Are the days of a CISO being a data-driven techy, numbered?
With a spate of high-profile data breaches; mostly at the hand of human error, the role of a CISO has been elevated and it seems the role now requires a person with people skills, charisma and approachability who is expert in psychology and human behaviour.
But, with the role evolving daily – will the route to c-suite change even further?
The CISO skill-set has gone from specialist to exhaustive with the top tier of professionals expected to engage with the board, monitor their financial footstep, educate the broader business, recruit and manage their own team and take on non-technical managerial responsibilities - all while auditing and safeguarding the security of the business.
CISO’s are now expected to be experts in psychology and human behaviour to counteract the spree of breaches caused by the human element including the sending of sensitive data to the wrong recipient, social engineering, the loss or theft of intellectual property or storing data unsecured or properly patched.
This new holistic method of understanding people to increase Cyber Security is attracting leaders from HR, marketing, defence and even finance to gravitate towards the sought after the CISO position.
I am in the process of exploring the changing route to CISO and have undertaken some thought-provoking research into how many leaders started off in the world of computer science and security and how many accidentally fell into the role. To request a copy of my future insight paper on the evolving role of the CISO and take part in my 30-second anonymous survey please follow the link below and join the conversation.
Has the route to CISO changed?
