Under Erickson, SIA is regularly advocating for federal grant funds that can be used by security practitioners to finance projects protecting critical infrastructure like airports and K-12 schools. SIA is producing a number of publications and resources to help security professionals understand emerging technologies, compliance issues and trends such as AI and robotics, and the association offers educational programs within the ISC West and ISC East tradeshows.

SIA is working with ASIS International to produce a joint Career Pathways resource to understand the career paths of security management and supplier personnel, including their educational and professional backgrounds, job titles and responsibilities, required skills, knowledge and abilities, which will provide insight into the common ways professionals enter and advance through the security field.

“I am proud of my role in changing the culture of SIA,” Erickson says. “SIA was a very insular organization seven or eight years ago. Since then, SIA has become more professional and responsive to its members, created an unprecedented number of member benefits, and collaborated frequently with industry organizations, particularly those that represent security practitioners.”

Prior to joining SIA, Erickson served as manager of legislative affairs for Alcatel and legislative director for the Organization for the Promotion and Advancement of Small Telecommunications Companies, and he served on the senior legislative staff of U.S. Senator Rod Grams.

Erickson has served as a member of several boards, including The Catholic University of America Alumni Association, Mission 500, the National Capital Region Security Forum and the IAHSS Foundation.

“In 1999, I recognized the need for a positive training source for security officers, supervisors and managers,” Layne says. “Together with my son and other leaders in the industry, we formed the International Foundation for Cultural Property Protection. We continue to train candidates for certification at leading institutions throughout the U.S. and abroad, and are recognized as setting the standard for best practices in protecting cultural properties and public institutions.”

Layne is the author of “Safeguarding Cultural Properties,” “The Cultural Property Protection Manual” and co-author of “Suggested Guidelines in Museum Security.” He has authored national certification programs for security officers, supervisors, managers and instructors, and he presents seminars, workshops and keynotes for state, regional and national associations.

He has served as protection advisor to more than 500 institutions, crime prevention coordinator for several law enforcement agencies, and special instructor for the Colorado Law Enforcement Training Academy, among others.

Layne is a graduate of Missouri Military Academy, the U.S. Army Infantry Officer Candidate School, Career Officer Military Police Program, and the FBI Police Management Program.

For future security and law enforcement professionals, Layne says: “There is considerable competition for leading roles in both security and law enforcement management. It is strongly recommended for those wishing to advance in this field to gain a positive combination of field experience and academic achievement. Many excellent opportunities are lost in the interview process. Learn about the positive traits interviewers look for, and be prepared to make a positive impression. This includes what you wear, your personal hygiene and your ability to directly answer questions.”

“What becomes clear is that the demographics of crime have been changing,” Dr. Wells says. “As a society, we are less violent than in the past but more dishonest. In short, while murder is down, scams are at an all-time high. It is imperative that security and law enforcement professionals respond by educating themselves on how to address this growing threat.”

After graduating with honors from the University of Oklahoma, Dr. Wells spent two years on the audit staff of Cooper and Lybrand (now PriceWaterhouseCoopers) before being appointed as a Special Agent of the FBI, where he spent 10 years investigating thousands of fraud cases ranging from nickel-and-dime con artists to former U.S. Attorney General John Mitchell for his role in the Watergate case. In 1982, Dr. Wells left the government to form a firm of criminologists specializing in fraud detection and deterrence – Wells & Associates.

In 1988, Dr. Wells founded the ACFE, and since then he has lectured to tens of thousands of business professionals, written 23 books, and authored frequent articles and research projects. In addition to his work with the ACFE, Dr. Wells served as a professor of fraud examination in the Graduate Business School at the University of Texas at Austin, earning him recognition from the American Accounting Association.

Dr. Wells has served on various senior committees, such as the American Institute of CPAs, and he is a member of the AICPA’s Business and Industry Hall of Fame. In 2010, he was honored as a Doctor of Commercial Science from York College of the City University of New York.

“Other than the 36-year marriage to the love of my life, I’m proudest of my involvement in the anti-fraud community. It spans four decades and led to the formation of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners,” Dr. Wells says.