This edition of The 10 Most Iconic Founders & CEOs to Watch 2022 showcases the importance of CEOs among the team & their overall contribution to the industry.

1. VOL 06 | ISSUE 02 | 2022
J. Lucas
Advocating Historically
Black Colleges and Universities
President, and CEO
Virginia Union
University
Dr.Hakim
Dr.Hakim
Dr.Hakim
Iconic
Founders
and
to Watch,
CEO's
2022
The
Most
10
Transformative
Approach
Seize the Opportunity

4. Team up
With the Best
of CEO Skills
hether the goal is to transform the organization, serve
Wmarkets, or create a future-fit workforce, business
leaders and organizations are ready for the challenges
of tomorrow. To get it right, it is better to understand that “There
are no failures, only learning experiences in life.” That's how the
culture of innovation and growth is built that closes the skills gaps
with immersive insights.
Today's business leaders focus on creating pathways to attract,
train, and deploy the right tech talent. As the demand for
innovative skills needs to be filled with diversity and inclusion
more critical than ever, the industry's approach is changing, and
among leaders – CEOs are leading from the front.
Having a diverse and supportive team is great, as it answers the
question – how do you do it? CEOs work with businesses to
develop the building blocks required to create innovative, engaged
tech teams. Their main responsibility involves developing teams,
building scalable learning solutions to help close the talent skills
gap, and power the organization's needs.
With the contribution of the CEOs, companies reach their full
potential with engaging, high-quality solutions that directly cut the
company's shortcomings. Thus, not only having an innovative CEO
on the board is great, but it's just the right thing for your
organization to do.
If you struggle to succeed using your current strategy, then a CEO
is what you need to help grow the organization. It can also be said
EDITOR’S NOTE

5. that a CEO is the next step in the business evolution, raising the bar of leadership with their innovative
strategies. They are making life easier for employees, organizations, and the people by offering new
opportunities to fill necessary skills gaps.
CEOs are here to help the organization choose what's best for them, work together towards achieving
goals, and empower individuals and organizations to develop their skills and succeed in the industry. They
are building a culture of learning agility with millions of organizations worldwide, including start-ups, large
enterprises, and government agencies.
It all comes down to perspective on how you term things, and CEOs are excellent examples that always
keep an approach to learning and improving. Hence, we are grateful to have them around for sharing their
knowledge, supporting us, and making all of us a part of something great.
This inspires CIO LOOK to come together and appreciate the efforts of CEOs for instilling their knowledge
in us with the upcoming project - “The 10 Most Iconic Founders and CEOs to Watch, 2022.” This edition
showcases the importance of CEOs among the team and their overall contribution to the industry.
Let us meet again with our thought-provoking articles inside this magazine, which will help you enlighten
the industry trends and topics.
So, what are you waiting for? Hop on for an insightful ride!
Sourabh More
Iconic
Founders
and
to Watch,
CEO's
2022
The
Most
10

6. Dr. Hakim J. Lucas
Advocating Historically
Black Colleges and Universities
COVER STORY
08
article
Transformative
Approach
Seize the Opportunity
20
c
o
n
t
e
n
t
s

7. Leader's Viewpoint
Keeping It Human
32
Gene Saunders
On a Mission to Provide
Strategic Public Safety
24
Sibongile Sambo
A Dedicated and Aspiring
Business Individual
36
Boris Arciniegas
A Profound Business Leader Assisting Organizations
with Innovative Technological Solutions
16
Mathieu Gorge
A Seasoned International
Security Expert
28
Valerie Vacante
Bringing Emerging
Technology Products to Life
40
C
x
O

8. CONTENT
Senior Editor Alan Swann
Executive Editors Sourabh More
Alex Spellman
DESIGN
Visualizer Dave Bates
Art & Design Director Shyam Sonawane
Associate Designer Revati Badkas
SALES
Senior Sales Manager Kshitij S.
Customer Success Manager Jack Ryan
Sales Executives John
TECHNICAL
Technical Head Amar Sawant
Technical Consultant Victor Collins
July, 2022
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9. Brief
Company Name
Sibongile Rejoyce
Sambo
Managing Director
Valerie Vacante
Founder
Jim DeVries
CEO
Mathieu Gorge
Founder and CEO
ADT has made the security of our customers our top priority.
SRS Aviation strives to become the dominant player in the
Aviation Industry.
Collabsco is a strategy + innovation firm that collaborates with
global brands and startups to create solutions for growth.
VigiOne enable organisations to achieve and maintain
compliance with legal, industrial and security standards and
frameworks.
Brent Kruel
CEO
BioFunctional Health Solutions aim is to deliver the world’s
best health and wellness solutions to employees anywhere
they are.
BioFunctional Health
Solutions
biofunctionalhealth.com
ADT
adt.com
Vigi Trust
vigitrust.com
Boris Arciniegas
CEO
Grupo Business IT is the most innovative business group,
specialized in high-tech IT services, with a presence in several
Latin American countries.
Grupo Business IT
grupobusiness.it
Rick Bates
Founder and CEO
RxSense is a health technology company.
RxSense
rxsense.com
Collabsco
collabsco.com
Gene Saunders
CEO
Project Lifesaver is a community based, public safety, non-
profit organization that provides law enforcement, fire/rescue,
and caregivers with a program designed to protect, and when
necessary, quickly locate individuals with cognitive disorders
who are prone to the life threatening behavior of wandering.
Project Lifesaver
projectlifesaver.org
SRS Aviation
srsaviation.co.za
Hakim Lucas
CEO
Virginia Union University is a premier historically black
university, with a rich heritage and outstanding legacy of
producing world-renown leaders; Virginia Union University
offers its students "The Promise of A Limitless Future."
Virginia Union University
vuu.edu
Ron Saslow
CEO
HuFriedyGroup, a global leader in dental instrument
manufacturing, infection prevention and instrument
reprocessing workflows.
Hu-Friedy
hu-friedy.com
Featured Person

10. Advocating Historically
Black Colleges
and Universities
Like a shepherd guides
flock, a transcendent leader
does not walk in front
of the flock but guides
from behind to keep
the flock moving forward.

