Today, Derek Harp is excited to interview Rick Kaun for another episode in the security leaders series. Rick is the VP of Solutions at Verve Industrial Protection.  

Rick is a well-versed OT cyber security thought leader, evangelist, advocate, and solution provider with more than 20 years in the identification, development, and provision of all sizes and shapes of security programs. Regardless of the industry, security maturity level, or standard (corporate, regulatory, or best practice) Rick has focused on helping clients to find solutions that are effective, affordable, and manageable. With a special experience in production environments, he has had the pleasure of working around the world with multiple organizations ranging from Power to Oil and Gas, Refining, Mining, Pulp and Paper, discrete manufacturing to corporate and regulatory projects.

Rick is an honest and authentic person. He is a straight talker, known for getting right to the heart of the matter. He is a husband and father and a keen outdoorsman. He is also an ice hockey fan, traveler, boater, and dog lover. 

In this episode of the (CS)²AI Podcast, he tells his story and shares his wisdom. He talks about his career, discusses the decisions he made that led him to where he is today and shares some gold nuggets of career advice.

You won’t want to miss this episode if you are looking for career direction, considering a career in cyber security, or already in the security field and would like to move forward in your career. Stay tuned for more!

Show highlights:

• Rick shares his superhero origin story. (5:28)
• In grade four, Rick became the computer lab administrator for his class. (8:34)
• Rick did not start his career in cyber security with a technical degree. He explains how he went from studying sociology to learning about technology. (11:26)
• Technology is such a complex field, and it has so many opportunities that you can have an entire career and a specialty within it. (12:04)
• There are various technical studies courses that you can do at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT). (13:04)
• Rick believes that security basics should underpin every course that anyone ever does. He would love to have a panel discussion on safety culture! (16:58)
• Rick explains how he jumped into security for control systems at Honeywell twenty-one years ago. (18:53)
• Rick joined Verve about five years ago, and since then, they have doubled twice. (24:23)
• We need meaningful and sustainable risk reduction for the future. (25:19)
• People you know now could become important in the future. That’s why you need to invest in as many quality relationships as possible within the cyber security industry. (25:51)
• Some of the challenges Rick has faced while navigating his career journey. (28:28)
• Rick discusses the importance of collaboration. (34:21)
• With trainees, it is way better to be humble and honest about things you don’t know than to make something up. (41:49)
• Rick feels that mentorship is the key component for anybody to get anywhere. (44:27)
• You need to enjoy the work you do. (47:28)

Links:

(CS)²AI

Rick Kaun on LinkedIn

Verve Industrial Protection

Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT)