Al Pickering
Chief Executive Officer, PMP, CISSP
Mr. Pickering is the founder of Kaizen Approach, Inc. He has spent more than 30 years in service to the Intelligence Community, both as a member of the Marine Corps and as a civilian. He has provided a wide range of SIGINT and IT services, including network architecture, design, administration, enterprise management, enterprise security and instructional methods, and program management to the Department of Defense and federal government customers.
Mr. Pickering retired from the Marine Corps in 2002, following 20 years of honorable service. In September 2009 he founded Kaizen Approach, Inc. Currently, he develops and implements operational policies and strategic planning for the company, along with overseeing the day-to-day operations. He is responsible for the company’s fiscal activity, leads the senior executive team and allocates capital to the company’s priorities.
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Mr. Pickering earned a bachelor’s degree in computer science and a graduate certificate in information assurance (IA) from the University of Maryland, an NSA-designated National Center of Academic Excellence in IA Education. In addition, he is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP).
He is a current member of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA), InfraGard Maryland Members Alliance (IMMA), International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium (ISC)2, Information Systems Security Association (ISSA) and the Program Management Institute (PMI).
Mr. Pickering supports the American Red Cross, Disabled American Veterans, the Fleet Reserve Association, Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Wounded Warrior Project.
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“If you’re not 10 minutes early, you’re late. It’s a philosophy you can apply to life in general and to cybersecurity specifically.”
Melissa McCoy
Chief Technology Officer, CISSP-ISSAP, CCSP
Ms. McCoy contributes 30 years of security and information assurance experience to Kaizen Approach. She has worked with a wide variety of security disciplines, including network security, host and application security, security policy development, operations, security certification /compliance and architecture/design. Ms. McCoy’s background is primarily in commercial IT environments, with recent years spent assisting the Intelligence Community. For Kaizen Approach, she manages the commercial cybersecurity practice and specifically supports individual customer’s cyber security solutions.
Previously, Ms. McCoy was responsible for a former employer becoming ISO 27001 / BS7799 certified for seven consecutive years. Ms. McCoy was a key person in developing and maintaining an enterprise security program for a major financial services company.
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Ms. McCoy earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Penn State University and her Masters in Information Technology from George Washington University. She is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP) and an Information Systems Security Architecture Professional (ISSAP).
Ms. McCoy is a current member of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA), Information Systems Security Association (ISSA) and the International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium (ISC)2.
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“Each customer gets the best security advice and assistance we can provide, and that comes from putting the customer’s interests first.”
Richard Tait, PMP
Chief Operating Officer
Mr. Tait brings more than 25 years of program and project management experience in Information Technology within the Intelligence Community and Department of Defense. At Kaizen Approach he provides leadership, management and the vision necessary to ensure that Kaizen Approach, has the proper operational controls, administrative, reporting procedures, and people in place to effectively grow the company and to ensure financial strength and operating efficiency. Additionally, he maintains continuous alignment of Kaizen Approach’s strategic business objectives, and makes recommendations to modify programs to enhance effectiveness toward the desired result and strategic intent.
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Mr. Tait earned an associate’s degree in Information Systems from University of Maryland University College. He spent nine years in the Navy where he earned the rank of United States Cryptologist Technician First Class. He is a member of the Program Management Institute (PMI) and is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP). Additional certifications include ITIL v3 Foundation, CompTIA Security+, and Sun Certified Solaris System Administrator.
Mr. Tait supports the American Red Cross and the American Cancer Society.
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“To meet a customer’s goals, you need to listen closely to understand their specific environment and their requirements before you can present the best available solution.”
