Carey Boethel, 38

Like many executives in the security industry, Carey Boethel didn't graduate from Texas A&M looking forward to a career in security. An architecture student, he happened to catch on with Schiff & Associates, where “I had two terrific mentors very early in my career, Gary Schiff and Jim Francis,” he says, “both of whom taught me the basics of security design, engineering and risk mitigation.”

He's taken that early instruction and built a career on combining security with business efficiency and understanding a customer's entire operation, first and foremost. At Siemens, he finds himself with tools at his disposal to show the C-level that building systems don't have to be a sunk cost.

This mentor process, he says, is vital to the growth of the industry, despite increased efforts in college recruiting. “The best way to navigate this industry is to align oneself with someone who can help guide decisions,” he says. “My hope is that by the end of my career, there are a few young industry leaders who will have considered me a mentor who made a difference in their careers.”