Keith Tresh is a retired Army Colonel and strategic executive with C-level success in strategic planning, capacity/cost projections, IT governance, and BI solutions. He is a logical thinker and strong communicator noted for transforming IT organizations and building cohesive/productive teams to support enterprise-wide infrastructures. He is also a quality-focused leader with both Federal and State Government expertise. Keith is a builder of productive and responsive IT organizations that enhance customer/user experiences with a strategic vision in mind. He has vast experience as an Information Technology and Information Security professional in all aspects of IT management, including Strategic Planning. Finally, Keith has direct experience in information management/security including cybercrime and cyberwarfare, project management, infrastructure engineering, application development, and budget management.
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Narrator
We're in an era of rapid change where resilience is vital. The devout for that podcast dives into the most important topics in government and technology today. Our host, David Goetze, sits down with his vast network of colleagues to dish on the tech challenges that affect us all. Follow this podcast on your favorite platform and join the conversation by sharing it on LinkedIn, Twitter or Facebook.
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Davood Ghods
Hello, everyone. Welcome to Direct Technologies, the Davood for Thought Podcast. I'm Davood Ghods and I will be your host today. The way I stay up with the pressing topics of tech and government of today is to tap into the panel of experts I've had the honor of connecting with over the years. Today, we are honored to have retired Army Colonel Keith Tresh on our podcast earlier this month.
00;00;52;13 - 00;01;19;23
Davood Ghods
Keith was selected as the new chief Information security officer for State of Idaho in 2011. He was appointed by Governor Brown as the chief information security officer for the state of California. Prior to that, he was employed for 12 years with the California National Guard, working initially as a telecommunications manager and ultimately serving as their CIO on the I.T. director.
00;01;19;25 - 00;01;49;19
Davood Ghods
Other positions Keith has held are CISO of Orange County, CIO for the California High Speed Rail Authority and also commander of the California Cybersecurity Integration Center for Governor Brown's Office of Emergency Services. Keith Without sharing any more of your background, mainly because I'm going to ask about you, I want to welcome you to this episode of the Davood for Thought podcast and ask you to tell us about yourself. And for someone who doesn't know about your background, please give us a brief overview of what you've done and whether you currently working on. Welcome, Keith.
00;01;49;19 - 00;02;12;01
Keith Tresh
Thanks Davood and you know, I've known you a while and got the honor to spend a lot of time working on boards and committees and things with you while I was with the state of California.
00;02;12;01 - 00;02;40;03
Keith Tresh
So this is an honor for me as well. So I actually was in the military a very long time, a full time. And in the Guard, I spent most of my career as a full time National Guardsman. But I started out as enlisted guy way back in 1980 during the Cold War and became an officer about ten years later, was a logistics person for a while and then got into this army and loved it.
00;02;40;06 - 00;03;08;10
Keith Tresh
And through that, I had the honor of meeting Terry Takai, who was the CIO for State of California at the time. And, you know, through my work and stuff with California, I ended up talking here about the potential for becoming the state, see Cisco for California and Applied got the job. And I was so honored to work with Carlos Ramos and Paul Benedetto over there.
00;03;08;13 - 00;03;29;21
Keith Tresh
And it was it was a great, great tour. So and I've kind of gone back and forth between being a CIO and a CISO just because I truly, truly enjoy giving back and public service. When I left and retired from the state of California to move to the state of Idaho back in late 2018, I started doing public sector.
00;03;29;24 - 00;03;56;15
Keith Tresh
I'm private sector, I'm sorry consulting. And it wasn't just a pandemic, it was me being at home and not really feeling like I was giving back or was was contributing to a cause. And so with that, I started looking for public sector jobs again, and it was honored. And I'm privileged to have met Jeff Wieck, who is the administrator of Information Technology Services here in Idaho.
00;03;56;18 - 00;04;20;13
Keith Tresh
And through that meeting, I ended up working for him, applied for the job as the status quo here. And got hired on. So I'm really happy and blessed to be in this position and, you know, looking forward again to being a public servant. Excellent. You've made your rounds, Gates and that could be a good and a bad thing.
00;04;20;17 - 00;04;53;15
Davood Ghods
No, that's a good thing. You have a well-rounded experience. You you know, one of our founders of Direct Technology, John Syracuse, is also a retired Army guy. And I'm sure he would be pleased to know that we had, you on the podcast today. We are Direct Technology is a veteran owned consulting firm. That's great. Keith From your perspective, Steve, what emerging trends are you seeing in our field that we all should be paying more attention to these days?
