Join Jason Gooley, Technical Evangelist at Cisco and Kody Burg, Managing Consultant at EDCi, for an exciting look at the biggest announcements and emerging trends coming out of Cisco L!VE - and what they really mean for your business.

From the latest innovations in observability and Splunk to the growing impact of AI, they’ll break down how these advancements are helping organizations work smarter, gain deeper visibility, and simplify IT operations.

Discover how AI-driven tools and services are transforming the way teams manage networks, improve performance, and deliver stronger business outcomes. Most importantly, you’ll walk away with practical insights into how these innovations can create real value for your organization today and prepare you for what’s next.

Presenters

Kody Burg

Managing Consultant, Cloud, AI & Governance Strategy | EDCi

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Kody is a Managing Consultant at EDCi and recognized as a thought leader at the intersection of cloud, AI, and governance—helping organizations adopt AI confidently without sacrificing control. He works closely with clients to design secure, scalable frameworks that enable responsible AI adoption, ensuring teams can move fast while maintaining visibility, compliance, and security.

Blending deep technical expertise with real-world business insight, Kody brings a pragmatic perspective on governing AI usage—from policy and risk management to automation and enablement. Known for making complex topics approachable, he helps organizations strike the right balance between innovation and oversight—so they can confidently accelerate their AI journey.

Jason Gooley

Technical Evangelist | Cisco

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Bio Coming Soon!

Your network didn’t get less secure when AI arrived, but your data got easier to reach. The fundamentals still apply, but AI is expanding where and how risk shows up, often in environments that once felt locked down.

Organizations are adopting AI faster than their infrastructure and security strategies can keep up. From embedded AI in everyday tools to custom implementations, most environments already carry unseen risk.

In this session, we’ll explore where AI poses real security risks, how misalignment between IT and OT teams increases exposure, and what organizations should prioritize first to strengthen their security posture.

Join Curt Vurpillat, Sr. Sales Engineer, Cisco Security at Ingram Micro, alongside EDCi for a practical, real-world discussion on how to identify vulnerabilities, reduce exposure, and better align IT and OT teams.

Presenters

Curt Vurpillat

Sr. Technology Consultant | Ingram Micro

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Curt Vurpillat is a Technical Enablement Architect at Ingram Micro focused on Cisco networking and security, drawing on over 25 years of experience spanning end-user network management, IT consulting, MSP operations, and technical channel sales. In his current role, Curt helps partners and end users turn cybersecurity from a talking point into something they can actually operationalize — whether that's securing IT, OT, or AI.

John Rohland

Managing Consultant, Security Solutions | EDCi

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John Rohland is a seasoned consultant and thought leader in data protection, governance, and secure digital workspaces, bringing over 25 years of experience across enterprise IT leadership, infrastructure design, and end-user computing. He helps organizations take a strategic, business-aligned approach to securing and managing data—turning complex environments into well-governed, resilient ecosystems.

With deep expertise across Microsoft and Citrix platforms, cloud technologies, and endpoint management, John brings a pragmatic, real-world perspective on how to classify, protect, and control access to critical data. Known for bridging technical depth with operational strategy, he partners with organizations to strengthen compliance, reduce risk, and build scalable data governance frameworks.

Strong governance and management are essential to securing your environment. This session explores foundational best practices for protecting, classifying, and controlling access to critical data across your organization.

Learn how leading platforms from Cisco and Microsoft can support a unified, secure data strategy. Walk away with practical guidance to strengthen data protection, improve compliance, and reduce risk in an increasingly complex landscape.

Presenter

John Rohland

Managing Consultant, Security Solutions | EDCi

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John Rohland is a seasoned consultant and thought leader in data protection, governance, and secure digital workspaces, bringing over 25 years of experience across enterprise IT leadership, infrastructure design, and end-user computing. He helps organizations take a strategic, business-aligned approach to securing and managing data—turning complex environments into well-governed, resilient ecosystems.

With deep expertise across Microsoft and Citrix platforms, cloud technologies, and endpoint management, John brings a pragmatic, real-world perspective on how to classify, protect, and control access to critical data.

As organizations embrace Zero Trust, network visibility and device awareness have become critical to securing today’s dynamic environments.

This session explores how Network Access Control (NAC) serves as a foundational layer of defense—helping you identify, assess, and control every device connecting to your network.

Learn how modern NAC platforms are evolving to meet 2026 security demands, from enhanced visibility to automated policy enforcement. Walk away with practical insights on turning your network into a proactive security asset.

Presenter

Jacob Scholtka

Managing Consultant, Network & Security Strategy | EDCi

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Jacob Scholtka is a Managing Consultant and recognized thought leader in secure network architecture and Zero Trust strategy. With deep expertise spanning network infrastructure, collaboration, and security, Jacob helps organizations turn their networks into intelligent, policy-driven security assets.

Leveraging extensive hands-on experience with technologies like Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE), NAC, and secure access frameworks, Jacob brings a practical, forward-looking perspective on how to strengthen visibility, enforce control, and scale securely in today’s evolving threat landscape.

AI is transforming every part of the business, but adoption is often moving faster than governance and security policies can keep up.

In this webinar, Kody will explore how organizations can embrace AI-driven innovation while reducing security, compliance, and data exposure risks. He’ll examine the growing phenomenon of “Shadow AI” – the modern evolution of Shadow IT – as employees increasingly leverage tools like ChatGPT, Copilot, Claude, and other generative AI platforms outside of formal IT oversight.

Attendees will gain a real-world perspective on the risks associated with AI adoption and learn practical strategies to enable AI securely through greater visibility, Zero Trust principles, and policy-based controls.

The session will also highlight the critical distinction between simply blocking AI and effectively governing it. By the end of the conversation, you’ll walk away with actionable guidance for building an AI governance strategy that balances security, compliance, and productivity – empowering innovation without slowing business progress.

Presenter

Kody Burg

Managing Consultant, Cloud, AI & Governance Strategy | EDCi

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Kody is a Managing Consultant at EDCi and recognized as a thought leader at the intersection of cloud, AI, and governance—helping organizations adopt AI confidently without sacrificing control.

He works closely with clients to design secure, scalable frameworks that enable responsible AI adoption, ensuring teams can move fast while maintaining visibility, compliance, and security. Known for making complex topics approachable, he helps organizations strike the right balance between innovation and oversight.

Are your internal and external communications truly secure?

This session dives into best practices for protecting Cisco collaboration platforms, including Communications Manager and Unity Connection, against evolving threats.

Learn how to safeguard voice, voicemail, and external communications while maintaining seamless user experiences. Walk away with actionable strategies to strengthen your collaboration security posture and reduce risk across your organization.

Presenter

Matt Thomma

Managing Consultant, Communication & Collaboration | EDCi

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Matt Thomma is a seasoned Managing Consultant in secure collaboration and converged communications, with more than 30 years of experience designing and implementing complex voice and data environments.

He helps organizations modernize and protect their communication platforms— ensuring every interaction is both seamless and secure. With deep expertise across Cisco Unified Communications, Webex, voice gateways, and network infrastructure, Matt brings a strategic, real-world perspective on securing voice, video, and messaging without compromising user experience.