11. Dr. Hakim J. Lucas
President, and CEO
Virginia Union University

12. W
ith a rich history and remarkable legacy of
creating world-renowned leaders, Virginia
Union University is a top historically black
university. The university boasts of developing its
students into scholars, leaders, and lifelong learners in
a global society.
The picturesque Virginia Union University campus,
located on 84 acres in the heart of Richmond, highlights
historic architecture while providing comprehensive
undergraduate and graduate education. A heavy
emphasis on moral values and ethics is a guiding
element of the university's educational program, and
students are encouraged to participate in activities that
promote self-actualization.
Dr. Hakim J. Lucas, the President, and CEO of the
university, is a major supporter of student-driven
initiatives and student and faculty participation in
developing and implementing the university's strategic
plan. He promotes Historically Black Colleges and
Universities (HBCUs) and fights to assure their long-
term viability. He is a transcendent leader who has
chosen to advocate for social justice through education.
As a result, he participates in several advisory councils
and organizations.
An Illustrious University with a Rich History
From Virginia Union University's inception in 1865, it
was designed to give newly emancipated freedmen an
opportunity for education and advancement. The first
classes were held inside the Lumpkin's Jail, a former
slave jail also known as the Devil's half-acre, according
to the American Baptist Home Mission Society
(ABHMS). Mrs. Mary Ann Lumpkins, the owner, rented
the venue for the classes. Lumpkins was a former slave
who inherited the estate from her late husband, a slave
trader. ABHMS eventually established four institutions,
which later merged to form the "Union" that is now
known as Virginia Union University. Richmond
Theological Seminary, Wayland Seminary, Hartshorn
Memorial College, and Storer College are the colleges
that were merged together.
On February 11, 1899, the inaugural Founders' Day
was marked by a groundbreaking ceremony at the
current site of Virginia Union University in front of
Kingsley Hall, and the first classes began on October 4,
1899. The campus was designed with nine "noble
structures" made of Virginia granite to give it a distinct
look. Pickford Hall, Kingsley Hall, Coburn Hall, Martin
E. Gray Hall, Baptist Memorial Hall, Industrial Hall, and
the "Power Plant" are the seven original remaining
structures.
The School of Arts & Sciences, The Evelyn Reid Syphax
School of Education, The Sydney Lewis School of
Business, The School of Latin American & Caribbean
Studies /Universidad, The University College, The
Graduate, Global Campus & Professional Education,
and The Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology are
the seven academic schools that makeup Virginia Union
University today. Education, business, social activism;
politics and government; media; sports and
entertainment; ministry, sciences, and the military are
among the university's prominent graduates.
Virginia Union University is nourished by its
African American heritage and energized by
a commitment to excellence and diversity.

14. University's Philosophy
Virginia Union University is fueled by a commitment to
excellence and diversity and its African American
legacy. It aims to provide a loving, intellectually
challenging, and spiritually rewarding learning
environment and encourage students to acquire strong
moral principles to succeed and become scholars,
leaders, and lifelong learners in a global community.
Virginia Union University's objective is to improve
liberal arts education, teaching, research, science,
technology, continuing education, civic participation,
and international experiences through a wide range of
educational possibilities.
VUU is a premier liberal arts urban institution of higher
education and a national center of excellence for
student preparation and leadership development for
the future.
Virginia Union University strategically works toward
four goals: Student Success, Academic Excellence,
Entrepreneurial Enterprise and, Brand Prestige. It is
guided by five fundamental principles to deliver on the
promise of a Limitless Future. They are Innovation,
Spiritual Formation, Integrity, Diversity & Inclusion and,
Excellence Each principle is essential to its ability to
provide a best-in-class educational experience for
students, faculty, and staff.
As a leader, it
is important to
empower those
you lead.
The principles aid its community in understanding the
right path to fulfilling our institution's mission. In
conjunction with the principles are the university's
Noble Values.
Innovation and Inclusion
At Virginia Union University, they consistently search
for and create growth opportunities that forge
groundbreaking research, state-of-the-art technology,
or a top-of-the-line curriculum. They welcome and
encourage new ideas and processes that positively
impact experiences.
As a faith-based university, they welcome the regular
practice of prayer, worship, silence, and mediation that
matures one's relationships, values, and life purpose,
leading to ongoing spiritual growth and transformation.
The university values its commitment to fairness,
honesty, and truth reflected in each person's words and
deeds while holding itself accountable for its words and
actions.
As one of the nation's oldest HBCUs, the university
team allows diversity in thought, perspective, and
embodiment, trusting that they are stronger when
various voices, traditions, and experiences are present.
They value inclusivity and promote a safe campus with
dignity, respect, and compassion.
They provide the highest quality of experiences and
interactions while remaining flexible, responsive, and
open-minded in developing and delivering programs,
services, and facilities committed to exceeding what it
means to be best-in-class. Virginia Union University has
also partnered with Apple as part of its smart campus
launch.
Creating An Impact
Virginia Union University wants its students to:
• Perform Better
• Achieve Faster
• Live Socially Responsible
• Be Ethically & Ethnically Conscious
• Achieve Generational Wealth
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a
growing need for flexibility within the organization,

