The Security Collective Podcast

Meeting the desire to hire a leader who can deliver a cracking board paper that stands alone, and then when required, be able to address the board or sub-committee with gravitas and professionalism, isn't always easy. So I created a masterclass! Listen here to the details of my 6 week intensive course where security leaders and aspiring security leaders can get real world experience creating a board paper, delivering their messages to board members and receiving actionable feedback.

Click here to go to the registration page

Here is a sneak peek of some of the industry thought leaders and change makers I have the pleasure of talking to in the upcoming season 5 of The Secure CIO podcast!

This season I am recording some solo episodes, answering the big questions that I hear often when doing consulting work. I'm excited to share some of the experiences I have had during my career in security.

Many CIO's and leaders often say they feel lucky their security leader is still with them given retention in security is such a challenge. In my final solo episode for the season, I share my tips to help improve the retention of your security leader.

Links:

• LinkedIn

• The Secure CIO

Time Stamps:

• 1.37 Hiring the right leader is so important for retention
• 2:27 "Tell them what you expect from them and what success looks like"
• 3:00 Why you need to consider resources (both people and financial) for your security leader
• 3:30 "To achieve great things, your new leader will potentially need funding...if you plan to make security a business priority, you must reflect this in your budget".
• 3:59 Retention of Security leaders also requires exposure.
• 4:23 "Meeting them for a first time during an incident isn't ideal"
• 5:19 Recap
• 6:11 What feeds attrition?
• 7:37 Final word

Clare has over 15 years' experience as an HR professional in many corporate and professional services environments. Over the years she has partnered with many business leaders to support the engagement, selection, development and retention of talent. She has a deep understanding of the impact this can have on employee engagement, individual and organisational performance and the overall culture of a business. After a recent move out the corporate world into private practice, Clare now works Career and Leadership Coach with 'Relaunch Me', where she works with individuals to provide support, guidance on career transition, career planning and strategy, job search, personal branding, interview coaching and outplacement, as well as professional skill and capability development..

In this episode Clare shares why she became a career coach to others after having enlisted the help of one early in her career. We discuss the benefits of engaging the help of a career coach, how to avoid burnout and feeling more energised in your role.

Links:

Relaunch Me website

LinkedIn

Time Stamps:

00:25 Clare's introduction and background

01:53 Pivotal moments in Clare's career that led her to where she is today

03:27 "Organisations back then felt that if you helped employees to develop and plan their careers, then you're encouraging them to leave…we know now that that's quite the opposite"

04:51 Why people end up engaging with a career coach like Clare

07:22 Does burnout play a role in seeking the help of a career coach?

09:11 "Seeking help to gain greater self awareness of ourselves, so our personality, our strengths, career, drivers, interests, development areas…can allow us to put some strategies in place to proactively manage and alleviate career burnout"

09:27 Some great outcomes that people can achieve through a career coach

11:04 Tools or actions leaders can take to feel more energised in their role

11:38 "First thing I'd say is to understand your true strengths"

13:03 "Second area is around building a supportive team around you"

13:48 Understanding the importance self-reflection and fulfilment

17:23 The role that mindset plays in career progression for leaders

18:09 "Often what gets in the way of them achieving their goals, and then moving forward sometimes, is to do with their mindset."

Jo McConnell is passionate about leading positive change, both in business and society. A 25-year corporate career in people and culture roles across various industries and countries culminated in Jo founding The People Collective, a consulting business bringing a unique perspective to helping complex, fast-paced businesses become the place that the very best people want to work. Jo is also the CEO of NFP The Gomo Foundation.

In this episode, Jo shares her knowledge on developing leadership skills in your team members, as well as how you can become a stronger leader yourself. We discussed what to look for in a great operating model, and the value that this can add to your business. Jo shared her simple habits and rules to create a great leader, her top three retention strategies, and a great recommended reading list to take your own leadership skills to the next level!

Links:

• LinkedIn
• The People Collective
• The Gomo Foundation

Time Stamps:

• 00:29 - Jo's introduction and background
• 02:15 - How to evolve and nurture leadership skills in a security leader
• 03:33 - "You can't be what you can't see." - Jo McConnell
• 04:15 - Jo's reading recommendations on leadership
• 04:55 - How to develop your direct reports into great leaders as a CIO
• 05:57 - "Too many people in my experience don't consciously and deliberately think about how they show up every day as a leader." - Jo McConnell
• 06:36 - Senior leaders as workplace role models
• 08:23 - "Whether you are leading a team of 5 or 5,000, as a leader people are watching you and taking cues from you every day." Jo McConnell
• 09:20 - Simple habits and simple rules to develop a great leader
• 10:05 - Creating a dynamic workplace to help fill staff and skills shortages
• 13:09 - The value of a good operating model
• 14:00 - "I think of an operating model as the integrated engine that drives the execution of strategy in a business. It is the ecosystem of things that you deliberately architect to deliver your strategy." - Jo McConnell
• 17:15 - The art and science of salary benchmarking
• 20.18 - Top three strategies to retain leaders and professionals
• 22:03 - Changes in the current security workplace environment and function

