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IBIT News

Emtec CEO and Chairman Dinesh Desai joins Fox IT Advisory Board

Dinesh DesaiInformation technology executive Dinesh Desai has joined the Fox IT Advisory Board. Desai serves as the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Emtec, a provider of tech-based business solutions.

Additionally, Emtec has become a member of the Institute for Business and Information Technology (IBIT) at Temple University’s Fox School of Business.

It is a privilege to welcome Dinesh to the Board,” said Dr. Munir Mandviwalla, Executive Director of IBIT and Chair of Fox School’s Management Information Systems (MIS) department. “His entrepreneurial instincts and accomplishments will serve the digital innovation agenda and the associated MIS department.

Managed by IBIT, the Fox IT Advisory Board advises the Fox School, its MIS department, and IBIT.

Desai joins the 13-member Fox IT Advisory Board that features professionals and executives in the technology, finance, entertainment, healthcare, retail commerce industries, and more.

Emtec is proud to support Temple University, the Fox School of Business, and IBIT by becoming an active participant in joint research and thought-leadership activities,” Desai said. “We firmly believe that industry and academic collaboration is the best method to prepare the next generation of business leaders.

Desai added: Being an alumnus of Temple’s Fox School of Business, I am personally honored to be invited to join the Advisory Board. I look forward to working with the other members of the board to contribute in a meaningful way toward the strategy and future direction of the institute.

Desai has served as Emtec’s Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer since 2005. Before that, he was Chairman and CEO of management consulting firm DARR Global Holdings, Inc. Previously, Desai was President, CEO, and Co-Chairman and an owner of Western Sky Industries, a privately held manufacturer of proprietary component parts used primarily in aerospace applications. He also held various management positions for 12 years with American Can and Arco Chemical.

Desai received his Master of Business Administration in Business Administration and Management from Temple’s Fox School of Business. He also holds a Master of Chemical Engineering degree from Montana State University-Bozeman, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, in Bombay.

Lockheed Martin, IBIT partner for successful National Cyber Analyst Challenge

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Lockheed Martin and Temple University’s Institute for Business and Information Technology (IBIT) joined forces Nov. 5-6 in Washington D.C. to host the first annual National Cyber Analyst Challenge. The competition, which welcomed students from nine universities, including a team from the Fox School of Business, was designed to enhance students’ skills in combatting cyber-attacks.

“Cyber security analysts represent a critical skill need for most organizations,” said Chris Kearns, Lockheed Martin’s Vice President of Enterprise IT Solutions. “These students showed great promise through their hands-on teamwork to solve real world challenges and progress through the competition.”

The challenge, which aims to inspire today’s technologically literate students to pursue careers in cyber security, was a three-month, multi-phase competition that presented each team with a cyber-security case to analyze. Temple’s team included five students from the Fox School’s Master of Science in IT Auditing and Cyber Security (ITACS) program: Jeta Gjana, Jose Gomez, Kerwing Hy, and Nick Nguyen, from ITACS’ security track; and Ibtissam Bazzine, of ITACS’ auditing track. The students received coaching from ITACS professors Ed Ferrara and Wade Mackey.

In the first phase of the competition, the students pored over 75 gigabytes of data to find the cause of the simulated hack. Then the teams submitted 10-slide summary reports to explain their respective solutions for preventing future cyber-attacks. In the second phase, in which only nine teams competed, the students received training from industry experts. The competition culminated in a real-time practical challenge held at Lockheed Martin’s Global Vision Center in Crystal City, Va.

The winning team, from Iowa State University, was selected by a panel of industry experts and scored on technical proficiency, judgment, and communication. Iowa State’s students received $25,000 in prize money. The runners-up, including Fox’s team, received awards of $7,500-$15,000 to support student, faculty, and curriculum development.

“It was gratifying to work with Lockheed Martin to create such a student- and faculty-centric opportunity,” said Dr. Munir Mandviwalla, IBIT’s Executive Director and the Chair of Management Information Systems at the Fox School. “We hope to increase the national cyber talent pool across the nation’s top programs in Management Information Systems, Computer Science, and Engineering.”

Lockheed Martin and IBIT create National Cyber Analyst Challenge

Temple University’s Institute for Business and Information Technology (IBIT) and Lockheed Martin are joining forces to help solve the cyber talent crisis that faces the country. This fall they will host a National Cyber Analyst Challenge designed to encourage and support the best students currently pursuing cyber related degrees in the top cyber programs in the nation.

Between seven and 10 schools with appropriate programs will select and field a team of top students (undergraduate or master’s studying information systems, computer science or engineering) to participate in the three-phase competition. First, each team will analyze and propose solutions to a cyber case. The second phase is a full day of virtual training. The finals, a real-time practical challenge, will be held in Washington, D.C. in October.

Each school that joins the contest will receive $15,000 to support students, faculty and travel.  The winning team will be awarded up to $25,000.

The Cyber Analyst Challenge was created to respond to strong needs in the industry.

According to SimplyHired.com, in April 2015 there were 26,980 open cyber-security related positions. The need in these positions is less for operators and more for analysts. As threats multiply and diversify, intelligence analysis and identification is becoming critical, rather than secondary to the ability to configure or code secure servers. Yet, the job seekers in the talent pipeline find it difficult to integrate operational skills with strategic threat and cyber analysis.

Our programs and our customers have a significant need for students to enter the workforce with not only the technical cyber skills but the analysis mindset that a competition like this will foster, explained Chris Kearns, Lockheed Martin vice president of Enterprise IT Solutions. We are thrilled to partner with our nation’s top universities to invest in the future workforce.

The competition will not only enhance the skills of the future workforce and inspire students to pursue careers in cyber-security.  Students will receive fast-paced, real world practical experience, scholarships, recognition and the opportunity to engage with others who share their interests, nationwide.

This competition is unique because it focuses on student development from the start and will serve as a role model for how to develop talent by engaging with industry in systematic and sustained manner, said Dr. Munir Mandviwalla, Associate Professor and Chair of the Fox School of Business’ Management Information Systems department, and IBIT Executive Director.

Fox School’s Institute for Business and Information Technology (IBIT), at Temple University, provides cutting-edge knowledge and valuable connections to sustain excellence in information technology. IBIT integrates industry perspectives with academic research expertise to create forums for generating and exchanging best practices.

IBIT is affiliated with the Fox School’s nationally ranked Department of Management Information Systems. IBIT draws participating faculty and students from MIS as well as the expertise of the entire Fox and Temple University community.

For more information please visit http://cyberanalystchallenge.org