ISA Automation Summit and Expo - Career Skills Track

Keynote - Security by Design

Carolina Ballroom / Francis Marion Hotel
James Clark
Vice President, Information Technology, South Jersey Industries Information Security

Jamie will present a success story on delivering a secure solution allowing data to traverse OT to IT to gain central visibility across our entire portfolio of farms generating renewable energy. It is a very challenging project designed from the ground up, emphasizing cyber security for safety and compliance.

With 22 years of experience leading IT teams and 15 years in building cybersecurity programs across the chemical, medical, and utility industries, Jamie Clark is a visionary technologist who bridges the gap between security, IT, SCADA, and business teams. Currently, Jamie leads the Information Security (IT/OT) & GRC programs for South Jersey Industries (SJI), where he also manages the OT Solution Services Team. SJI is a leader in delivering safe, reliable, and affordable energy solutions. Jamie holds a BS in Computer Information Systems (CIS), an MBA, and certifications including Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and Global Industrial Cyber Security Professional (GISCP).

The Power of EQ: Bridging the Gap Between Technical Brilliance and Human Connections

Gold Ballroom | Francis Marion Hotel
Presenter: Karine Leblanc, Modular Solution Weseter Sales Manager, Daikin

For leaders in the automation industry, the challenge of building robust teams and nurturing client relationships often poses a stumbling block. In today ' s technical world, possessing technical skills alone is no longer enough. To truly thrive, we must also cultivate our human skills—those qualities that connect us to our humanity, define our personalities, and enable us to communicate and interact effectively with others. By developing emotional intelligence, you will transition from being task-focused managers to empathetic and inspiring leaders. This transformation will not only improve team performance and project outcomes but also create a positive and thriving work environment, leading your organization toward greater success and growth.

Meet Karine Leblanc, the dynamo who wears many hats—engineer, bestselling author and international professional speaker.

As the Western Sales Manager for Modular Solutions at Daikin Applied, Karine blends engineering expertise with a talent for coaching and relationship-building to deliver cutting-edge solutions. She’s all about speeding up projects, saving clients money, and making their HVAC experience seamless from start to finish. Armed with a mechanical engineering degree from Montreal's Ecole de Technologie Superieure and a slew of certifications, she's a powerhouse. Karine is a John Maxwell coach, trainer, speaker, a DISC-certified behavioral analysis consultant, a Genos emotional intelligence certified practitioner and an eSpeakers certified virtual presenter.

Digital Transformation Track: Fireside Chat: Engaging Young Minds in Automation

Colonial Ballroom | Francis Marion Hotel

As technology advances, the demand for skilled professionals in automation continues to grow. In this discussion, we’ll explore how to inspire and equip the next generation with the tools and knowledge they need to excel in automation and drive successful digital transformation strategies for companies worldwide.

Our expert panelists will discuss:

The importance of early exposure to automation concepts and technologies.
Strategies for promoting automation education in schools and universities.
Building strong partnerships between industry leaders and educational institutions.
Reinforcing the pipeline from school to work via early career programs designed to attract, train, and retain automation talent.
Real-world examples of successful initiatives that are preparing young talent for the future of work.

Presenters:

Riddhi Padariya - 100x100 Riddhi Padariya, Sr. Controls Engineer, Heirloom

Sherry LaBonne - 100x10012 Sherry LaBonne, Software Product Manager, Rockwell Automation

Shreya Nandiraju - 100x100 Shreya Nandiraju, Consultant, Global Infrastructure Advisory - Deal Advisory, KPMG

Patrick Corbett - 100px Patrick Corbett, Senior Systems Data Engineer, Eli Lilly and Company

Riddhi Padariya has over six years of experience in the Automation and Controls Engineering field. She recently held the position of Senior Controls Engineer at Heirloom, a Direct Air Capture company featured in *Time* magazine’s Top 50 Green Tech Companies of 2024. Previously, she spent four years at Tesla as an engineer, playing a key role in deploying code for the Tesla Megapack line, Model 3/Y Battery Module lines, and the 4680-cell manufacturing line. Riddhi has also served as a judge at the United Nations COP28 Hack for Earth and HackMIT at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In her free time, she mentors junior engineers and college students who are curious about the world of manufacturing and industrial automation.

