What happens when AI adoption moves faster than your security strategy?

Today, Ward sits down with Adrian Guevara, Chief Information Security Officer at TELUS Digital Solutions, to unpack one of the biggest challenges facing organizations today: how to secure your business in an AI-driven world. Adrian brings over two decades of IT and cybersecurity experience and a refreshingly candid take on what it really takes to lead through massive change. Adrian shares insights on the impact of AI on businesses, the importance of understanding and tinkering with technology, and the crucial role of building trust and relationships within an organization. He emphasizes the need for a culture of continuous feedback and collaboration, especially in rapidly growing and technologically evolving environments. The episode also delves into Adrian's fascinating career journey from an IT director who was voluntold to be a security officer to his current role as a CISO, highlighting key strategies for navigating the ever-changing landscape of data security.

Takeaways:

• Ask “Can We Do It Better?”: Regularly question existing processes and tools. Encourage feedback from your team to drive continuous improvement.
• Create a Path of Least Resistance: Make secure, approved tools and processes as easy to use as possible to reduce the temptation for employees to circumvent security.
• Build a Culture of Trust and Approachability: Be visible, approachable, and responsive. Building trust makes it easier to implement change and get buy-in.
• Leverage Feedback for Better Security: Involve your team in decision-making, listen to their feedback, and let them help shape security policies and tool choices.
• Invest in Tools that Support Security: Provide employees with tools like password managers to make secure practices easier to follow.
• Build Relationships: Strong professional relationships help you navigate change, get buy-in, and create a more fulfilling work environment.
• Be Transparent and Communicate the “Why”: When implementing new policies or changes, explain the reasoning and how it benefits the team and organization.

Quote of the Show:

• “ You gotta love what you're doing because there's gonna be hard times and there's gonna be times you have to learn things on your own. Without that love, it just makes it much harder to do.” - Adrian Guevara

Links:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrian-guevara17/ 
• Website: https://www.telusdigital.com/ 

Ways to Tune In:

• Transistor: https://guardiansofthedata.show/  
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5gZXInkb12Qrs2Lyv0hstQ 
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/guardians-of-the-data/id1826819323 
• Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/0754cdde-f1c4-4f6c-92a2-e263f7840eb8/guardians-of-the-data
• iHeart Radio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-guardians-of-the-data-285972170/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@GuardiansoftheDataPod