Two Years In: How SIA RISE Propelled My Career in the Security Industry

Being involved with SIA RISE has been immeasurable to my career in the security industry. I’m still pretty new to the industry, two years in, but I’ve gotten immense value being involved with RISE. 

How I Got to the Security Industry 

To understand how I got here, I’ll give you a little glimpse of the journey. I’ve spent most of my career mainly in the health care IT and B2B software as a service space serving in consulting, project/program management, customer success, account management and outside sales roles. Truth be told, I was getting a little burned out with health care IT and needed a new challenge. 

We were a couple of years into the COVID-19 pandemic, and my wife and I had a major life shift with the birth of our son. 

Fast forward to spring 2023, and I was looking for a new challenge but didn’t know where to start. What happened next felt like the plot to the sequel of the movie Serendipity. I received a call from a recruiter for Evolv, a company based in Waltham, Massachusetts, outside of Boston, that specializes in concealed artificial intelligence weapons detection to keep spaces safe. This felt like a perfect fit, especially since I now had a toddler who had recently learned to walk. 

I don’t come from the industry or traditional security backgrounds like the military or law enforcement, so I hadn’t given the physical security industry much thought until that point; however, after having a child, I constantly thought about security and keeping my child safe. What better way to be part of the solution than to join a company and industry helping keep people (especially our younger generations) safe?

Fast forward again to today, where I do outside sales for a Midwest-based systems integrator called ECC (Electronic Contracting Company), partnering with security leaders to help keep their spaces safe. Our company recently became a new member of the Security Industry Association (SIA) this spring. And while my ECC colleagues have been going to ISC West for 10+ years, I had never been. 

Three Ways I Got Involved with SIA RISE

1. ISC West: This year, I finally attended my first ISC West. The event could be overwhelming at times, but I truly loved my experience, from the education sessions to reconnecting with old colleagues to the trade show floor and even the Gin Blossoms concert! But my favorite part of ISC West was getting involved with SIA RISE with the RISE and Grind networking coffee event and the RISE to Service charitable dinner event. I realized coming into ISC West that I didn’t know many folks in the industry and made it a point to connect with as many people as I could. 
2. TIME Program: I’m honored to have been chosen to the Talent Inclusion Mentorship Education (TIME) as a mentee this year. Shout out to my mentor, Colin DePree, from Salto Systems. He’s an incredible leader and exudes positivity, and I leave with new learnings and takeaways after every session. We mainly talk about role-based topics (I’m in sales), but he’s dished out some pretty great career advice as well, like a security Steve Nash. If you’ve made it this far, please apply to be in the TIME program next year! It’s well worth it. 
3. AcceleRISE: I attended my first AcceleRISE in August, and the event exceeded my expectations. I thought it would be like any old conference, where I would meet a few people and learn some things, and I certainly did, but I didn’t expect the little magical moments that you don’t get from other conferences–the life talks during coffee runs, getting to know industry peeps in shared Uber rides and breaking bread with what felt like old friends even though we met that day. I’m grateful to work at a company like ECC that supports our personal and professional development, as this conference was funded by my workplace. If not, I encourage you all to apply for the SIA RISE Scholarship so you can put towards future AcceleRISEs (or student loans or any education/learning opportunities). 

My Learnings 

Here’s what I’ve learned from my involvement with SIA RISE, as well as the impact it’s had on me and my career. 

1. Network: It’s so clichéd to say it, but your network is your net worth. Our industry is not massive like so many others, so you really do interact with much of the same folks. Even more so than the aforementioned, it’s pretty dang cool to add a lot of people to the rolodex. I love being able to text and LinkedIn DM peers that I met at ISC West and AcceleRISE for collaboration on opportunities and to run ideas by. Don’t underestimate this–relationships are everything. 
2. Growth: Being part of RISE has stretched me outside my comfort zone. It’s easy to stay with the status quo. It’s not always easy immersing yourself in a new industry and networking with new people. It’s not easy to be vulnerable and be coachable in a mentorship program. It’s not easy to write this article (for me at least). Do yourself a favor and do something that stretches you from time to time. 
3. Impact (and community): Not just the impact that SIA RISE and the security industry has had on me, but also vice versa. Like I mentioned earlier, this industry (while big) is smaller than we think so we have more access to affect change. For example, I’m looking to take learnings from the ESG Week Virtual Symposium and apply to my workplace and community. For folks that attended AcceleRISE, we can share our learnings to our teams and orgs. We’re also exposed to a lot of great organizations that collaborate with the security industry like Mission 500, which is another way to get involved at ISC West or even locally. You don’t have to do it all, but start with one small thing where you take what you’ve learned and impact someone else in a positive way.

In closing, I’m loving my time in the industry and with RISE. You should join, I’ll SIA there (see what I did there?). 

The views and opinions expressed in guest posts and/or profiles are those of the authors or sources and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Security Industry Association.