The Most Important Cyber Leadership Skill
We’re all imposters. That’s what we all think deep down, right? No matter how we present our professional (and often personal) selves to the external world, we all get that feeling of “I’m faking it.” To compensate, we spend our time becoming the expert on X, Y, and Z. In cyber security, the options for becoming expert are endless: security analytics, OT, red teaming, endpoint, orchestration & automation, threat intel…you name it!
Sometimes I feel like I’m surrounded by a bunch of “cyber scouts” trying to get the next badge on their sashes. It’s exhausting to keep up with.
With all these scouts out there, and security still failing at wide scale, I ask myself, “what’s missing?” In most orgs, there’s clearly a leadership vacuum – people that effectively engage, inspire, and transform. Let’s call that an absolute crux to success. So then, what’s the most important leadership skill in cyber security?
It’s empathy: the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.
Whoa, that’s a soft and squishy people thing! Yes, it is. Countless leadership experts illustrate this as an essential skill that should be hardcoded into any leader. In cyber security, it’s sorely lacking at the moment. And ironically, in a discipline where success and failure is ultimately still tied to human action, it’s possibly the most valuable skill possible.
What empathy does for cyber leaders:
- You learn important nuances about your customers’ situations and priorities
- You’ll uncover power dynamics (i.e., the real currency of organizations)
- You’re able to tailor security to fit these unique needs
- It’ll helps you find cures, not “patches”
- Most importantly, people will want to work with you
As a leader, here’s how to build it:
- Get curious about others that aren’t like you – ask for perspective and really listen
- Be vulnerable – practice hear-to-heart, two-way conversation
- Prioritize your time on the true “influencers” that can inspire mass change
- In these times, practice sharing your vision – it’ll become infectious
This is all about having a growth and change-oriented mindset. Give it a whirl! Hope this helps.