Derek Harp is excited to have Vivek Ponnada, the Regional Sales Director for Nozomi Networks, joining him for another episode in the series on security leaders! Vivek was also a long-time contributor at GE.

Vivek Ponnada has over 23 years of experience in Industrial Control Systems. He currently serves customers in Western Canada for Nozomi Networks with market-leading OT and IoT Security & Visibility solutions. 

He started his career in ICS as an Instrumentation Technician and then became a Controls Engineer and commissioned Gas Turbine Controls systems in Europe, Middle-East, Africa, and South-East Asia. During his career, Vivek has held multiple roles including Sales, Marketing & Business Development, and Services covering Control systems & Cybersecurity solutions for Critical Infrastructure (Power, Oil & Gas, Water, and Mining) industries at GE and ICI Electrical Engineering in North America. He is a co-lead for the Top 20 Secure PLC Coding Practices Project and his recent talks and contributions include ICS Village (DefCon 29), Industrial Security Conference in Copenhagen & several BSides. 

Vivek has a bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from I.E. India, an MBA from The University of Texas at Austin, and GICSP certification from GIAC. He is an active member of the Infosec community in Vancouver, BC as a Board Member for Mainland Advanced Research Society, Volunteers for ISACA, and is a member of the ISA.

Vivek is a thoughtful and fun individual! He is an engineer, analyst, and finance guy! He is also a motorcycle enthusiast, an intermediate skier, and a husband! 

In this episode of the (CS)²AI Podcast, Vivek shares his backstory, discusses his education, and talks about his career trajectory. He also offers gold nuggets of advice for engineers with an interest in cyber security.

This is one show you will not want to miss- particularly if you are an engineer considering moving into the field of cyber security. Stay tuned for more!

Show highlights:

• Vivek grew up in South India. He became an engineer and developed skills in control systems long before he became a cybersecurity guy. (1:50)
• The first job Vivek remembers doing was helping someone with gardening when he was seven or eight years old. (2:98)
• When Vivek graduated from high school, he was in a technical program. So he was already in an electronics and communication phase. (4:10)
• Vivek studied his engineering undergrad part-time because he was also working full-time. It all worked out well because the work he was doing and his studies were all connected. (4:43)
• He enjoyed learning how to connect his work-life with his education organically. (6:25)
• Vivek discusses his twenty-year history with GE. (7:10)
• Security is a discipline that is a constant learning process. (12:26)
• Some helpful advice for engineers who have an interest in cyber security, but don’t know where to start or how to break into the field. (14:52)
• Vivek talks about the career challenges he faced at GE and how he navigated them. (19:00)
• Two things that most engineers tend to struggle with. (21:01)
• Vivek jumped around in his career path, so he never had a mentor. He had some excellent coaches and managers, however. (23:17)
• People in the cybersecurity community are always open to advising and helping one another. (25:14)
• How sales came into Vivek’s career journey. (27:09)
• Vivek talks about the Top 20 Secure PLC Coding Practices Project to which he is contributing. (30:40)
• It is always good to have a plan for the next few years. (32:57)
• Vivek shares his recommendations for career choices in the field of cyber security. (39:13)

Links:

(CS)²AI

Vivek Ponnada on LinkedIn

Nozomi Networks

Top 20 Secure PLC Coding Practices Project