Sherry LaBonne is a Product Manager for cloud-based design software at Rockwell Automation. She is a graduate of Rockwell’s early career Engineer-in-Training program and a former controls engineer. She is also a leader in Rockwell’s Supporting Women in Engineering (RASWE) employee group, and is passionate about mentoring young women and other early career employees entering automation professions. Within ISA, she is a past chair of the Young Professional Committee, a Division Excellence in Technical Achievement – Process Measurement and Control Division awardee, and a 2025 Member-Elect of the ISA Executive Board.

Deeper Dive with Houston Green

Gold Ballroom | Francis Marion Hotel

Ashley Weckworth - 100px Moderator: Ashley Weckwerth, Project Manager, Burns & McDonnell

Presenter: Houston Green, Space Exploration Engineer, The Aerospace Corporation, NASA Johnson Space Center

Ashley Weckwerth graduated as a chemical engineer and then started her career as an instrumentation and controls engineer in the oil and gas industry for Burns and McDonnell, an EPC firm headquartered in Kansas City. She worked in that role for over 8 years before transferring departments in 2020 to be a Project Manager managing SCADA engineering projects in the electric utility space. Now, she manages a company-wide top contract with over 40 automation engineers on her team located across the country. Ashley has been involved in ISA her entire professional career including when she changed industries, roles and relocated. Ashley’s ISA journey started at the section level working her way through all the roles: Program Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, VP, and President, and Delegate. Later, she got involved in division leadership and became ChemPID’s Director-Elect and then Director. Ashley then was elected to ISA’s Executive Board and served a 3-year term there. She served in many various committees and task forces along the way too and as of the latest ISA election, she has been elected as ISA’s 2025 President-elect Secretary (2026 ISA President). Ashley credits ISA a lot for her ability to grow in her career, from the leadership skills and knowledge she has gained.

Houston Green is the Human Surface Mobility and Extravehicular Activity Program Technical Leader for reduced gravity environments at NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC). He manages cost, schedule, and upgrades for the Active Response Gravity Offload System (ARGOS) Project used in testing of the Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV) and space suits associated with the xEVAS contract and is currently writing system requirements for a host of new and innovative gravity offload capabilities to be used for testing and training of Astronauts within upcoming Artemis missions. Houston was previously a Designer and Operator on the ARGOS Project, where his team designed and are currently assembling the Next Generation ARGOS (AX3S) in the Building 9 Highbay at JSC.

Leveling Up: Building a Career in Automation

Gold Ballroom | Francis Marion Hotel

As automation transforms industries, thriving in this fast-evolving landscape requires more than just technical expertise. This panel brings together professionals at all levels from the automation industry to share the secrets behind their career success. Whether you’re looking to climb the corporate ladder, drive innovation, or create positive change in your work environment, this session offers practical insights and real-world examples to empower your career. Attendees will also have the opportunity to ask questions and gain advice from our industry experts who have excelled in this dynamic field.

Discover how to stand out, lead with confidence and shape the future in the automation industry.

Moderator: Patrick Corbett, Senior Systems Data Engineer, Eli Lilly and Company

Panelists:

Colleen Goldsborough, Industry Sales Manager, United Electric Supply

Ashley Weckwerth, Project Manager, Burns & McDonnell

Brian Curtis, REFS Contract Manager, Novartis

Alan Bryant, Senior Automation Engineer, Oxy

Colleen Goldsborough graduated as an electrical engineer and started her career as a Sales Engineer for United Electric Supply for over 10 years. She worked with customer from end users, OEMs, and integrators in many different markets including, but not limited to, Water/Wastewater, Food & Beverage, MMM and Process & Control. She currently is the Industry Sales Manager at United Electric and uses the skills she obtained from the many volunteer opportunities she obtained from being a part of ISA, such as District Chair, YP Committee Chair, WWID & Wilmington Section board members. She currently is a member of ISA’s Executive Board.

