some of the industrial community's first cybersecurity courses and is a SANS Fellow. Early in his career he helped lead the investigation into the 2015 attack on Ukraine's power grid, the first electric system taken down by a cyberattack.

Mary Riedel graduated from GMI Engineering & Management Institute with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and a minor in Computer Science. She started her career in the automotive industry as an electrical/manufacturing engineer with Delphi Interior and Lighting Systems. From there she was a controls engineer for four years with Advanced Assembly Automation who designed and built custom assembly and test systems. She has been with her current employer, Martin Control Systems, Inc. for 23 years, where her roles have included controls engineer, project manager, business development and administrative director. In her current role, she oversees human resources, finance, legal and contracts, IT, and complete all day-to-day financial requirements of the company, and maintains several key client relationships and proposal development. She is active in the automation community volunteering with ISA and CSIA.

Megan Samford is responsible for driving the security strategy across products within Schneider Electric’s Energy Management business. In taking her role at Schneider Electric, Megan became the first female CPSO for a major industrial without first being a CISO. Prior to joining Schneider Electric, she led product safety and security programs at GE and Rockwell Automation. Before joining the private sector, Megan served as Virginia’s Critical Infrastructure Protection Coordinator for Governors Tim Kaine and Bob McDonnell. She is the current Chair of the DHS Control Systems Working Group Incident Management Sub-Working Group, ISA Board Member, and founder of the ICS4ICS public-private partnership. 

Sujata is a recognized expert in IIoT and Industry 4.0. An instrumentation and control engineer from College of Engineering, Pune, Sujata has more than 30 years of experience. She has worked with Alfa Laval and KPIT before founding Ascent Intellimation. Under her leadership, AIPL has developed an innovative IIoT platform, PlantConnect.  

Sujata has wide ranging experience industrial automation, environmental monitoring, smart manufacturing and digital transformation. As an evangelist of her chosen field, Sujata’s focus is to help organizations recognize and embrace diverse ways in which technology and data can be used to become efficient and competitive. Sujata is associated with various engineering colleges as industry advisor. She regularly speaks at conferences and writes in technical magazines. Sujata’s work has been recognized with numerous national and international awards.

Jeff Winter is the VP of Business Strategy for Critical Manufacturing. With almost 20 years of experience working for different industrial automation product and solution providers, Jeff has a unique ability to simplify and communicate complex concepts to a wide range of audiences, educating and inspiring people from the shop floor up to the executive board room. Jeff is also highly active in the Industry 4.0 community. He serves on the Executive Board for International Society of Automation (ISA), the International Board of Directors for MESA (Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Association), a U.S. registered expert for the IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) as a member of TC 65 and as a Smart Manufacturing Advisor to CESMII.