15. requiring the university to change its business model of
st
education. The 21 -century student needs more
educational options. Some students prefer to take the
traditional educational route by living on campus,
attending in-person classes, and pursuing a four-year
degree. Other students are looking for other options,
such as virtual courses and two-year programs that,
upon completion, will allow them to graduate with
certifications in high-demand fields. At Virginia Union,
they want to cater to the ever-changing needs of those
they serve.
The Driving Force
Virginia Union University follows a Lean Six Sigma
philosophy of improvement to eliminate waste and
function as efficiently and effectively as possible.
The work culture at Virginia Union University is divided
into work, Writing, Assessment, and Accountability.
They have seven divisions across the university which
Vice-Presidents lead. They are Academic Affairs,
Administrative Services, Talent Management, Business
Affairs, Enrollment Management, Institutional
Advancement, Student Affairs, and University
Relations. Each division gives a weekly report with
updates on the work being done within their area and
completion status.
They also have a strong culture of writing about their
strategic plans, successes, challenges, and lessons
learned, this aids in historical reference to the work
being accomplished and standard operating
procedures. Assessment is done through 30-Day plans
submitted by all employees so that executive leaders
can track the progress of their goals for each division.
The vice-presidents also submit monthly reports based
on the employee success and challenges recorded in
the 30-day report. VUU also holds meetings with the
Board of Trustees three times a year.
The Best Is Yet to Come
The university's goal is to be recognized as a 'Best-In-
Class' institution by 2025. That means working to
become one of the nation's best Historically Black
Colleges and Universities (HBCU), ranking in the Top 10
of HBCUs, preparing students, and developing them as
scholars, leaders, and lifelong learners of a diverse,
global society.
Advice to Budding Entrepreneurs
As a leader, it is important to empower those that you
lead. Dr. Hakim's model of leadership is servant
leadership. A transcendent leader guides those they
lead from behind. Like a shepherd guides flock, a
transcendent leader does not walk in front of the flock
but guides from behind to keep the flock moving
forward. A transcendent leader in a transcendent
organization continuously grows in professional
maturity, allowing their self-awareness and
professional awareness to exist and grow together to
ensure that the organization's vision and mission are
realized and achieved.

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18. Boris Arciniegas
Founder, President, and CEO
Grupo Business IT

19. S
ome leaders imbibe entrepreneurial skills as they
progress in their careers, while some gifted
leaders have entrepreneurial qualities inbuilt in
them since childhood. Recognizing these inbuilt
qualities is an essential aspect of business leaders and
growing upon them makes them stand out. Reflecting
upon his qualities, Boris Arciniegas has transformed
himself into the Founder, President, and CEO of Grupo
Business IT. He leads an innovative business group
specializing in high-tech IT services in several Latin
American countries.
Boris has built the company to galvanize his 'Green IT'
technological solutions to meet their business goals.
Grupo Business IT enables organizations to reduce
operational costs, increase efficiency and improve
productivity through environmentally friendly and
sustainable IT practices. It aims to provide its clients
with a world-class experience by creating pioneering,
internationally awarded technology solutions to
empower each person and organization to achieve its
goals.
Roots of an Entrepreneurial DNA
Boris Arciniegas was very observant, analytical, and
creative as a child, the real place where he began his
entrepreneurial journey. His urge to add a creative
environment to his workplace came from a humble
home that always sought to improve itself through new
ways of generating income. The mixture of nature and a
conducive environment shaped his entrepreneurial
spirit from an early age. He took inspiration from global
figures who stood out in science, such as Albert
Einstein, Stephen Hawking, and Steve Jobs. He chose
his domain because of his attraction to mathematics,
physics, technology, and computers. He also won
various programming competitions at the country level,
which strengthened his path in this information
technology industry.
Boris Arciniegas
A Profound Business Leader Assisting
Organizations with Innovative Technological Solutions
We provide our
clients with a world-
class experience by
creating pioneering,
internationally
awarded technology
solutions to empower
each person and
organization to
achieve their goals.
The 10 Most Iconic Founders and CEO's to Watch, 2022
| July 2022 |
17

20. Boris's vast technical expertise and
his love for nature made him an
industry leader, particularly as the
CEO of Business IT. He has
formulated his three main
responsibilities as the CEO, which
go as follows:
• A vision where the world will
find itself in the following years
and where the technology will
be found in the future to create
a plan for the organization and
lead everyone along that path.
• Create the conditions (strategy
+ culture) for the company to
improve (change) faster and
faster; the only sustainable
competitive advantage over
time is the ability to change
rapidly.
• Create new leaders who push
the organization's boundaries,
supporting all the
organization's staff to grow
personally and professionally.
Boris adds, "What makes me
different from other industry leaders
is my main goal is to change the world,
to generate a massive transformation
that allows us to have a better place
to live. The economic success of the
company is secondary."
Inspiring Environment-Friendly IT
practices
Business IT was founded in 2009
and had its HeadQuarter in
Ecuador; later, it was expanded to
several countries in Latin America.
The company's solutions have a
high degree of innovation. It is
among the first in the world to
adopt new technologies that are
now being released faster and
faster for the benefit of its
customers. The solutions are
"Green IT," which allows
organizations to reduce their
| July 2022 |
18

21. operating costs, increase efficiency and improve
productivity through sustainable and environmentally
friendly IT practices. Boris adds, "The company has
changed a lot in the current situation, where its entire
portfolio was redesigned in March to include many
solutions that the market requires in this "new world" that
we are living in."
Mission:
Deliver clients with a world-class experience by
creating pioneering, internationally awarded
technology solutions to empower every individual and
organization to achieve their goals.
Vision:
To be recognized globally by 2032 as one of the leading
brands in transforming organizations with
technological solutions.
The company has solidified its position in its niche by
following simple, impactful points which read:
• Character / Integrity: Leaders must inspire
confidence. What the leader thinks, says, and does
must be perfectly aligned.
• Competence / Ingenuity: Leaders seek excellence
in everything they do. They invest time in becoming
the subject matter experts they lead.
• Focused on Clients: They understand that the
business exists for the clients. They do not allow
internal bureaucracy to impede the growth of the
business or organization. They build great teams by
selecting the best. They are good communicators:
They work consistently on their skills as
communicators. They can summarize and explain
their ideas. They transmit energy and stimulate
others: They have a clear vision, and they manage
to communicate it. They consistently emanate high
levels of energy. They show that they love what
they do.
Creativity is at the Core of Customer Service
"The crisis is an opportunity for creativity and innovation."
One of the most important geniuses of the 20th
century, Albert Einstein (1935), wrote, "The crisis is the
best blessing to people and countries because the crisis
brings progress. It is in crisis that inventiveness, discoveries,
and great strategies are born."
Before the pandemic, Boris updated his portfolio with
new services every three months. Currently, he does it
every three weeks. This means reorienting the
company in all its areas towards a new direction is
important now more than ever; the plan must have
constant adjustments because the world is living in an
environment of high uncertainty. Boris states, "These
days, we are launching a whole new Cybersecurity offer
implemented on world-class platforms such as Microsoft
Azure and Microsoft 365 that provide full integration with
many systems, providing information security, agility, and
global coverage to organizations."
Grupo Business IT focuses on Customer Experience;
Boris is preparing the entire company to better
understand its customers' needs and create an
extraordinary experience when its customers buy their
services. This is why it can expand quickly, opening two
new operations in Latin America, the Caribbean, and
the USA. The company rides on its core values to bring
about international expansion, which is its most
important project.
Scale Efficiency, Reduce Risks
The company looks to stay ahead of its competition by
adopting several strategies. The most important
strategy is to monitor clients to constantly determine
changes in their portfolio, new competitive advantages
they are taking out, and understanding of key personnel
they are incorporating. Another factor is to use
experimentation a lot, that is, have several ideas on how
to optimize the staff internally, but it is needed to test
the hypotheses and constantly experiment with
controlled risks. Traditional organizations try to scale
efficiency and predictability, creating static
environments believing that it will reduce risks. This
helps Grupo Business IT to move and change faster
than the competition.
| July 2022 |
19

