Our History
Our story is simple. We are a group of information security professionals and practitioners that are interested in learning about information security. Some of us have acquired an ISC2 certification and while we also want to earn CPEs, we don’t want to simply maintain our certifications or just “get by”.
Our Mission
We want to learn. We share a passion for learning about all things related to information security which compels us to be information security advocates and better professionals and practitioners. If you are interested in acquiring an information security related certification then our chapter is a place where you can learn.
We want to lead. We want to be leaders, not just in our respective teams or within our respective companies, but in our industry, community, and to the next generations. We want to be a part of something bigger and something important.
We want to unlock. What sets our chapter apart from local security groups is the passion, knowledge, and leadership that our membership brings to the table. We offer real-world solutions to real-world security issues by unlocking and sharing the knowledge and experience of our membership’s diverse expertise and wisdom.
We began as a few security-minded friends that worked together. We decided to quit talking about launching a local chapter or worse yet, wait around for someone else to do it for us. We stepped up and took the initiative. We have been growing as others hear about our group and join with us.
Our Leadership
President: Eric Agan
Vice President: Brian Sudis
Brian C. Sudis, CISSP, has over 40 years experience in technology and Cybersecurity. He has served in fractional CIO, CTO, and CISO roles, and as the Director of IT for various global SaaS companies. With broad industry experience across Defense, Financial, Health Care, Telecommunications, Mining, Technology, Manufacturing, Insurance and Clinical Laboratory Technology, he brings unique insights into leadership and team building through the use of people, processes, and technologies. Brian holds a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) certificate from ISC2 and is a current member of ISSA and the Cloud Security Alliance. Brian has also held positions in athletics at both the high school and collegiate and semi-pro level as a basketball coach. He is also a “cold war vet” having spent 9 years in the U.S. Navy as a Cryptologic Technician (Communications).
Secretary: Les Davis
Les Davis is an information technology professional with over two decades of experience supporting mission-critical systems in the public sector, with a strong focus on identity and access management (IAM), role-based access control (RBAC), and enterprise identity services. In his current regional IT support role, Les performs work closely aligned with security analysis, including evaluating access requirements, aligning permissions with defined roles, and integrating on-premises identity systems with cloud-based access control and privileged access workflows to support least-privilege and separation-of-duties principles.
In addition to his IAM responsibilities, Les regularly collaborates with technical staff and stakeholders to coordinate secure system access, improve documentation, and enhance communication around system availability and changes. He has a strong interest in practical security governance, access lifecycle management, and helping organizations translate security requirements into clear, workable, and auditable processes.
As Secretary of the KC ISC2 chapter, Les supports the chapter’s mission by maintaining records, strengthening documentation, and helping mature operational processes to ensure continuity and long-term success. He is passionate about professional development, collaboration, and fostering an inclusive cybersecurity community that supports members at all stages of their careers.
Treasurer: Gregory Caringer
Membership Director: Justin Carter
Justin has been active in the Cybersecurity industry since 2013. Possessing a Bachelors Degree in Information Assurance, he has had experience in a variety of roles including but not limited to: Helpdesk, Incident Response, Network Security Architecture, and Organizational Security Architecture. In his spare time, he works to establish a facility for adults with special needs, is active in development communities, works to reverse-engineer hardware and software, and also studies Martial Arts at AKKA Karate USA based out of Independence, MO, where he currently holds a 3rd Degree Brown Belt.
Advisory Board:
Derin Beechner
Derin is a security evangelist. He has a passion for all things related to information security and for improving the world. He enjoys speaking and writing about the importance of information security in our every-day lives. Improve your password, protect your information. Protect your identity. Be social, but be careful. Derin is a life-long learner who hungers to learn new things, to improve, have new experiences and be stretched as an individual-personally as well as professionally. He enjoys mentoring as well as being mentored and becoming a better leader. “The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers.” He is also a geek. He is in front of a screen all day long (three actually) and when he leaves work he jumps on his Android phone or iPad. When he is relaxing at home he has a tablet in hand and is surfing, reading articles, writing, blogging and helping manage websites. Finally, Derin is a servant leader. He serves as a Board Member of the local ISC2 KC chapter.
“I’m learning as much as I can and am greatly enjoying the journey.”
Joel Glover
Bill Guyer
Bill has nearly thirty years of experience in IT with an emphasis on security and compliance. He holds multiple certifications including CISSP, PMP, and ITIL. He is a process driven innovator who sees his role as bringing order to chaos in a company’s technology. When not working, Bill likes to spend time with his family, build and play guitars, and utilize 3D printing to support his many other hobbies.
Lee Roediger