CMMC Accreditation Body Launches Industry Advisory Council Backed by Thought Leaders from across the DIB

All Volunteer Council Provides Forum for Industry to Share Real-World Experiences, Feedback and Recommendations when Implementing CMMC

BETHESDA, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The CMMC Accreditation Body (CMMC-AB), the sole authoritative source for operationalizing CMMC assessments and training by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), today announced the formation of one of the strongest and most important Industry Advisory Council’s (IAC) ever assembled in cybersecurity. The CMMC-AB IAC mission is to provide a unified voice as representatives of Organizations Seeking Certification (OSCs) to supply key feedback, input and recommendations for implementing CMMC back to the DoD and the CMMC-AB.

Chaired by current Treasurer, Yong-Gon Chon, the CMMC-AB IAC is comprised of highly-esteemed thought leaders representing large and small businesses from a wide range of markets within the Defense Industrial Base (DIB). Inaugural members include:

• Nicole Dean, CISO Accenture Federal Services
• Ted Steffan, Sr. Security Partner Strategist Amazon Web Services
• Darren Death, CISO, ASRC Federal
• Jeffrey Dodson, CSO, BAE Systems
• Timothy Trickett, CTO, BDO
• Jake Williams, IT Security Manager, Doncasters Group
• Michael Baker, CISO, General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT)
• Adam McNair, COO, Highlight Technologies
• Neil Brink, Cybersecurity Specialist, Rolls-Royce
• Brian Thompson, Director of GovCloud Security & Compliance, Salesforce
• Michael Rohde, Deputy CISO - Federal, ServiceNow
• Allison Krache Giddens, President, Win-Tech, Inc.

With an estimated 300,000 companies comprising the DIB, obtaining crystallized relevant feedback from industry is crucial for the long term success of the CMMC program. IAC members live the challenges of implementing CMMC every day and can use this forum to share and validate real-world experiences and amplify feedback from their industry colleagues.

"The IAC will serve as a crucible for industry dialogue, bringing the best and brightest together to address cyber readiness challenges in the DIB and strengthen CMMC to it maximum potential. And just like the volunteer professionals in the AB, the IAC volunteers have chosen to serve a higher cause. Their leadership, skill, and professional expertise will greatly contribute to the overall success of the CMMC program," said CMMC-AB Board Chair Karlton Johnson.

As the inaugural members form subcommittees to represent the vast vertical markets that comprise the DIB, we will seek more volunteer council members. For more information on becoming part of the CMMC-AB IAC go to www.cmmcab.org. An IAC landing page is currently in development.

About CMMC Accreditation Body (CMMC-AB)
The CMMC Accreditation Body (CMMC-AB) incorporated in January 2020 as a non-stock corporation in the State of Maryland, with an application pending for a tax-exemption determination by the Internal Revenue Service under Section 501(c)(3). The CMMC-AB is an independent accreditation entity with responsibility to establish, manage, control and administer

CMMC assessment, certification, training and accreditation processes for the Defense Supply Chain in accordance with a contract signed with the Department of Defense.