Top Security Executives Recognized At The 2025 Georgiaciso ORBIE Awards

Leading CISOs honored for leadership, security, and business impact

ALPHARETTA, Ga., Nov. 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The 2025 GeorgiaCISO ORBIE Awards recognized the exceptional leadership and cyber resilience of top security executives from BCD Travel, ABM Industries, Cox Communications, OneDigital, Blackbaud, ivision Scale, LLC, Georgia Tech Research Institute & Delta Air Lines. The prestigious ORBIE Awards - hosted by GeorgiaCISO, a chapter of the Inspire Leadership Network - honor CISOs who drive business transformation and industry impact.

Winners were recognized across eight categories: Super Global, Global, Large Enterprise, Enterprise, Large Corporate, Corporate, Nonprofit/Public Sector and Leadership. The ceremony, which took place at the Hotel at Avalon, brought together top executives and industry leaders to celebrate excellence in security leadership.

“Great CISOs recognize that the power of collaboration lies in trusted relationships,” said John Koester, GeorgiaCISO Chair. “The GeorgiaCISO ORBIE® Awards embody this by inspiring, connecting, and honoring CISOs for their leadership and the value they bring to Georgia businesses through enterprise security.”

Meet the 2025 GeorgiaCISO ORBIE Award Winners: 

›› Deborah Wheeler, Global CISO of Delta Air Lines, received the Leadership ORBIE.

›› Sherron Burgess, Global SVP & CISO of BCD Travel, received the Super Global ORBIE for organizations over $15 billion annual revenue & multi-national operations.

›› Stacy Hughes, SVP & CISO of ABM Industries, received the Global ORBIE for organizations over $2 billion annual revenue & multi-national operations.

›› Kim Keever, CISO of Cox Communications, received the Large Enterprise ORBIE for organizations over $2.3 billion annual revenue.

›› Kenny Cunningham, Director, IT Security of OneDigital, received the Enterprise ORBIE for organizations over $1.5 billion annual revenue.

›› Chuck Miller, CISO of Blackbaud, received the Large Corporate ORBIE for organizations over $550 million annual revenue.

›› Eric Aslaksen, CISO, General Manager - Security of ivision Scale, LLC, received the Corporate ORBIE for organizations up to $500 million annual revenue.

›› Eric Scott, CISO of Georgia Tech Research Institute, received the Nonprofit/Public Sector ORBIE for Government, education, and nonprofit organizations.

About the ORBIE:

The ORBIE is the preeminent executive recognition for C-suite leaders. Since 1998, the ORBIE Awards have recognized leadership excellence, building relationships between executives and trusted business partners, and inspiring the next generation of executives. Finalists and winners are selected through an independent peer-adjudicated process led by prior ORBIE recipients based on the following criteria: 

• Leadership and management effectiveness 
• Business protection created by enterprise security
• Engagement in industry and community endeavors

GeorgiaCISO ORBIE Keynote & Attendance: 

The keynote address for the GeorgiaCISO ORBIE Awards was delivered by Deborah Wheeler, Global CISO of Delta Air Lines, who was interviewed by John Wheeler, SVP & Chief Security Officer of Cognizant. Over 300 guests attended, representing leading Georgia organizations and their technology partners.

The following sponsors made the 2025 GeorgiaCISO ORBIE Awards possible:

• Underwriters: Fortinet & Google Cloud
• Gold Sponsors: Darktrace, DigiCert, Meditology Services & Tata Consultancy Services
• Silver Sponsors: Cloudflare, Dune Security, Okta, Tanium & Versprite
• Bronze Sponsors: Between Pixels, Firemon, Guidepoint Security, Island, ivision, Rubrik, Shree Partners, Stacklet.io
• Media Partner: Atlanta Business Chronicle
• Nonprofit Partner: Year Up United

To learn more about sponsorship opportunities and how to connect with leading C-suite executives across North America, click here.

About GeorgiaCISO:

GeorgiaCISO is the preeminent peer leadership network of chief information security officers (CISOs) in Georgia. As one of over 40 chapters of the Inspire Leadership Network, GeorgiaCISO belongs to a national membership organization exclusively comprised of C-suite leaders from public and private businesses, government, education, healthcare, and nonprofit institutions.

GeorgiaCISO is led by a CISO Advisory Board, with support from an executive director and staff. Underwriter executives support the chapter and ensure the programs remain non-commercial and exclusive to qualified CISOs and members.

About Inspire Leadership Network:

Inspire Leadership Network is the preeminent peer leadership network of C-suite executives. With nearly 2,000 members across more than 40 local chapters, Inspire members serve public and private businesses, government, education, healthcare, and non-profit institutions. Inspire exists to help leaders thrive in today’s most challenging executive roles.

Media Contact

Nicole Lammes
nicole.lammes@inspirecxo.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/26c459d2-997f-48e5-975a-275fbb897315