SILVER SPRING, Md.—The Security Industry Association (SIA) recently named two recipients for the 2026 Denis R. Hébert Identity Management Scholarship, a program offering $5,000 scholarships for young professional SIA members to help further their education in the field of identity management.
The winners of the 2026 Hébert Scholarship are Joseph Robles of SAGE Integration and Kevin Vettorel of BOS Security. They were recognized at the 2026 AcceleRISE conference, an event presented by the SIA RISE community for emerging security leaders, in San Diego, Calif., earlier this month.
This scholarship program—named after Hébert, a longtime security industry executive and past member of SIA’s Board of Directors who served as SIA board chair from 2016 to 2018—is designed to “support the professional development goals of individual SIA members and student members who specialize in identity management,” according to the association announcement.
“My sincere congratulations to this year’s recipients of the Denis R. Hébert Identity Management Scholarship Awards, Joseph Robles and Kevin Vettorel,” says Hébert in the announcement. “As Identity becomes a central element in our daily lives, their focus is a key part of our industry’s future.”
What Do The Hébert Identity Management Scholarship Do?
Robles, service coordinator at SAGE Integration, is an operations professional based in San Francisco, with experience in service coordination, field operations planning, technician scheduling, KPI reporting and process improvement across security integration and fire and life safety environments.
His background includes supporting access control, CCTV, service delivery, workforce coordination and operational reporting. Robles is currently completing a project management certificate with a Lean Six Sigma focus through UCLA Extension.
Through the Denis R. Hébert Scholarship, he plans to continue building recognized skills in data analysis, identity management, cybersecurity and operations improvement and his long-term goal is to apply data driven process improvement to technician utilization, capacity planning, credential coverage, access control operations and operational decision making in the security industry.
“I am honored to receive the 2026 Denis R. Hébert Scholarship,” says Robles in the SIA announcement. “This award will help me build the certifications and technical skills needed to turn operational data into better decisions across the security industry.
“My goal is to improve how teams measure performance, manage technician capacity, track credentials and strengthen access control operations. I am grateful to SIA for investing in my development and helping me move toward a career focused on data-driven process improvement and operational excellence,” he says.
Vettorel is chief technology officer at BOS Security. His career has been built around mission critical operations, enterprise IT and applied artificial intelligence. His 20 years of service in the Air Force shaped his leadership style and technical discipline, where he directed large-scale IT operations, managed multimillion dollar programs and led cross functional teams supporting secure and highly regulated environments.
After transitioning to the private sector, Vettorel held roles including technical solutions architect and site reliability engineer. He later advanced to vice president of IT, where he led enterprise technology strategy, built and scaled an artificial intelligence-enabled command center, achieved UL certification.
Vettorel holds a bachelor’s degree in organizational leadership and a master’s degree in applied artificial intelligence. His work consistently centers on turning advanced technology into practical, scalable solutions that improve performance, reduce risk and provide clients with white glove service.
“I plan on using this generous gift to complete my master’s-level certification in advanced data analytics and start my Ph.D,” says Vettorel in the SIA announcement. “I believe this will allow me to use data to further enhance the efficiency and protection of our VirtuGuard client base.
“As a 20-year Air Force veteran, I believe education is one of the most important things a person can do to better themselves. I have four children who are also college graduates or currently working toward their degrees, and I am thankful to SIA for helping me reach another important milestone and furthering my education,” he says.
SIA and the board of directors established the Denis R. Hébert Identity Management Scholarship program in 2018 “in recognition of the substantial subject matter expertise Hébert offered and continues to offer to SIA members,” according to the association announcement.
