Marc Pearl has served as the President and CEO of the Homeland Security & Defense Business Council since 2008, and represents the policy interests of the leading large, mid-sized and small companies that provide homeland security technology, product and service solutions to our nation. The Council's over-arching mission, programs and initiatives help ensure that the collective expertise, experience, innovation and capabilities of the private sector are fully leveraged and integrated into the fabric of our nation's security.

Prior to joining the Council, Marc was the chairman of IT Policy Solutions, which he founded in 2003 to counsel private sector organizations in meeting their public policy challenges in the IT and e-commerce space. He concurrently served as the executive director of the Consumer Electronics Retailers Coalition. Before launching ITPS, Pearl was a partner and led the e-commerce policy practice at the global law firm, Shaw Pittman LLP. Marc previously served as general counsel and senior vice president of government affairs at the Information Technology Association of America (now TechAmerica), and chief of staff/legislative counsel to former U.S. Rep. Dan Glickman, when the congressman was Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.

Marc has lived and worked in DC for more than three decades, focusing his professional work for more than 20 years in the area of how to best apply the business acumen of technology and Internet/cyber security policy issues in the public sector. His members and clients have included a wide range of Fortune 100 companies and CEO-led associations in all critical economic and infrastructure sectors.

Pearl has helped form and led coalitions that served to educate public policy leaders and/or led to the passage of the Y2K millennium bug liability legislation, digital authentication laws, e-commerce transaction jurisdiction laws and the DTV "transition" rollout. He has represented the private sector on U.S. government delegations at the Hague Conference on Private International Law, the World Trade Organization and the World Intellectual Property Organization.

Marc's grasp of the federal, state/local and global policy issues important to industry, together with his non-partisan approach to policymaking have made him an invaluable resource to clients and a trusted advisor to numerous decision makers.

Pearl graduated with honors from Case Western Reserve University and received his law degree from Emory University's School of Law.

Melissa Middlesworth, Director
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
(202) 470-6443

Melissa Middlesworth is responsible for managing for overseeing the Council's public policy initiatives, member relations, coordination of all internal Council programs and handling all of our communication and marketing activities. Prior to joining the Council staff in 2009, Middlesworth worked in the Office of Public Affairs at the U.S. Department of Justice. She was in charge of coordinating the U.S. Attorney General’s press events, serving as a liaison to law enforcement components, U.S. Attorneys, state and local governments, and working on a variety of public affairs projects.

Before working at the Justice Department, Middlesworth was a congressional staffer at the U.S. House of Representatives.  Middlesworth is a volunteer at Horton's Kids and the American Red Cross.  She is a graduate of Arizona State University.

Krista Sweet, Policy Director
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
(202) 470-6442

Krista Sweet is the Policy Director at the Homeland Security & Defense Business Council.  In this role, she is responsible for overseeing the Council’s thought leadership initiatives, its strategic partnerships and its major projects.  Before joining the Council in 2011, Sweet was the Special Assistant to the Director at the Maryland Emergency Management Agency (MEMA).  In this role, she served as the principal advisor not only to the Director of MEMA, but also to the Governor’s Homeland Security Advisor on all matters involving the executive oversight and policy direction of the regional homeland security program for the National Capital Region: Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Virginia.

Sweet was a staff attorney at the Center for Health and Homeland Security and advised Maryland state agencies on legal and policy issues involved with preparing for and responding to catastrophic health emergencies from 2005-07.  In 2006, she was the public health legal instructor at a NATO Security Through Science Advanced Study Institute course held in Macedonia that focused on “Strengthening Public Health Preparedness for Chemical, Biological, and Radiological Threats.”  Prior to getting involved in homeland security, Sweet spent three years in private legal practice at a litigation firm in Baltimore.

Sweet received her B.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her J.D., with a concentration in health law, from the University of Maryland School of Law.

Pam (Fandel) Poore, Director of Finance

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Pam (Fandel) Poore is the Director of Finance for the Council. Poore does extensive behind-the-scenes work to make sure all of the finances are in order as well as handling human resources and other critical administrative tasks. Poore shares her fine organizational and managerial skills with E-Luminate Group, Inc., the Technology CEO Council (TCC) and Raffetto Herman Strategic Communications, LLC, also serving as their Director of Finance. She has also served on the Advisory Committee of the Eben Tisdale Public Policy Fellowship since its inception in 1998.Poore has over 25 years of coalition and financial management experience.

Previously, Poore was the office manager at the former lobbying firm Podesta-Mattoon and an administrative assistant at the law firm of Preston Gates Ellis & Rouvelas Meeds. Poore also spent two years in Harrisburg, Pa., helping to form and manage the Pennsylvania Task Force on Product Liability. She previously worked for Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., Sen. Jeremiah Denton, R-Ala., and the U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish & Wildlife Service.

She and her husband Lee own a charter fishing business on the Southwest Gulf Coast of Florida. Poore works full-time from her home in Florida so she can spend as much time outside - preferably on the beach or on a fishing boat. Poore also enjoys cheering on the Washington Redskins through the good and bad seasons, and playing with her dogs and cats.

Jonathan Tabb, Manager/Executive Assistant to the President & CEO
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Jonathan Tabb is primarily responsible for providing the overall staff and logistical support to the Council’s activities. He also manages our website and other external communications and serves as the President & CEO’s Executive Assistant. Prior to working for the Council, Tabb worked for TechAmerica as a Policy Analyst for defense and procurement issues. He also has worked in the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate,  and the U.S. Embassy in Dublin, Ireland.

He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts-Amherst with a BA in history and a second BA in political science. Tabb is currently completing his master’s degree in security studies at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service where he is concentrating in Cybersecurity Policy & National Security Policy.

Melissa Grant, Graduate Fellow
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Melissa Grant has been with the Council since September 2011. Her responsibilities include researching potential homeland security tours as well as other Council events and projects. At present, Melissa is completing her master's degree in Security Studies, with a concentration in international security, at Georgetown University's Walsh School of Foreign Service.

.