22. SEIZE THE
s they say, “If opportunity does not knock your
Adoor, build the door”. Let’s justify this quote
through this article in the context of business
leaders.
We are in the digital world of innovation where
entertainment, living, and learning share the global
stage of connection. It is going to impact the way people
interact and connect in the physical world. When we
talk about innovation and technology, we are working
continuously to build a better world for all of us. For
business leaders, there is always room for learning and
improving their companies with these technological
tools like AI, IoT, Cloud, Robotics.
A Challenging Journey
The challenge for business leaders has been creating
and connecting people with the physical and digital
worlds. Unveiling technology for growth creates
business partnerships, market opportunities, connect
communities, and encourages people to explore out.
Other challenges also include learning how to grow the
business as an entrepreneur. Business leaders have to
navigate through different roles and responsibilities,
and they create new opportunities solving complex
problems.
A business leader realizes that with his/her creativity
and vision the business can unleash opportunities and
make things happen. He or she drives new products,
services, new business models and innovate the ways of
working. Being a business leader, broadening the
diverse pools is meaningful to the business. Embracing
the change by working with different people and
perspectives with different backgrounds and
knowledge is important to drive innovation and growth.
In the Depth of Leadership
Ultimately it is all about passion and belief to empower
the community and being confident about the business
concepts. There are a lot of leaders right now providing
opportunities and they continue to build the doors of
opportunities with the help of their qualities.
Those who practice such impactful leadership qualities
deliver to achieve the goal of the organization. A good
business leader inspires and encourages to lead the
organization to new levels of success. As a business
leader, one’s growth is based on the performance of the
team. They use their intelligence to outplay the
competition. He is the specialized person creating the
impact in the organization.
20
| July 2022 |

23. Transformative Approach
21
| July 2022 |

24. He is the go-to person for all the team members of the
company and with his deep expertise he helps to
strategize the plans to achieve tangible growth. Once
he develops the legacy of success in the industry with
his skills, he can ensure digital dominance and become a
preferred choice over every other leader to achieve
growth.
The quick and adaptive business leaders have increased
their productivity through the virtual working
environment because of the pandemic. They introduce
the digital realm in order to provide value to the people
along with new digital coaching groups, making the
environment positive.
Know It Before You Blow It
Our actions today will impact the future and only
kindness and empathy towards each other with help to
face every problem in our life. So, an empathetic
business leader feels it is his responsibility of giving
back to society. There is so much more to do for the
people and the environment. Above all, the important
thing is to build that door of opportunities for himself
and open it for others. Succeeding in business is all
about growing together and this quality will transform
the industry and the world as a whole.
This is the most underestimated trait of leadership.
Business leaders are well aware that if they really want
to bring a change, they have to be empathetic. There is
always a way of working out things through technology,
but it is constrained to business only. Coming out as a
true leader, learning, and respecting people will build
one’s reputation. It allows one to address the problems
and issues of the people. Business leaders know their
business, market, and customers, but what is important
is to know your people and a desire to mentor them
with the opportunities and achievements.
The Shining Message
Finally, in a world where almost everything is
transforming, the journey for business leaders also goes
through digital transformation. The bottom line - the
real leader knows how to get the stuff done. For them,
the greatest motivation lies in creating opportunities,
as they are not driven by the materialist world.
For them, the highest motivation is gratitude, empathy,
and contributing to the success of the team members
and the organization. It is the difference between
consistency and inconsistency that separates from an
ordinary leader to an impactful leader. The best aspect
of making an impact on others is by empowering others
with opportunities and no expectation of getting
something in return.
22
| July 2022 |

26. Gene Saunders
Founder and CEO
Project Lifesaver
24
| June 2022 |

27. On a Mission to Provide
Strategic Public Safety
Gene
Saunders
A
s the population of the world ages, the number
of people with Alzheimer's, dementia, or similar
diseases will increase, eventually adding to the
risk of wandering. There are already several efforts to
assist older persons who have gone missing.
In essence, wandering is characterized by locomotive
behavior that may or may not be intentional, and it may
or may not be something that a person is aware of. This
fact points to a very significant issue that needs to be
addressed. And with that, Gene Saunders came up with
the idea of using the right approach to track down
wandering people. He is the and the of
founder CEO
Project Lifesaver, a leading search and rescue company
run by public safety organizations worldwide. It is
specifically developed for individuals who are prone to
life-threatening wandering behavior.
Gene is an internationally recognized expert in tracking
the recovery of people at risk. He has appeared on local,
national, and worldwide radio and television programs
for his expertise in this niche.
CIO Look caught up with Gene in our endeavor to find
"The 10 Most Iconic Founders and CEOs to Watch, 2022."
We talked with him to understand how he is driving a
transformative change in the public safety sector with
his expertise.
Look to
the problems
in the sector
and come up
with methods
and solutions to
assist in the
ever-changing role
of public safety.
25
| June 2022 |

