Michael Bickford

Michael Bickford has extensive experience in the field of Identity and Access Management (IAM) and cybersecurity. Michael most recently worked at Simeio as the Vice President and Global IAM Solutions Engineering Practice Lead. In this role, they led a team of solutions engineers and architects to provide IAM solutions for clients, applying best practices and a zero-trust methodology to enhance security resilience, automate processes, and reduce risk and total cost of ownership for tools.

Prior to their role at Simeio, Michael held positions at Accenture, where they served as a Security Consulting Associate Director in the Digital Identity Practice. Here, they provided IAM and cybersecurity thought leadership to clients, generated sales, and designed and delivered solutions using market-leading tools.

Before that, Michael worked at GE as an IAM Program Risk & Compliance Senior Manager, where they managed the enterprise Risk Management program for IAM. Michael focused on reducing risk and insider threat vectors while improving risk posture across the organization.

Michael also had experience as an IAM Associate Director at Protiviti, where they provided technical leadership to clients, generated sales, and built up the new IAM practice capability for commercial clients.

Earlier in their career, Michael worked at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond as a Senior Enterprise Security Project Manager and Deputy Director of Internal Network Services. During their time there, they successfully executed the enterprise IAM strategy and managed the migration of national banks and offices into a centralized support model, resulting in significant cost savings.

Additionally, Michael has experience at Capital One, where they held roles as a Compliance Manager and Senior Consultant in Information Security.

Throughout their career, Michael Bickford has demonstrated expertise in IAM and cybersecurity, delivering world-class solutions, generating sales, and driving organizational success.

Michael Bickford has a diverse education history, starting with an Associate's Degree in Electrical/Electronic design from Herzing University, which they obtained from 1987 to 1989. Michael then went on to earn a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Virginia Commonwealth University - School of Business, completing this degree from 1995 to 1997. Following that, they pursued a Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a Concentration in Accounting from the same institution, which they completed from 1997 to 2001.

In recent years, Michael has furthered their education in the field of cybersecurity. Michael obtained a Master of Science (MS) degree in Cybersecurity from Liberty University between 2018 and 2020. Additionally, they hold several certifications related to information security and technology, including being a CyberArk Pre-Sales Engineer certified by CyberArk in May 2020, an Okta Certified Professional certified by Okta, Inc. in May 2020, and a Certified Information Security Manager (CISM) certified by ISACA in December 2013.

Other notable certifications Michael has obtained include ITIL - Service Management from PEOPLECERT in February 2013, Six Sigma Green Belt - Certified Business Process Manager (BPM) from Capital One in March 2011, Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) from ISACA in July 2009, Certified in the Governance of Enterprise IT (CGEIT) from ISACA in June 2009, Certified Scrum Master (CSM) / Agile Coach from Innovel / Scrum Alliance in January 2008, Certified Risk Analyst from the American Academy of Financial Management in May 2007, and Project Management Professional (PMP) from the Project Management Institute in February 2007.

Michael's education and certifications demonstrate their commitment to continuous learning and expertise in various areas of business administration, accounting, cybersecurity, and technology.