Citing his presence at the forefront of the IP camera revolution, the international fire and security exhibition (IFSEC) recently named Martin Gren, co-founder of Axis Communications, the security and fire industry’s top influencer.

The IFSEC 40 list was compiled to celebrate the 40th anniversary of IFSEC International, which will be held May 13-16 in Birmingham, U.K.

After helping to launch Axis in 1984, Gren, along with Carl-Axel Alm, invented the world’s first IP camera, which allowed Axis to take a leading role in the industry’s shift from analog CCTV to digital video surveillance. That shift has picked up a lot of momentum in recent years, making Gren’s influence on the industry undoubtable, according to IFSEC.

Axis was well-represented in the top 10, with Per Bjorkdahl placing third in recognition of his work with ONVIF, the video surveillance interoperability standards organization he chairs.

Here are IFSEC’s top 10 influencers:

1.      Martin Gren, Axis

2.      Mike Howard, chief security officer, Microsoft

3.      Per Bjorkdahl,chairman, ONVIF

4.      Peter Hawksworth, CEO, Siemens Security Products

5.      Alexander Fernandes, CEO, Avigilon

6.      Keith Bloodworth, CEO, CNL Software

7.      Alf Goransson, president and CEO, Securitas

8.      Eduard Emde, president (2012), ASIS International

9.      Bruce Schneier, BT Managed Security Solutions

10.  Nick Buckles, CEO, G4S

You can read the full IFSEC 40 list at www.ifsecglobal.com/author.asp?section_id=414&doc_id=558743&page_number=1