SSI Industry Hall of Fame Introduces 2023 Inductees
Join us in welcoming a diverse lineup of remarkable individuals to our HoF roster.
Maria Cambria | Vice President, Sales Enablement – Solutions, Teledyne FLIR
Bio
- Born in Suffern, N.Y., in 1971
- Younger sister to three brothers, father owned construction business, mother raised children and worked as a school district administrative assistant
- Married with two college-age children
- Earned B.S. in computer science
- Formed employee resource group for women at Teledyne FLIR called Elevate, named a 2022 Women in Security Power 100 honoree
- Says if career had taken another path, she might have been a teacher
- Other interests spending time with friends/family, exercise (e.g. pickleball), fine dining
Why She’s on the List
- 20+ years in industry leadership roles, including being part of a management team that brought DVTEL from a startup to a $92 million acquisition by FLIR Systems in 2015
- Ran DVTEL’s tech support and led analog to IP video migrations for many Fortune 500 companies, airports, safe city programs and schools
- Helped build national and global centers of excellence, ensuring customers like Google, Visa and Amex received consistent service anywhere in the world through their chosen integrators
- One of first industry professionals supporting IP video systems, through NiceEye, a startup IP video provider launched in 2000
- Worked with Axis, VCS (acquired by Bosch) and Smart Sight (acquired by Verint) to trailblaze IP video tech into the industry
- Served as mentor to many former team members who are now executives in their own right at different companies
- Volunteers inside and outside the industry, including raising $200K+ for college-bound high school seniors and participates in SIA’s Women in Security Forum and the Mission 500 Security 5K
Keys to Success 
“Throughout my career, I have been blessed with managers who were more like mentors and believed in me. They educated me on the industry and business principles and, most importantly, helped me avoid major missteps. All while allowing me to challenge their traditional way of thinking, which led to respectful and productive debates.
“My approach is to always put my customer at the center of what we do. When you do that, you realize we have an impact on people’s lives and can make a difference. Colleagues and I used to joke that we save lives, but that is the reality. Once you realize it, you also realize it is an honor and privilege to serve your customer and one to not take lightly.
“The biggest challenge was being part of multiple acquisitions. Transitioning from a small organization with less infrastructure to a larger organization with multiple layers and stakeholders is a challenge and takes time to adjust. Once I was able to regain my focus on the customer, I figured out where I could best contribute to the team and the rest came easy.”
Doing Something About Diversity
“Early in my career, the security industry was male-dominated and there weren’t many other women I could talk with or relate to, and that was tough. That is why I love to see the focus on diversity and inclusion, and I am happy to see more woman leaders in the industry. I admire the women who are leading efforts to support each other within the industry.
“As a woman leader in this industry, I thought it was important to help other women not only succeed but want to be part of this great industry. So, I formed an employee resource group for women at Teledyne FLIR called Elevate. This group helps provide women in this industry the same type of support I received early in my career, in order to build the confidence they need to succeed in their career.”
Sound Advice for Integrator Partners
“Most integrators focus on keeping pace with industry changes, but it’s a fast-moving industry and the challenge is to anticipate these changes and be able to pivot quickly. Understanding your limitations with in-house personnel, accepting them, then building a plan and a network around that will help them serve their customers better. Supply chain is a real concern all over the world and in every industry, and a primary struggle is sourcing alternatives that don’t compromise quality. I don’t see it settling down for quite some time.”
Biggest Wish for Industry Change
“We need to put more emphasis on security and advancing AI to be more preventive. Sometimes security is a second thought due to cost, however, one bad event can destroy a community, business, livelihood, etc. We save lives and need to be able to live up to the honor.”
Continue to the next page for a profile of Ray Coulombe…
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About the Author
Scott Goldfine
Scott Goldfine is the marketing director for Elite Interactive Solutions. He is the former editor-in-chief and associate publisher of Security Sales & Integration. He can be reached at [email protected].
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