28. Below are the highlights of Gene's interview.
Brief our audience about your journey as a business
leader until your current position at Project Lifesaver.
What challenges have you had to overcome to reach
where you are today?
I was with the Chesapeake, VA Police Dept for 33 years,
retiring as a Captain in 2001. I also headed the Sheriff's
Search and Rescue unit. In 1999, I had the idea to track
and locate persons with Dementia, Autism, etc., who
wandered and became lost through RF technology. I
developed a training and certification program, and
public safety agencies began joining the organization.
We named this program Project Lifesaver as it saved
lives, reduced manpower and cost on searches, and is
highly successful.
Tell us something more about your company and its
mission and vision.
Project Lifesaver is a Non Profit 501c3 organization
that provides equipment, training, and support to its
member agencies in the Project Lifesaver program. It
also researches new technology to aid in its mission.
Enlighten us on how you have impacted Public Safety
through your expertise in the market.
We have drastically cut down the amount of time, cost,
and manpower necessary to conduct this type of search
and, to date, have recorded over 3,700 successful
searches in an average recovery time of fewer than 30
minutes.
24
| June 2022 |

29. Describe in detail the values and the work culture
that drives your organization.
All the people in our organization believe in its
mission, to save lives. It is demonstrated by the
willingness to do whatever it takes to assist our
member agencies in the mission.
Undeniably, technology is playing a significant role in
almost every sector. How are you leveraging
technological advancements to make your solutions
resourceful?
We constantly test new equipment and methods to
enhance and improve the mission.
What, according to you, could be the next significant
change in the Public Safety sector? How is your
company preparing to be a part of that change?
Public safety is looking to do more with less and a
more pronounced shift to technology to accomplish its
tasks. We stay in contact with our members as to their
needs and work to incorporate them into our
equipment and methods.
Where do you envision yourself to be in the long run,
and what are your future goals for Project Lifesaver?
Project Lifesaver will continue to test and adopt new
equipment methods and technology to aid its
members in an even better approach and solution to
this ever-increasing problem.
What would be your advice to budding
entrepreneurs who aspire to venture into the Public
Safety sector?
Look to the problems in the sector and come up with
methods and solutions to assist in the ever-changing
role of public safety.
25
| June 2022 |

30. Mathieu
Gorge
Mathieu
Gorge
A Seasoned International Security Expert
W
here is your data & how does it flow? Who
are the stakeholders & what regulations and
standards are you subject to? Founded by
Mathieu Gorge in 2003, VigiTrust has been answering
these questions to international clients in the
healthcare, financial services, retail, and government
sectors for over 20 years.
A Regular Speaker at International Conferences
Mathieu Gorge is the CEO and Founder of VigiTrust
which he created in Dublin. He is an established
authority and speaker on Cyber security, Risk
Management & Compliance with more than 20 years’
international experience.
Gorge’s areas of expertise include PCI DSS, GDPR,
CCPA, HIPAA, VRM, and ISO 27001. He has been
involved in payment security for more than 20 years
and has worked with many security working groups and
associations in the US and EU. He is a regular speaker at
international security and compliance conferences such
as RSA, ENISA & ISACA.
Gorge was the President of the French Irish Chamber
of Commerce in Dublin from 2017-2019 - he remains
on the Executive council and as chair of the ICT working
group. Mathieu has also served as the Chairman of
InfoSecurity Ireland and was an Official Reviewer for
ANSI (US). He is the founder of the PCI DSS European
Roadshow, which has been running since 2011. He is
also the Chairman of the VigiTrust Global Advisory
Board, an international security & compliance
thinktank.
Aims to Deliver Innovative Projects
The security and compliance sector evolves very
quickly at the best of times, so Gorge pro-actively and
diligently keeps his finger on the pulse at all times. He
does this through the VigiTrust Global Advisory Board
which gives him amazing insight into what's happening
in the industry from a technology, regulation, and
research perspective.
Right now, a lot is going on in Machine Learning, AI, and
Quantum, not forgetting blockchain. VigiTrust is
involved in a few innovation projects with research
partners globally and aims at delivering new innovative
solutions to clients & partners at all times. Gorge is also
on the board of several tech companies and part of
working groups within the security & compliance
community. This allows him to keep learning at all times
and to extend his network.
Passionate About Data-Security
Gorge studied languages, marketing and law. He never
once studied IT or compliance. However, he was
fortunate to work for companies whose leaders were
passionate about security, and having caught the bug,
he developed a keen interest in data security, a subset
of the security market. Things grew from there, and
Mathieu remains passionate about data security, risk
management, and compliance.
28
| June 2022 |

32. Focusing on Core Solutions
The current global crisis is unprecedented, and like
most organizations VigiTrust had to learn as it went
along. Whilst the company had a crisis management
plan, it had not planned for a crisis that would impact
travel, health, finances, and global geopolitics at the
same time. So, Gorge and his senior management team
started with reducing all costs, focusing on core
solutions that were not impacted by the crisis, and
servicing the company’s key clients and partners. The
organization then decided to explore if there was any
opportunity to reposition its solutions to address the
new way to perform risk assessment audits. It quickly
realized that its clients and partners alike could no
longer go on-site to conduct assessments.
As it happens, VigiTrust’s 2020 roadmap for Q4
included the development and deployment of remote
assessment capabilities, so it moved that forward to Q2
and Q3 and the company was able to address this
opportunity and, incidentally, majorly enhance its
partner program and partner onboarding.
A Perceptive and Accomplished Individual
Gorge ensures that VigiTrust continues innovating,
looking after existing clients, and gaining new markets.
There are a lot of companies doing well right now
because they can see new opportunities and they are
agile. VigiTrust is one of those, and Gorge is very proud
to be surrounded by a team of highly motivated,
resilient people, and by very encouraging close people.
Gorge suspects that VigiTrust will either be acquired in
the next few years or start acquiring other businesses
to continue its expansion. From a personal perspective,
the founder has just published his first book, The Cyber
Elephant in the Boardroom, published by Forbesbooks
and it has opened up many opportunities. Gorge is now
a regular contributor to US, UK, and French media
outlets on the topic of cyber-accountability and cyber
security.
Gorge has also just been appointed VP of the Dublin
section of the French Trade Advisors, and he remains
involved with the French Irish Chamber of Commerce.
“I think I'll remain involved in those spheres as long as I can
continue to add value wherever I am, probably with similar
structures but based in the US as Vigitrust builds its US
team out of New York”, shares Gorge.
Wake up early and believe
that today is going to be a
good day for your business.
Your passion and persistence
coupled with key skills from
the team you've assembled
will take you, your business
and your team and entourage
to the next level.
“
“
30
| June 2022 |