00;04;53;17 - 00;05;25;20
Keith Tresh
Well, you know, and I don't like to do the, you know, the obvious in the cliches, but I think earlier this year when the supply chain issue started happening, you know, with, first of all, SolarWinds and then with the Microsoft exchange issues, you know, those are you know, I think that's something that, you know, one of the areas that I don't think we've really paid a lot of attention to because we're the big companies, Microsoft and, you know, all these bigger companies where we can trust these things.
00;05;25;20 - 00;05;52;29
Keith Tresh
So I think what that brought to light in my mind and where what I think we really need to start an emerging trends is is looking at the bigger companies and making sure we're not putting all of our eggs in one basket and we're not, you know, we're being very careful about doing that. Like it's very easy to to to, you know, kind of, you know, Microsoft got pretty much a whole, you know, arsenal of things you can get from them on, you know, all across your network.
00;05;52;29 - 00;06;23;08
Keith Tresh
So just being careful that we're not losing sight of we have to remain vigilant on security. And any company at any time can be the victim of a cyber attack and could truly disrupt a lot of things. And I think the events of, you know, just recently, you know, the pipeline hack shows us that nobody is immune and we need to remain vigilant on all areas.
00;06;23;08 - 00;06;48;16
Keith Tresh
I think what happens is we get focused on certain areas of cyber and we lose track of other stuff. We have to really try to remain as flexible and be look in as many things as possible based on resources.
00;06;48;20 - 00;07;18;09
Davood Ghods
Definitely, cybersecurity is a trend that has picked up and everyone is paying more attention to it from the legislature to directors to secretaries to CEOs. CISOs, of course. And it is an area that does need more attention, as we have learned every day for sure. I think you would agree that adjusting to the pandemic was challenging for many organizations, and now everyone is thinking of what the next major disruption is going to be and how can we better be prepared for it. So resiliency is a big topic of conversation these days.
00;07;18;11 - 00;07;51;14
Davood Ghods
We have a service that direct technology called resiliency as a service to help organizations become more resilient, have a business continuity plan in place, etc., etc.. What are some examples of resilience you've seen in your business in the past year or recently? And what is one thing that organizations should be doing to improve resilience?
00;07;51;16 - 00;08;20;15
Keith Tresh
Well, I have to say that, you know, I being fairly new to the state of Idaho, the government and information technology services. I would have to say, you know, an example of good resiliency was my organization. I came aboard and I was very impressed by how they were able to go from, you know, everybody's in the office to all the way everybody's at home. Well, 90% of the people were at home. There was a handful of folks that stayed on budgetary wise and doing things that you have to actually be on board for.
00;08;20;17 - 00;08;56;18
Keith Tresh
But so so the resiliency piece was that they were able to take all of these folks and all of the missions that they were doing. But because, by the way, State of Idaho is going through what they call modernization, where they're bringing folks on to one big, you know, platform, in other words, information technology services in Idaho is the now de facto, you know, just like California Department technology is in California, where they're doing, you know, kind of modernization slash consolidation kind of thing.
00;08;56;20 - 00;09;19;03
Keith Tresh
So they were able to go and take all of these folks and especially going through this because they were in the early stages of these things and have these folks work. In fact, just recently we started bringing most folks back into the office here. But without disruption and without stopping the mission of the modernization that they're going through.
00;09;19;05 - 00;09;42;20
Keith Tresh
And knock on wood, you know, always say this, you know, without having any major disruptions and or major issues go on as far as cyber goes and having any problems. So that to me was huge because, you know, in kind of going into the other half of your question, you know, you talked about, you know, what what what can or should folks be doing with resiliency?
00;09;42;21 - 00;10;12;08
Keith Tresh
Well, I think, again, going back to, you know, part of thinking about what can we do better? You know, nobody really thought about a global pandemic and had that scenario in their business continuity plan. Okay. So to that end, based on that, I would say this we need to be, again, much more creative and start thinking about other scenarios when we're talking about resiliency and business continuity.
00;10;12;10 - 00;10;41;27
Keith Tresh
You know, we have to get outside the box on our thinking on scenarios that might happen because it's easy to say, well, flood or fire or, you know, a smoking hole, your building goes down or whatever. But we've got to start thinking about those things and what can we do to ensure that we're not going to be caught, you know, shorthanded or, you know, not prepared for any type of scenario that comes up that we're going to need to, you know, change what we're doing.
00;10;41;28 - 00;11;05;17
Keith Tresh
So the big piece is practicing and using or utilizing both your business continuity plan and your disaster recovery plans, because all of them are great on paper. But if you're not practicing them and if you're not looking for the holes by practice ing them, you can fall very short on, Oh great. We didn't realize that that was not going to work because X, Y and Z. So, you know, updating and keeping your plans practiced is a huge way. I think folks can become indoor maintain their resiliency.
