IBIA Holds its 2023 Association Board Elections and
Welcomes NEC National Security Systems’ Kathleen Kiernan
as its Newest Board Member
Washington, D.C., July 19, 2023 — The Membership of the International Biometrics + Identity Association (IBIA) recently held its annual elections for the Association’s Board of Directors. In this 2023 cycle, four candidates were on the IBIA slate — three incumbents and one new board candidate. All were elected unanimously by the Membership.
The three incumbents re-elected to staggered terms on the IBIA Board are: Donnie Scott, Chief Executive Officer of IDEMIA’s Identity and Security – North America business; Mohammed Murad, Vice President, Global Sales & Business Development for Iris ID, a leading US – based company focused on iris recognition and authentication; and Chip Merrill, Vice President for Public Sector Biometrics at HID Global, a global leader and supplier in identity and security technologies, was also re-elected.
IBIA’s newest elected Board member is Dr. Kathleen L. Kiernan, President of NEC National Security Systems (NSS), a US-based subsidiary of NEC Corporation of America, which provides biometric identity, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and computer vision applications for federal government agencies in the defense, intelligence, law enforcement and homeland security sectors.
A 29-year veteran of federal law enforcement, Dr. Kiernan is a recognized expert in strategy development and implementation, as well as facilitating critical incident management exercises across government and the private sector. Previously, she served as the Assistant Director for the Office of Strategic Intelligence and Information for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
“Dr. Kiernan is a welcome addition to our Board of Directors,” said John Mears, Chairman of the IBIA Board and Vice President and Tech Fellow at Leidos Corporation. “Her expertise and experience will add another level of depth to the Association’s well of industry thought-leaders,” Mears added.
Other IBIA Board members include Bob Eckel, President and CEO of Aware, Inc., a leading authentication company applying proven and trusted adapted authentication to solve everyday business challenges with biometrics; Deep Bhatia of global electronics and manufacturing innovator Qualcomm; Michael DePasquale, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of BIO-key International, a leading developer of identity and access management products and services; and Neville Pattinson, Head of Business Development and Strategic Marketing of global identity technology for the Thales Group.
“We are pleased to have the world’s global leaders in the biometrics and identity management segment as members,” said Mears. “They are key to our mission of advocacy for efficient, secure and ethical applications of the technology.”
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About IBIA: The International Biometrics + Identity Association advances the adoption and responsible use of technology-based identification solutions to enhance security and privacy and to facilitate convenience and productivity for government, businesses, and consumers. To effectively carry out its mission, IBIA focuses on three core activities: Advocacy, Connectivity,
and Education. For more information, please visit our website at: www.ibia.org. 1325 G Street, NW, Suite 500, Washington, DC 20005