SIA announces winners for the 2023 Denis R. Hébert Identity Management Scholarship

SILVER SPRING, Md. – The Security Industry Association (SIA) has named two recipients for the 2023 Denis R. Hébert Identity Management Scholarship, a program offering $5,000 scholarships for young professional SIA members to help further their education in the field of identity management. The winners for the 2023 Hébert Scholarship are Colin DePree, head of sales strategy, North America, at SALTO Systems, and Constantine Tremouliaris, integration solutions specialist, door security solutions, at ASSA ABLOY.

This scholarship program – named after Hébert, a longtime security industry executive and past member of SIA’s Board of Directors who served as SIA board chair from 2016 to 2018 – is designed to support the professional development goals of individual SIA members and student members who specialize in identity management – a field involving the systematic control of access, authenticating users, securing assets and protecting privacy. Identity management encompasses many aspects of risk management, public policy, fraud prevention, privacy, data analysis, risk and governance, information technology and security.

“My sincere congratulations to the 2023 Identity Management Scholarship winners, Colin and Constantine,” said Hébert. “Their individual contributions help to promote the recognition of access and identity management as a critical element in the mitigation of threats to assets, authentication and privacy.  Hopefully, this scholarship will help them both further develop their career development and education in this key field within our industry.”

In his role as head of sales strategy for SALTO Systems’ North American operations, Colin DePree drives the vision and supports an international operations team to put SALTO and its customers, partners and integrators ahead of the technology curve. He is a passionate believer that access control should be not an organizational hurdle but an opportunity to improve business processes, identify efficiencies, optimize operations and ultimately unlock potential strategic value, and he and his SALTO team work to create solutions that allow customers to focus on and grow their businesses, removing friction in the pursuit of the goal – to simplify and digitalize access control.

DePree is a security industry veteran with a wealth of experience and a passion for improving the safety, security, health and happiness of communities through innovation and determination. Prior to joining SALTO, he held sales leadership positions at Pro-Tec Design and Floyd Total Security. DePree is an active SIA member who serves on the SIA Member Experience and Engagement Committee, formerly served on the SIA RISE Steering Committee and is still involved with the SIA RISE community and is a member of the SIA Women in Security Forum community.

“I am honored to accept this scholarship, as I know what Denis has done for this industry, and receiving recognition in his name is very humbling,” said DePree. “Digital transformation is pervading through industries and sectors around the globe, and none more than access control and physical security. Access control is no longer purely about ‘control’ – it’s now about enabling access to an experience. As we move from a pure control-focused approach to an experience focus, an individual’s identity and authentication will become absolutely critical. I feel where the biggest unknown remains is who owns/manages/facilitates that identity, and I believe identity ownership and authentication of that identity will be a major obstacle that our industry needs to solve quickly to continue opening doors to opportunities.”

Constantine Tremouliaris – in his role as integration solutions specialist at ASSA ABLOY – serves as a business development overlay for a regional sales team, bridging the gap between access control software companies and hardware installers/distributors. His dedication and expertise have earned him recognition, most notably as the 2023 recipient of ASSA ABLOY’s People Making a Difference Award and the Digital Access Solutions Player of the Year for 2022. Prior to his time at ASSA ABLOY, Tremouliaris entered the electronics world in high school when he opened a custom car shop with his long-term friend installing custom award-winning sound systems, and air ride systems. Later he was introduced to security and became an integrator specializing in deploying access control in data centers and financial institutions.

Tremouliaris’ commitment to continuous learning and professional growth is evident through his active participation in certifications and educational seminars offered by SIA. One of the initiatives he is most passionate about involves advancing SIA’s Open Supervised Device Protocol (OSDP) standard within his company. He is a member of SIA’s OSDP Technical Subcommittee and is actively working towards utilizing OSDP not only for card readers but also for lock control and other peripheral devices at doors. Looking ahead, Constantine aspires to make a lasting impact on the security industry by creating a safer and more open world. In pursuit of his future endeavors, Tremouliaris plans to use the scholarship fund to delve into the intricacies of product management. Understanding the challenges faced by product managers will enable him to anticipate their needs better, aligning his efforts to support them effectively and help drive innovation directly from customers.

“What an absolute honor it is to receive a 2023 Denis R. Hébert Identity Management Scholarship! In the broader context of the security industry, current identity trends play a significant role in enhancing overall security. Two prominent trends that resonate with me are Increased Interoperability and Data Privacy. Achieving interoperability across the industry and reducing proprietary practices are crucial steps towards creating a safer and more open world,” said Tremouliaris. “This collaborative approach, as fostered by organizations like SIA, allows industry stakeholders to collectively work towards common goals without dictating standards. SIA’s role as a mediator ensures that the industry evolves together and addresses the challenges associated with identity management in a collaborative way.”

In 2018, SIA and the Board of Directors established the Denis R. Hébert Identity Management Scholarship program in recognition of the substantial subject matter expertise Hébert offered and continues to offer to SIA members. His input has helped businesses to interpret and influence identity management trends and achieve greater business success. In his role as a leader on the SIA board, Denis Hébert positively impacted SIA’s service to its members in the domain of identity management as evidenced through the development of many of its education, government relations and standards initiatives. Learn more here.