Ashley Weckwerth graduated as a chemical engineer and then started her career as an instrumentation and controls engineer in the oil and gas industry for Burns and McDonnell, an EPC firm headquartered in Kansas City. She worked in that role for over 8 years before transferring departments in 2020 to be a Project Manager managing SCADA engineering projects in the electric utility space. Now, she manages a company-wide top contract with over 40 automation engineers on her team located across the country. Ashley has been involved in ISA her entire professional career including when she changed industries, roles and relocated. Ashley’s ISA journey started at the section level working her way through all the roles: Program Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, VP, and President, and Delegate. Later, she got involved in division leadership and became ChemPID’s Director-Elect and then Director. Ashley then was elected to ISA’s Executive Board and served a 3-year term there. She served in many various committees and task forces along the way too and as of the latest ISA election, she has been elected as ISA’s 2025 President-elect Secretary (2026 ISA President). Ashley credits ISA a lot for her ability to grow in her career, from the leadership skills and knowledge she has gained.

Brian Curtis is the Operations Manager for Veolia Energy Ireland, where he oversees services provided to major pharmaceutical companies such as Novartis, Pfizer, BioMarin, and Roche Pharmaceuticals in Cork, Ireland. With over 40 years of experience in the petrochemical, biotech, and bulk pharmaceutical industries, his expertise lies in instrumentation and automation control systems. He has managed projects in Ireland, England, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, and Germany, showcasing his extensive international experience.

Curtis has a strong presence in the International Society of Automation (ISA), where he served as 2018 Society President. His contributions include serving on the ISA Executive Board, the Finance Committee, and the Geographical Assembly. Additionally, he held the roles of Ireland Section President and Vice President of District 12, covering Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). His involvement extends to several society task forces, including Cybersecurity, Governance, and Globalization. In recognition of his contributions, he was awarded the ISA Distinguished Society Service Award in 2010.Beyond his professional and ISA roles, Curtis is a former President of the Cobh & Harbour Chamber of Commerce and actively participates in the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI). His leadership and expertise continue to impact both local and global industry standards.

Alan Bryant grew up in Arkansas and went to college at Rolla, Missouri. Alan has done several things in several places over his 32-year career in upstream oil and gas. He is currently an engineer in Oxy Oil and Gas Central Automation Team supporting projects, business unit automation teams, HES, and corporate standards. He is currently supporting Oxy’s Direct Air Capture project in South Texas. Alan admires Wile E. Coyote because he’s not afraid to fail and keep on trying.

Working Backwards - A Culture of Innovation

Gold Ballroom | Francis Marion Hotel
Presenter: Andrew Page, Principal, Digital Innovation, Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Amazon has what many consider a peculiar culture and approach to inventing, and how this approach to innovation has remained consistent since the company first launched – start with the customer, and work backwards.

In this session, you’ll be introduced to Amazon culture where we obsess over customers, and how Amazon innovates through four distinct yet interdependent elements: Culture, Mechanisms, Architecture, and Organization. You’ll have the chance to dive deeper into each topic and learn more about practical applications, including Leadership Principles, our process for inventing known as "Working Backwards," and structuring working groups into "Two-Pizza Teams." You'll hear how mechanisms empower Amazon to Think Big yet move quickly to deliver products and services to invent on customers' behalf, and how to apply these within any organization to empower customer obsessed delivery.