33. Mathieu Gorge
CEO and Founder
VigiTrust

34. The Secret for Setting a Positive Workplace
Culture in a Work from Home Era
Uncertainty has become the new normal. For the past
year, working remotely is, as well, the new normal.
Employees all over the world had to cope with this new
reality as they keep track on their responsibilities and
better manage their life-work balance. As company
leaders become more aware of their roles in this
pandemic era, it is the perfect time for them, for us, to
reinvent the concept of office, and manage to keep
fostering a positive work culture. How can we rethink
the way we work to benefit our employees as well as
our businesses? This is a very complicated question,
with no right or wrong answers. My approach has to do
with thinking from a leadership perspective. Now, more
than ever, leaders need to become emotionally
connected with their employees to foresee what may
come in the so unclear future.
We need to use technology to innovate and develop
more human-like tools to improve our workplace
interactions. Emails, social networks, and
teleconferencing meetings may feel as enough but they
might not be when thinking in setting a positive culture
or transmitting values and ways of working… It is about
looking for social tools so that people can interact, and,
with these tools, we are going to be able to discover the
value of making working remotely, work. In the end, it is
about how we create real experiences for real people.
How we create activities that go beyond work life and
understand that there might be employees that
treasure working in a fully remote environment and
how there are others seeking for an office space. How I
see it, the hybrid model will be the one prevailing in the
months and years to come, and it is simply because this
model takes into account both perspectives of
returning to an office and working from other spaces.
The hybrid way is the ultimate way of achieving the
human side and keeping up with the businesses. With
this model, leaders and employees, must come up with
activities that make work more human, a lot closer,
social and fun.
In this work from home paradigm, CEO´s and leaders
will be determinant from whatever perspective they
will address the situation. Reading a Forbes article
regarding stats employers need to know about the
workforce, I came across the 2020 study conducted by
Growmotely, in which they asked working professionals
and entrepreneurs to share their thoughts on the new
work from home paradigm, 74% of professionals expect
remote work to become standard. These stats show an
overwhelming percentage in favor of remote work
continuing post-pandemic, so we must stay on top of
these trends, to give employees what they expect from
us as business leaders.
On various occasions, I have been asked for my advice
for managing a team remotely. And this answer comes
very natural for me. It is all about Keeping it human.
We have to be genuinely interested in the people and
their current needs and lives beyond work. Everything
being remote has turned listening into one of the
essential soft skills. We must acknowledge that as non-
verbal cues we typically rely on are lost, we must focus
on actually listening. Also, I have learned that a turning
on your computer camera makes the difference! People
know that if you turned on your camera, you are
focused 100% on them and it may sound as an
insignificant gesture, but it is a small act of interest that
can engage you with people you work with. I also
recommend enabling office spaces, maintaining all the
biometric security measures and social distancing, to
hold face-to-face meetings. Keeping up employee
morale is particularly challenging in these uncertain
times, but through little acts of listening and actually
caring, we will definitely come out victorious. As all
leaders are saying, we have less chances to ask
employees if they feel good or bad, like before just
bouncing in the corridor of the office, and what we
know is that a lot of them are struggling for different
reasons.
And to keep it human, means to be human as well with
the new employees. We have to think about the new
people joining our teams. The onboarding process has
changed, and it is very important to reinvent
methodologies to create and maintain the bonds that
would otherwise be generated naturally by being in a
face-to-face environment. A remote Buddy Program has
shown to be successful. People have other people to
come to and express their needs, difficulties, fears and
all kinds of emotions. To enable this program has meant
to continue passing the culture and the company´s DNA
through a word-of-mouth strategy.
In the end, I believe a positive work culture is essential.
You can ask, but how do you maintain that culture being
remote? Communication and transparency are the key.
The only way to transmit your businesses DNA is by
enabling different communication channels which have
different social purposes. The email will still be the
formal way to talk about work, WhatsApp will become
the platform where good news and milestones are
transmitted, Slack can be used as that relaxed tone,
communication channel where peers can talk about
their lives and vain conversations will be taking place
here. All of them matter, not because talking about your
wife and children is less important that talking about
the closing of a deal, but because they maintain the
work-life balance that is vital to succeed both
personally and professionally, and it is this balance that
we long for in the workplace.
Leader's Viewpoint
32
| June 2022 |