00;11;05;17 - 00;11;39;08
Davood Ghods
Perfect. You know, first of all, I'm glad and congratulations on being able to continue the modernization effort in Idaho without any stopping of the mission. So that's great because that's what really resilience is about, being able to continue the business of the organization even when it disruption occurs.
00;11;39;10 - 00;12;07;21
Davood Ghods
So, you know, in this case, it was a global pandemic. But as you said, what are some of the other scenarios? So thinking outside the box power outage in a region, what if the Western U.S. goes out of power? Are you prepared to continue the business of the organization in that case, or as we have experienced in the recent months, a civil unrest that caused organizations to close their doors? Will the residents and citizens and constituents of that region be able to receive services while those disruptions happen?
00;12;07;24 - 00;12;42;07
Davood Ghods
So you're spot on. And by practicing and utilizing their business continuity plan, testing, disaster recovery and all of that. So perfect piece of direct technology. We always talk about how we are going to get a project or an effort done, but we also ask why are we doing what we are doing? What is your why? What motivates you? In other words, in your work?
00;12;42;09 - 00;13;06;15
Keith Tresh
Well, this is a huge thing, and it's pretty much the driving force about why I came back and wanted to come back into the public service and to being in public service. And that is giving back and or making folks aware of what's really going on.
00;13;06;17 - 00;13;32;04
Keith Tresh
One of my big mantras and things that I've done since I was just two, so both California back in 2011 is I've always wanted to and we've always talked about and we always was prioritizing outreach. You know, the moved from from your time in state service as well you know the states you know the state service and state governments, we struggle with resources and personnel and skill sets and that kind of thing.
00;13;32;07 - 00;13;55;19
Keith Tresh
But when you take that and you start looking down at lower governments like counties and municipalities, tribes, territories, those kinds of things, and then school districts, you know, we start talking about that, the quasi, you know, government agencies, university systems, that kind of thing. They struggle even more. And then you start talking about small businesses in the communities.
00;13;55;23 - 00;14;20;00
Keith Tresh
Okay. So for me, the why is giving back and being one of those kind of guys that, you know, I want to always be looking out for and trying to find ways to provide resources and help for things, not just at the state level where I'm where I'm know, assigned, but down to all the way down as far as we can go.
00;14;20;06 - 00;14;59;09
Keith Tresh
You know, obviously it's resource driven and money driven and that kind of thing. But we always want to be looking at how can we help our community and everyone else. And one of the things my team is always doing and we've already done a few runs, it's tough right now in the, you know, pandemic era, but going out and doing what I call community outreach, going out and giving briefings on what's what are really the threats like cyber hygiene, I call it, for, you know, elderly folks, for veterans, for small businesses, because those are three big target areas. So the why is we really want to help people understand what the threats are at the human level and down at the personal level.
00;14;59;11 - 00;15;27;03
Davood Ghods
Excellent. What a great motivator serving the public. I want to take this opportunity to thank you for your service. But usually you hear that because you're a military guy. But I want to thank you for your service for serving the public and serving in the military.
00;15;27;05 - 00;16;04;24
Davood Ghods
It's my honor. Now, this month is the Public Service Appreciation Month. So thanking all the public service employees who are listening. Keith I'm really interested in hearing what inspires innovation on your team. When you are in an organization, you've had many different teams working at different departments. What inspires innovation on your team?
00;16;04;24 - 00;16;28;17
Keith Tresh
It wasn't tough for me because I said wasn't tough when it came from the military, because this is a lot of the stuff that I used to innovate and to to keep folks excited. I came from my time as commander in the military. I'm a very big proponent for powering down, and I'm also a big proponent of no single point of failure. And by that I mean on my team. I have a very small team. I have four plus myself in the on the cyber team here. And so I've got to compliance side and I've got kind of a policy side.
00;16;28;19 - 00;17;05;21
Keith Tresh
But we all kind of over, you know, bleed over into the other areas, meaning cross-training and allowing folks to not just be pigeonholed into one job, meaning if I'm compliance, I don't just get stuck doing compliance stuff all the time now. Is that possible every day? No, but I always have. My teams were together and I like them to always be talking to each other and understand what the other ones are doing in case that person either gets sick, go once, go out on leave, or, you know, wants to cross-train.
00;17;05;24 - 00;17;29;21
Keith Tresh
And I think one of the biggest things on innovation and keeping people excited is I'm also a big proponent of, you know, I don't have to be the smartest guy in the room. And 99% of the time, I'm not, you know, hiring folks that are smarter than you and being willing to listen to their ideas and allowing them to participate in, you know, how do how do we get this done?