Jacqui Loustau has 19 years of international experience in a range of technologies and practical experience across multiple security domains within different industry sectors. This includes working on various high profile projects within the European Commission, UK government, NHS and the financial sectors. Jacqui currently works for Cynch Security, where they are helping small businesses get and stay cyber fit. Jacqui is founder of the Australian Women in Security Network (AWSN) which aims to connect, support and inspire more people, in particular, women to pursue a career in security; and is co-author of the international book 'Women in the security profession'.

In this episode, Jacqui shares her career history and how she ended up in security; being a remodel for other women in security; and why she started the AWSN. We discuss her new role at Cynch Security and flexible working, and how the AWSN is helping upcoming security leaders with their career progression.

Links:

• LinkedIn
• Twitter
• AWSN website

Time stamps:

• 00:29 – Jacqui's introduction and background
• 01:47 - How Jacqui got to where she is today
• 02:49 – "I had to do my CCNA so I learned about networking for the first time, touched my first router. I did my SANS security course as well, so that's where I got my love for security" – Jacqui Loustau
• 06:43 – What drove Jacqui to start the AWSN
• 10:20 – "What lessons have you learned from…raising the network from its beginnings as a LinkedIn group to an organisation across multiple states?"
• 12:09 - Being a role model and supporting other women in the industry
• 14:16 –Starting work at Cynch Security
• 16:14 - Getting that work life balance with job share
• 20:56 - "For any of these schemes to work it needs to be equal. So it's not just women that are getting this flexible working, but it should also be the men as well" – Jacqui Loustau
• 21:45 - Common discussions Jacqui has with other security leaders in regards to job search and career progression.
• 26:33 - "We've created the AWSN cadets initiative…we expose them to different companies…that have security roles, and are in different areas of security…they go through technical workshops etc…we have something like 79 cadets at the moment going through that" – Jacqui Loustau

Anna is UniSuper's Chief Delivery and IT Officer. Since 2017 Anna has been leading the business through transformational change to deliver better value to members through efficient, scalable and modern processes and technology. Anna's cross-industry career spans more than two decades, and she is renowned for her ability to blend strategy development and transformational change across technology, business practices and growth culture. In addition, she is a passionate advocate for women in STEM and leadership, participating in many speaking panels about these topics at business and industry forums. Anna is a board member with Ambulance Victoria and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

In this episode, Anna talks us through successfully implementing remote working on scale, as well as how this has impacted specifically on the security and tech functions of the business. Anna's board experience places her perfectly to discuss the impact of board diversity, and she also runs through the traits that lead to successfully cohesive teams. Anna shares her gems of wisdom that she imparts on graduates, as well as recommending some key knowledge for CISO's with direct reports.

Links:

• LinkedIn
• 110 Percent Consulting

Time Stamps:

• 00:30 - Anna's introduction and background
• 01:10 - The impact of remote working on teams
• 01:55 - "If there wasn't trust there with the teams prior to working remotely on scale, you can't build that trust once the people have left the office." - Anna Leibel
• 04:30 - Have security and tech leaders and employees been impacted more by not having hallway conversations?
• 08:12 - Capability recognition in security
• 09:01 - Focusing on your security leader
• 10:34 - "We're implementing a three-year strategy, we are two years into that. So Vijay makes it very easy for me to be able to understand where we're at, what we're doing and why we're doing it, and then what is coming up next." - Anna Leibel
• 12:40 - Key knowledge for CISO's with direct reports
• 14:13 - Traits of successful, cohesive teams
• 14:58 - "The foundation for me in any team, regardless of size, is actually the clarity of accountabilities." - Anna Leibel
• 19:01 - The advice Anna gives to graduates
• 22:23 - The impact of board diversity on tech and cyber

This season I am recording some solo episodes, answering the big questions that I hear often when doing consulting work. I'm excited to share some of the experiences I have had during my career in security.

In this solo episode I answer a question that I am often asked by CIOs when we are going through the hiring process; what is the difference between a CISO and a Head of Information Security?