35. KEEPING IT HUMAN
Veronica Crisafulli
CSO and Cofounder
MO Technologies

38. Sibongile Rejoyce
Sambo,
Managing Director,
SRS Aviation (Pty) Ltd, &
Aero Metals (Pty) Ltd

39. Sibongile
Sambo
A Dedicated and Aspiring Business Individual
In the past 27 years, the South African government
has made substantial progress in growing the
economy, becoming internationally competitive,
incorporating greater numbers of people of all races
into the economy, and diversifying the economic base.
However, the transformation of South Africa’s economy
will not be complete until Women, Youth, and Leaders
of tomorrow play a vital role in the mainstream
economy.
Fostering the culture of entrepreneurship is critically
important for the country and Sibongile Sambo has
outstanding gifts, abilities, and knowledge to go out
there and become the best that she can be. She is the
Managing Director at SRS Aviation & Aero Metals
(Pty) Ltd, taking advantage of the political freedom she
is creating economic freedom not only for the company
but for the community at large.
Sibongile’s Journey and Background
It all started with a dream and passion for aircraft.
Sibongile Sambo was born in Bushbuckridge, a village
where aviation was never part of the vocabulary. She
did not have any sophisticated toys and therefore she
just played outside on the streets with other children.
She used to stop everything & every time when an
aircraft flies by, so she could wave them with eagerness,
envy, and undying passion. Sibongile has since then had
a dream that one day she will have access to them in
one way or the other.
Sibongile Sambo has spent 17 years at SRS Aviation
since 2004, the journey was not smooth at all. It was full
of turbulence. Sibongile did enjoy the journey; she
learned a lot and she got an opportunity to empower
other people in the process. This business has given
birth to Aero Metals, where the company manufactures
elementary parts for new Airplanes.
Pursuing her Dream and Passion
In 2000 Sibongile Sambo registered a company for
cleaning, security, and HR services but it never took off
because she had no passion at all in mentioned services
though she was well trained & gained a wealth of
experience in Human Resources. Sibongile searched
her soul for what lies within her.
The love for aircraft never left her mind. Sibongile
started attending air shows and did extensive
painstaking research on aviation business
opportunities. One day at De Beers Consolidated mines
she took a decision that she doesn’t regret, leaving her
well-paying job to venture into the unknown world of
aviation.
37
| June 2022 |

40. The only thing Sibongile had was a belief and
confidence in herself and the business idea. Sibongile
was so confident that she would go out there and be the
best she can be in order to be successful. This is when
she moved to what she really wanted – the fulfillment
of her dreams and passions.
How SRS Aviation got Funded
The team approached banks and different institutions
for finance however most decision-makers were on
holiday at that time - a week between Christmas & New
Year's Day. The remaining gave feedback on the spot
saying we would not be financed because aviation is
regarded as a high-risk industry. As they had no
collateral and no aviation experience and the contract
at hand meant nothing to the financiers.
Sibongile Sambo then had to come up with an
alternative solution before she could lose the entire
contract. Sibongile’s Mother and Aunt borrowed her
their pension money, she got so much support from
them.
17 years later the team is now experienced and has
generated enough revenues that would give comfort to
investors. The company has established networks
worldwide and has managed to break through an
untapped Aviation industry.
A Motivational Leader
Sibongile Sambo likes open and inclusive leadership. It
is important that the colleagues and employees share
the vision with the leaders of the organization. She
acknowledges that different situations require a
different style of leadership. As a leader, she needs to
be agile and respond to situations without
procrastination. She is indeed, a future Leader.
Challenges and Growth
Aerospace is capital intensive and access to financial
capital is required. Therefore, the biggest challenge was
securing finance for the business. Sibongile faced a
similar challenge - trying to access capital. Secondly,
employing and retaining skilled employees has been a
challenge because once they are well trained and
experienced, they move to bigger organizations.
The company now has emerging subsidiaries in the
following areas: -
Ÿ The supply of aircraft components and spare parts
for manufactures such as Boeing; Bombardier,
Airbus etc.
Ÿ It is also an industrialist, manufacturing of
aerospace elementary parts and components,
planning to expand to Automotive, Rail, and
Maritime. The company is called Aero Metals (Pty)
Ltd.
Ÿ During the 2020 lock-down due to the Covid- 19
pandemic, the company inherited a technical
training school that was closing down. This is a
strategic organisation for technical training not only
in aerospace but in all key industries. The company
is called Dyondzo Technical Training Academy.
Contribution and Recognition
Sibongile Sambo and her team have always been
involved in Aviation awareness programs, empowering
the youth about career and business opportunities in
the industry. The organisation has produced pilots,
people who never even thought they would have access
to an aeroplane.
Since 2006 to date, the company has won several
accolades both locally and abroad. The organisation has
gone through its own share of challenges. It has crossed
the oceans and rivers full of challenges and is now still
crossing streams of challenges. The team has become
stronger and wiser.
| June 2022 |
38

41. To reach for my
dreams and conquer
the challenges; I will
dare to be different;
and with proper
guidance and
direction and with
God on my side,
nothing is
impossible.
“
“

42. Valerie Vacante
o uncover new opportunities, enhance existing
Tproduct experiences or ensure a presence on a
global stage Valerie Vacante, Director of
Strategy at LiveArea and Founder of Collabsco, is here
to share perspective on innovation and global
experiences. In a connected world of entertainment,
play, living, and learning, Valerie has pioneered award-
winning digital products and connected experiences
across IoT, AR, VR, voice, robotics, and beyond.
Valerie guides by saying, “When designing a new product
or experience ensure there is always room for ongoing
testing and learning across all aspects of the business to
continuously improve focusing on what’s working and
swiftly getting rid of what’s not as possible.”
Creating Connected Experiences in the Physical and
Digital World
The common thread throughout Valerie Vacante's
career has been creating and connecting consumer
experiences to the physical and digital worlds. She
started her career in London, England in the early 00’s,
working with an outstanding team to create platforms
and technologies that did not exist.
After returning to the U.S., she worked with a number
of digital marketing and advertising agencies serving as
a catalyst for growth, uncovering new technologies,
business partnerships, and market opportunities. In
2014, she segued into product innovation, primarily
focused on emerging technologies and experiences
such as IoT, wearables, connected communities,
connected play and gaming. After a short stint in a small
design startup, a few colleagues encouraged her to
venture out on her own so she did.
In 2016 Valerie launched Collabsco. She did not want a
high-end office or loads of overhead, just the flexibility
to work with brilliant people on interesting products
and experiences serving as an independent
collaborator to explore, educate, inspire and ignite
product innovations, collaborations, and experiences.
Valerie has expanded innovation efforts across the US,
Europe and South America helping companies build
their portfolios through collaborations with inventors,
startups and global brands. She laughs that her house
looked like Doc Brown’s house from the film “Back to
the Future” with so many connected products,
prototypes, and inventions in the works. Collabsco has
allowed Valerie to experiment with new technologies,
collaborations, and ways of working setting her own
boundaries and constraints.
As Director of Strategy at LiveArea she brings her
entrepreneurial instinct and expertise to a creative and
collaborative organization where she uncovers cultural
trends, next generation innovations, and designs
strategies impacting the way people connect and
experience in the physical and digital world.
Navigating Challenges
Some of the biggest challenges with starting Collabsco
were learning how to build a business from the ground
up. Valerie always served as an intrepreneur; however,
starting as an entrepreneur is very different, you have
to learn about the business legalities, structure,
operations that are often already in place when you are
an intrepreneur. It’s a completely different undertaking.
Other challenges in her prior roles coming up in the
industry were always not being heard or navigating
unnecessary hierarchy and too many rules - she doesn’t
Bringing Emerging Technology Products to Life
40
| June 2022 |