Andrew Page is the Principal Lead for Digital Innovation Prototyping at Amazon Web Services (AWS). He coaches executive teams on customer-centric product design, and leads organizations through processes of creating customer obsessed solutions using Amazon’s peculiar mechanisms to innovate. He has previously directed transformational initiatives as a CTO in Cloud Innovation at Boston Consulting Group, as a Director at Microsoft’s Technology Centers, and as a founder of multiple industry start-ups and various private equity organizations. He is a contributing author to various industry and higher educational publications, currently maintains an Executive Residency at University of Tampa College of Business’ Lowth Entrepreneurship Center and holds a MS in Cybersecurity along with over 30 industry certifications in security, operations, and technical specialties.

Life Long Learning: A Full Career Dedicated to Learning and Leading in New Industry Trends

Gold Ballroom | Francis Marion Hotel
Presenter: Brian Romano, Director of Technology Development, The Arthur G. Russell Co., Inc.

This presentation explores the journey of a lifelong learner with 44 years of experience in control systems engineering, whose educational path reflects a dynamic and adaptive approach to acquiring knowledge. With five degrees earned over decades, the presenter strategically timed each degree to align with emerging trends and technologies in automation. This circuitous route not only underscores the importance of flexible education but also highlights the integration of foundational theories with practical applications in real-world settings. Attendees will gain insights into the challenges and triumphs of pursuing diverse educational opportunities, as well as the value of continuous learning in staying at the forefront of a rapidly evolving field. By examining key milestones and technological advancements encountered along the way, this presentation aims to inspire engineers and educators to embrace lifelong learning as a pathway to innovation and success.

Brian Romano, currently the Director of Technology Development at The Arthur G. Russell Co., has been in the process and automation control systems industry for more than 40 years, starting as a bench technician. After serving as president of a division for an automated machine builder, Romano owned a systems integration company, growing and positioning it as one with expertise in connecting the factory floor to the front office. To keep current with the ever-evolving automation industry, Romano holds an AS, BS, MS, and MBA and Ph.D. in Technology and Innovation. Romano has been designing and implementing Industry 4.0 solutions starting initially in 2004 with connecting factory floor data systems to customer business systems. Understanding a skills gap and workforce shortage in the control systems engineering profession, Romano leverages is academic knowledge and years of experience to teach the next generation of engineers at two local universities. He also serves as an industrial advisory board member for two technology and engineering universities, as a member of the CSIA Digital Committee and as chair of the ISA Smart Manufacturing division IIoT committee, where he was awarded the 2022 ISA SM/IIoT Division Leader of the Year Award.

ISA Standards Overview

Carolina Ballroom | Francis Marion Hotel
Presenter: Charley Robinson, Senior Director, Standards Administration, ISA

ISA’s international standards play a vital role in promoting safety, cybersecurity, and efficiency across global industry. This workshop will provide an overview of ISA’s international standards program and its relationship to and collaboration with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). A panel of experts representing standards stakeholders will then answer questions from the audience.

ISA Standards Panel

Carolina Ballroom | Francis Marion Hotel

This panel is an extension of the ISA Standards Overview and will have time for audience Q&A.

Moderator: Scott Reynolds, Security Engineering Manager - ITD, Johns Manville

Panelists:

Ed Manns, Managing Director, External Relations, ISA

Charley Robinson, Senior Director, Standards Administration, ISA

Steve Mustard, President & CEO, National Automation, Inc.

Dennis Brandl, Chief Consultant, BR&L Consulting

Steve Mustard is an independent automation consultant and a subject matter expert of the International Society of Automation (ISA). Backed by more than 30 years of engineering experience, Mustard specializes in the development and management of real-time embedded equipment and automation systems. He serves as president of National Automation, Inc., and served as the 2021 president of ISA.

Career Skills Track

Leadership Skills and Professional Development Within the Automation Industry

Looking to get involved? Apply for the program committee today.
Contact events@isa.org for more information.

This program track is under development.

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Thursday, 3 October

08:30-09:15

Keynote - Security by Design

09:15-09:30

Break

09:30-10:30

The Power of EQ: Bridging the Gap Between Technical Brilliance and Human Connections

10:45-11:15

Digital Transformation Track: Fireside Chat: Engaging Young Minds in Automation

11:30-12:00