Links:

• LinkedIn
• The Secure CIO

Time Stamps:

• 01:01 - Key difference between a CISO and a Head of Information Security
• 01:31 - What is a CISO?
• 01:54 - Does a start-up need a CISO?
• 02:15 - How to tell you are ready for a CISO
• 02:52 - The role of the CISO
• 05:46 - The role of the Head of Information Security
• 08:00 - A final word

Fiona Wynn is a business psychologist, independent consultant and startup co-founder with extensive experience in people and culture, organisational development, and experience design. Previously, Fiona was Head of Culture, Inclusion and Innovation at Australia Post, where she built strategies and platforms for cultural change around inclusion and innovation. Fiona has worked with leaders across a broad set of industries over the years, solving unmet problems in new ways. Fiona is co-founder of Werkling, a start-up connecting on-demand professional talent with dynamic, future-ready businesses.

In this episode, Fiona shares her knowledge on company culture and its impact on your team. Learn about acculturation, and how strong organisational culture can work for you or against you. We discuss setting people up for success from day one, how a candidate can use the interview process to confirm a good cultural fit, and turning culture around as a new leader of an existing team.

Links:

• LinkedIn
• Werkling

Time Stamps:

• 00:29 - Fiona's introduction and background
• 02:15 - How to evolve and nurture leadership skills in a security leader
• 04:01 - How the values and belief systems of a company impact the people in the organisation
• 05:05 - "Values of an organisation impact on everything. It impacts on the extent to how people show up, it demonstrates or helps shape the customer experience, it shapes so many things about commercial outcomes. But ultimately…to the individual, it does impact their decision making and behaviour." - Fiona Wynn
• 09:13 - The impact of acculturation on staff
• 12:01 - "If you've got a really strong culture that permeates and reinforces certain behaviours or certain attitudes or certain ways of working that actually reduces diversity, that's a real risk. You can end up with very homogenous teams." - Fiona Wynn
• 12:45 - Do we show up to work culture consciously or subconsciously?
• 17:59 - Setting people up for success from day one
• 20:20 - "If your employee experience is aligned to your brand experience, that is very powerful from a performance perspective. You're much more likely to give customers a great experience if your employees are feeling really engaged, empowered, having a really good time." Fiona Wynn
• 21:32 - Designing the perfect onboarding experience
• 22:55 - Three things a candidate should ask during the interview process to confirm value alignment with an organisation
• 27:15 - Turning around culture as a new leader of an established team
• 28:00 - "Hold your assumptions. It is easy to pick up on stories... Blame culture might have actually really gotten its claws into that team. I think the really important thing is to stay quite impartial and to not make judgments on the former leader or make judgments on the team that was, and see this as an opportunity to start again." - Fiona Wynn

Phillip (Pip) Jenkinson is an ex-serving member of the Australian Defence Force and has been involved in the ICT community in Australia for about 12 years.

Pip works for one of Australia's leading Indigenous ICT security providers, Baidam Solutions, committed to giving back to the local economy as a way to help us bridge the gap of Indigenous representation in the IT security sector. The Baidam Initiative provides both specialist IT security certification funding and meaningful employment opportunities for First Nations communities.

Pip sits on a number of not-for-profit advisory boards and regularly supports the charity Solider On, which helps contemporary veterans and their families build successful futures. A husband, father, brother, son and proud supporter of the cause, Pip is passionate about creating real change.

In this episode, Pip shares with us the role that community involvement plays in Baidam Solutions' growth, the barriers he has seen to organisations being more diverse and inclusive, and the current situation around STEM leaders on NFP Boards. As a passionate advocate for change, Pip also shares details on the graduate program Baidam has developed, and a brief overview of some exciting news to be launched during NAIDOC week.

Links:

• Baidam Solutions
• NAIDOC Week

Time Stamps:

• 00:39 - Acknowledgement of country
• 00:51 - Pip's introduction and background
• 02:13 - Sorry Day
• 02:58 - Pivotal moments in Pip's career
• 04:50 - The driving force behind the creation of Baidam Solutions
• 07:15 - The growth of Baidam and community involvement
• 08:45 - Barriers to more diverse and inclusive organisations
• 10:04 - "CHOICE is the acronym that we use in Baidam to articulate our value proposition. Courage, honesty, originality, innovation, to challenge the status quo, and to educate or to be educated...to a culturally significant story." Pip Jenkinson
• 12:28 - The future for first nations in ICT
• 15:56 - Planning growth in Baidam's grad program
• 16:01 - "One of the reasons why Baidam was created in its infancy was that I was unable to rattle off indigenous participants in the IT security space as quickly as I could indigenous sports stars, or indigenous politicians, or activists, or musicians." Pip Jenkinson
• 23:38 - ICT and Cyber on Boards in not-for-profits
• 26:00 - What does real change look like to Pip