43. “THERE IS A HUGE
VALUE IN LETTING
THE OUTSIDE
WORLD IN TO
INSPIRE NEW
THINKING,
LEARNING FROM
FAILURE,
KNOWING YOUR
LIMITS TO PIVOT,
AND TAKING ON
THE NEXT
CHALLENGE
AHEAD.”
Valerie Vacante
Founder, Collabsco
Director of Strategy,
LiveArea

44. like rules. Valerie is best when she works with
collaborators where the team brings their superpowers
or strengths to create new products, services or solve
challenges, like the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Creative, Collaborative and Charismatic
Valerie Vacante's style of leadership is collaborative.
The command-and-control ways do not work in this day
and time. They are too constraining, take up too much
time and don’t get to the root of real open thinking and
problem solving. Valerie believes that people need a
clear vision, to have freedom in a framework, to be
empowered, supported, and know that they can get
what they need to succeed.
“A successful business must have a clear vision and
creativity to thrive; it must support wildly creative people,
those who are curious and who not only uncover
opportunities, but realize how to connect the dots to make
it happen - they drive new products, services, marketing,
sales, new business models and ways of working,” explains
Valerie.
One of the most influential leaders, Nolan Bushnell, the
godfather of video games and founder of Atari, has a
shared belief. In his book “Finding the Next Steve Jobs:
How to Find, Hire, Keep and Nurture Creative Talents,”
he explains the importance of having a “staff of wildly
creative people who live as much in the future as the
present, who thrive on being different, and whose ideas
will guarantee that your company will prosper when
other companies fail.”
There is no surprise, after all he hired Steve Jobs, the
co-founder of Apple, as well as Valerie Vacante and
many other creatives over the course of his five
decades in business.
A Relentless Champion
Throughout her career, Valerie has launched award-
winning products and experiences that have been
featured at CES, SXSW, Wired Live and in such
publications as Fast Company, The Wall Street Journal,
Wired, VentureBeat, Forbes, The Drum, VRScout, PCR,
ToyNews, and more.
Valerie has worked with some of the world's most
innovative brands. Her portfolio includes Mercedes-
Benz, MINI, AT&T, Honeywell, Sleep Number, Dell,
42
| June 2022 |

45. Vodafone, Nestlé, Hasbro, Mattel, Disney, Bandai
Namco Entertainment, WowWee, Virsix Games,
MERGE, Pressure Games and Firebolt Games among
others.
In 2018, Valerie launched the first-ever connected play
landscape; her latest iteration maps over 260
connected experiences, emerging technologies and
business growth opportunities featured in
VentureBeat, The Drum, VRScout to name a few.
In collaboration with Peter Jenkinson, she also co-
founded TechUp, a curated service that showcases
innovative products on a global stage as featured at
WIRED Live, WIRED Next Generation, CES and SXSW.
Most recently, in her role at LiveArea, she is one of the
co-creators of LiveArea Scan & Go,™ a patent-pending,
web-based, app-free contactless payment technology
that, seamlessly integrates into a retailer’s existing
website, customer profiles, and loyalty programs,
providing opportunities to create more meaningful
connections with consumers in store or online, from
almost anywhere. She has also architected NXT
Intelligence™, a collection of 12 solutions focused on
technology, innovation, and brand experiences
designed to explore, evaluate and evolve business
growth opportunities.
She serves on the SXSW Innovation Advisory Board, as
a CES KAPi Awards judge, a global expert to
MassChallenge, an international speaker and writer.
She has recently been named one of the Top 25 Women
in Tech 2019 and 2020 by PCR magazine, 40/Forty and
Mojo Nation 100 – Design Champion.
You can likely find her where creators are designing the
future.
The Importance of Perspective
The biggest change that Valerie Vacante brings to
management consultancies include two key concepts: ,
first, to be more inclusive, broadening recruiting pools,
embracing different people and perspectives; , second,
to work with real people in ways that is meaningful to
their business. “When I was growing up, my parents and
grandparents had a bakery and made all sorts of pastries,
cakes, and cookies. It doesn’t take a baker or lover of sweets
to know that if you only have flour you can’t make a cake,
cookie, cannoli or anything. Different people, perspectives,
education, and backgrounds are important to drive
innovation and growth. With more remote work
opportunities companies have a bigger and more diverse
pool to choose from,” says Valerie.
Collaborative, Outside-in Perspective and Actionable
Insights
Valerie Vacante continuously hears feedback from
clients who have worked with large management
consultancies. The most significant and consistent
feedback is that management consultancies over-
process simple challenges, restate the challenge or
already known issues instead of providing actionable
recommendations. The real opportunity is
understanding a client’s business and rapidly
uncovering near-term and longer-term opportunities
with actionable solutions.
At LiveArea, the team is directly addressing these
challenges through its new collection of solutions, NXT
Intelligence™ which allows the company to provide an
outside-in perspective to clients in meaningful ways to
their business across technology, innovation, and brand
experience. These are strategic exercises that provide
actionable insights in weeks, not months.
The team keeps a collaborative approach to work with
clients. It doesn’t really pitch, it designs opportunities
“with” its clients based on their goals. The organization
provides an unfiltered, unbiased perspective.
43
| June 2022 |