Derrik Oates

I have 26yrs of Professional IT experience working with a myriad of Federal, Corp., or small business customers in disparate varied environments. Proven ability to align all parties from C-Suite to Technician to User/Operator under 1 strategy, drive the initiative, and train all involved parties. Though a reliable self-starter, I am a big believer in team and that our varied expertise and experiences make the collective stronger. Often considered the glue in a group. I bring a wealth of knowledge doing risk analysis, identifying misalignments, including overlaps/gaps in skillset, procedures, or tools. My approach is rooted in an understanding our security landscape is constantly evolving and change is inevitable, whether that change is rapid or incremental. With the ability to learn almost any new Tool, Strategy, or Environment in 3 – 6 months, I am ideally utilized in environments seeking to integrate new capabilities, whether that is technology, tool, or personnel. My international upbringing and multilingual communication skills allow me to operate well multicultural environments. Clearance: Public Trust Latest observations: Nonconventional computers (eg. IoT, Smart devices, SCADA, satellites), mesh networks (eg. power and data), and Blockchain (Supply Chain, Auditing, Inventory, Authentication) are our future. Most Security and Risk Mgmt strategies are developed assuming Geo/Political stability with a few bad state actors. Might be time to incorporate assumptions of international and domestic instability for certain environments. Society will shift to an incremental mindset at some point, as our ability to understand the power of small efforts aggregated, expands. From personal finance (compound interest and fees); to health maintenance (calorie cutting, small workouts); energy creation (vary sources) and usage (efficiencies); sustainability (reduce, reuse, recycle); development (code, modular devices) or even movements (political or social) Fear (of scarcity, of irrelevance, of death), and inequality (rights, financial, freedom to error) have been the 2 most crippling forces in my lifetime.