00;17;29;24 - 00;17;54;27
Keith Tresh
Because I've got some great ideas. But you know what? I found in a very, very many cases that if I go talk to my folks, we're going to get a lot more innovative ideas out of the folks that are in the trenches, meaning the guys and gals that are doing the job every day and letting them, you know, come up with ideas on how to solve issues or come up with, you know, plans to get things done.
00;17;55;02 - 00;18;13;14
Keith Tresh
I love that. I use it every day. And I think that's a great motivator because it shows your team, number one, that you trust them. But number two, that their ideas mean something. And when they do that, they're much more inspired to stay there. You know, as much as it may sound a little pat myself on the back.
00;18;13;17 - 00;18;46;13
Keith Tresh
My turnover rate as a as a boss, I can say, has been pretty good because I try to, you know, treat people like I would want to be treated. And training is another one, you know, allowing them to develop professionally and give training. Obviously, that's budget driven, but give them the chance any time it's possible to grow up listening to the team and giving them a chance and letting the team come up with ideas, that's fantastic.
00;18;46;13 - 00;19;17;21
Davood Ghods
I think some of your training in military has helped in this area as well, besides the fact that you've led many teams. Yeah, Keith, we have a modular direct technology. We are the human side of tech. We want to learn more about you. So what is something that would surprise people about your background or interest?
00;19;17;24 - 00;19;41;03
Keith Tresh
Well, one is that I have been a teacher, an adjunct professor, for the better part of 14 years. I got my master's degree in I.T. in 2002. And right after, right when I was getting ready to finish my master's program. I went to University of Phoenix and I was one of my advisors. I had been talking to her about, you know, I said I'd really love to teach because that was actually one of my first things I thought I wanted to do when I was younger was Teach.
00;19;41;06 - 00;20;06;08
Keith Tresh
So I talked to her and she says, Well, it usually takes a year and a half because they want you to have some time between getting a degree to start teaching. And then they got they started having issues and about a year into it, I got the opportunity to start teaching for University of Phoenix and I taught for them from 2003, I'm sorry, 2004 through 2014 when I went down to Orange County because I was a little tough there.
00;20;06;10 - 00;20;27;24
Keith Tresh
I also taught at a Heald College for a period of time, and now I have the distinct pleasure. My very first time, I'm actually an adjunct professor at Boise State University teaching cyber. So teaching's my passion, one of my passions, and I love it. And that's probably something I'm not sure everyone knows that. I've been a teacher for many, many years.
00;20;27;27 - 00;20;48;16
Keith Tresh
And the other thing is, I think, is that, you know, I'm an East Coast guy. I spent most of my adult life in California, but I was born in Philly. And, you know, I still have a lot of friends and family back in the East Coast that I like to visit. And I still root for some of those East Coast teams. And, you know, my Steelers are always, you know, competitive. And that's kind of my thing.
00;20;48;16 - 00;21;13;06
Davood Ghods
That's great. I really didn't know that you had a passion for teaching. I used to be also a instructor at a business college. Right after graduating from SAC State. I think you're back being an adjunct professor at your alma mater. Didn't you graduate from Boise?
00;21;13;08 - 00;21;38;01
Keith Tresh
No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Oh, I am. I have a very checkered past. The one I was on the 18 year baccalaureate program. I actually went to the Ohio State University and. Oh, okay. I ended up leaving and graduating through the Army. So it's a long that's one of those things you have to have a separate podcast about, but probably put people to sleep so.
00;21;38;03 - 00;21;58;11
Davood Ghods
Well, no, I doubt it. I'm sure people are going to be interested and I'm going to ask you, when you get your Ph.D., I'd like you to be back for another podcast. Knowing you, you probably will. Keith Where can people find you and keep tabs on what you're doing? Working on them, and how can people support your work?
00;21;58;17 - 00;22;15;27
Keith Tresh
There's two things I'd like to add for that or, you know, offer for this. I'm on LinkedIn and you know, it's not I'm the probably one the only Keith Trish ever the entire time I was in the Army, I was the only Keith trashing the entire DOD, Department of Defense, email glossary or a contact list, I should say.
00;22;15;29 - 00;22;51;13
Keith Tresh
So LinkedIn. And then we here have our own website in Idaho. We actually one third last year in my six website competition Cyber Security dot Idaho dot gov. Okay. And that is a place that we and if anybody's got you know we have resources there but if anybody wants to you know contact us and or you know, has resources that we can help provide and they want to offer them, that's a good place to go and look and make sure that they can stay in contact with us.
00;22;51;15 - 00;23;19;21
Davood Ghods
Excellent. Well, Keith, that was my last question. I want to thank you so much for joining us today. And I want to thank to all the listeners out there for joining us as well. We will see you all in the next episode of Davood For Thought where we will shed more light on the human side of tech.