Last year, the security consulting community reached a new milestone: the introduction of the Ed Chandler Security Innovation Award. The award, presented for the very first time at CONSULT 2025 and co-sponsored by SecuritySpecifiers and Security magazine, honors the life, legacy and influence of Edmonds (Ed) Chandler Jr. The inaugural award is designed to recognize the innovation that advances both the practice and impact of security consulting.

Chandler served in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War before graduating with a B.A. Physics from UC Berkeley. In 1974, Chandler started the Easter Company, which later became Security By Design, Inc., with his wife Lorna. Lorna currently serves as CEO of the independent security consulting firm located in Pacheco, Calif.

Ed Chandler passed away on April 7, 2025 in Roseville, Calif. This new award, presented for the first time at CONSULT 2025 in October, aims to honor Chandler’s legacy. The 2025 winner was Advanced Data Risk Management (ADRM) for their security platform DEFENDER, which provides a comprehensive security dashboard and received a SIA New Products + Solutions (NPS) Award at ISC West earlier that year. It has been deployed at Dell sites throughout the world.

DEFENDER allows users to visualize and track security projects across an organization, improving visibility and coordination. It consolidates project information and develops a consistent assessment report format. DEFENDER has more than 300 assessment and design projects across 28 countries.

Previously, ADRM received the Elliot A. Boxerbaum Award in 2022 for their security design work on the 40-story skyscraper at One Post Office Square in downtown Boston, Massachusetts. Working alongside the building’s architect, ADRM ensured that safety was prioritized during the building’s renovations. This award is also co-sponsored by SecuritySpecifiers and Security magazine and recognizes collaboration, design excellence, creativity and administration for a security project. The award is named for the late Elliot Boxerbaum, former President and Founder of Security Risk Management Consultants, Inc., who passed away in 2014 from ALS.

Dan O'Neill, President and CEO at ADRM, accepted the Boxerbaum award during a ceremony at the 2022 CONSULT event in Nashville, Tenn.. O’Neill returned to CONSULT in 2025 to accept the inaugural Ed Chandler Security Innovation Award.

“ADRM’s Defender exemplifies the type of innovation that we hope to recognize annually with the Award named in Ed Chandler’s honor.,” says Ray Coulombe, Managing Director of SecuritySpecifiers. “There are so many ways in which security consultants innovate, impacting both product and process. Ed was a master at this and inspired so many of us in the security community. Congratulations to Dan and his team."