Jeff Wagner has over 25 years of cybersecurity experience as a practitioner, manager, executive and public speaker. He served as the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) for the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA), USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and the USDA Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) Mission Area. As a federal IT executive, Jeff has secured $750 million in annual purchases of IT products and services and managed annual budgets of over $31 million. Jeff has been a speaker, panelist and moderator heard by Fortune 500 companies and the Federal Computer Security Managers Forum sponsored by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
In 2019, Jeff left federal service and founded Aspis, LLC, an IT professional services company specializing in cybersecurity to solve the complex cybersecurity problems of organizations of all sizes. In just three short years, Jeff has grown the company to over $1 million in annual revenue that employs 14 people and operates in three locations. Jeff led Aspis to achieve NGLCC LGBT Business Enterprise certification in 2019, Better Business Bureau accreditation in 2021, Virginia Values Veterans certification in 2021, and SBA HUBZone certification in 2022.
In 2021, Jeff was honored by Forbes Magazine as a Forbes Next 1000 honoree and Aspis was as recognized as a top-3 finalist for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Emerging Business Achievement Award. In 2022, Aspis was recognized as a top-3 finalist for the Mid-America LGBT Chamber of Commerce Certified LGBTBE Business of the Year award and as a Small Business Superstar by the Kansas City Chamber of Commerce. In 2022, the Kansas City Business Journal recognized Aspis as #2 on their Future Fast 50 list.
Jeff has a passion for volunteerism and non-profit work. He regularly volunteers his time to mentor and coach aspiring early-career cybersecurity professionals. He ensures that Aspis donates professional services to 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(6) non-profits in his hometown of Kansas City, Missouri. For five years he volunteered at the St. James Lutheran, Kansas City, Missouri food pantry. For two years he volunteered as a general member of the Greater Kansas City Federal Executive Board. For six years he served as a board member, including one year as vice president, for the Metropolitan Lutheran Ministry of Kansas City. Finally, he donates his time to the Mid-America LGBT Chamber of Commerce as the chair of the Certified LGBTBE Committee cultivating diverse and inclusive small business programming and informally as a small business advisor.
Jeff received his Bachelor of Science in information systems and technology minoring in business and mathematics from the University of Minnesota Duluth in 2001. He earned his Master of Business Administration from Northwest Missouri State University in 2021. He has been an ISC2 Certified Information Systems Security Professional and CompTIA Security+ certified since 2007. He has also previously held the PMI Project Management Professional Certification.
