Agenda

Jim is well known in the local market for delivering on his promise and his entire career has been spent connecting the right people at the right time in roles across Europe, China and Australia.

He founded ADAPT to deliver quality outcomes with integrity and now in our 8th year, growth has been consistent. Jim is still positioned across sales and account management where he delivers innovative results and programs and leads by example.

He also runs entrepreneurial product development and the evolution and clear differentiated value of ADAPT’s offerings. As well as a NSW Small Business Excellence nomination, ADAPT were 55th in BRW’s 2014 Top 100 Start Ups – Jim’s 3rd time there – previously as Founder of Strategic Path, an award-winning ICT publisher, he steered the company to make the list in both 2009 and 2010.

As Director of Strategic Research at ADAPT Matt Boon, is responsible for directing and developing ADAPTs research content and positions. In his role at ADAPT Boon advises C-Suite executives across the end-user and technology provider landscape. Boon is also responsible for bringing together groups of C-Suite leaders to discuss and prepare for the myriad of challenges and opportunities they face.

ADAPT host’s numerous industry leading IT focused events annually and Boon is responsible for hosting, chairing and delivering ADAPT independent content and positions to help attendees make informed IT decisions.

Assaf serves as Chief Information Security Officer & VP, Enterprise Cyber Security for PayPal where he oversees all aspects of PayPal’s security product and service delivery organization globally. Assaf provides strategic leadership for PayPal Security’s First Line of Defense team, which builds security products, manages security infrastructure, and provides security services for the company’s customer base.

Assaf started his career in Information and Cyber Security in the Israeli defense forces in 2000, where he held various ranks over seven years including Captain and then as Major in the reserves. After his military service, he joined the Israeli Ministry of Finance as the Chief Information Security Officer of the government ISP and eGovernment unit.

In 2010, Assaf co-founded CyberVision, a company which detected malicious software’s command and control channels using AI/ML technologies which was acquired by Verint Systems in 2011. Assaf then led product management for Verint’s Cyber Defense business focusing on developing country-level cyber defense capabilities. In 2013, he co-founded SenseCy, a cyber intelligence company focusing on the acquisition and analysis of malware traded on the darknet and underground forums.

In 2020, Assaf joined the Google CISO Customer Advisory Board, and 2021, Assaf joined the board of advisors for Arnica, a stealth DevSecOps startup.

Since 2018, Assaf has been a mentor in the Israeli-American Council’s Eitanim project, an entrepreneurship program aimed at helping middle and high school youth learn how to envision, plan and execute a business plan.

Aparna Sundararajan leads the emerging and disruptive technology research agenda within ADAPT’s strategic advisory team. As Senior Research Strategist, her role is to create independent advice for the Australian C-Suite around emerging technologies, trends and investment priorities and developing industry leading content for the ADAPT portfolio of Edge events.

As a technology analyst and marketer, Aparna aligns the burning issues of senior executives with digital business dynamics and emerging technology capabilities to create strategic advice for ADAPT’s Members and Strategic Partners.

Aparna has had 12 years working in the IT services sector, much of it with Gartner, where she developed independent advice for senior IT managers on the emerging roles and responsibilities they face in digital technologies, digital customer behaviour, and business model transformation.

Ben de Bont joined ServiceNow in July 2019 and currently serves as CISO. Mr. de Bont previously served as CISO for IBM Cloud, CSO for HP Cloud, CISO for Myspace, and led Microsoft’s online incident response team.
Ben co-leads the Technology & Innovation Council for Business Executives for National Security (BENS), and as of 2017 has been a board and founding member of the Cybercrime Support Network (CSN).

In 2018, Ben was selected to participate in the Presidential Leadership Scholar Program, a joint initiative of the presidential centers of George W. Bush, William J. Clinton, George H.W. Bush, and Lyndon B. Johnson, merging leaders from across non-profit, military, public, and private sector fields to facilitate solutions to the nation’s most pressing issues.

Ben holds a Master’s and Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia, his thesis in cryptography and encryption. Ben was named 2018 Queensland University of Technology Alumnus of the Year for Science and Engineering.

From 1997-2000 Ben served in the Australian Army.

Liz is an Associate Principle at NOBL, a global organisational design firm born in the US with a new office in Sydney. At Security Edge 2021, she’ll break down what leaders can do to create and retain a high-performing team, drawing on her experience in operations, human resources, and organisational strategy to drive meaningful and lasting change.

Alastair is Australia’s most recognised cyber security leader, and is the Chief Strategy Officer at CyberCX.

His leadership experience includes serving in senior cyber roles across government, as National Cyber Security Adviser, head of the Australian Cyber Security Centre and Special Adviser to the Prime Minister on Cyber Security, as well as serving as Australia’s inaugural eSafety Commissioner. Alastair has also held senior roles across the private sector, including head of eBay’s Asia Pacific Trust & Safety operations, and previously served in the Australian Federal Police for 15 years.