As the digital economy has grown and changed, cybersecurity has become an integral part of operating nearly any successful business.

The Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) is at the forefront of the modern cybersecurity organization, and CISOs have to adapt to the changing times in front of them. It used to be that the path to becoming a CISO primarily involved demonstrating your technical chops in the trenches, becoming the security de-facto leader for an organization and eventually claiming the role of the official cybersecurity executive.

Modern CISOs are more involved with the business in which they exist than the technology their teams’ use. At the same time, cybersecurity has more visibility than ever in the boardroom.

What skills does the modern CISO need to bring to the table in order to be successful? Here are the top five that I’ve gathered from my conversations with CISOs around the world.

5. Ambition

The CISO job isn’t for everyone, just like any other executive role isn’t for everyone. The modern CISO is more than an executive in name only, and the position requires someone who wants to be an executive. This is a position with responsibility, risk and reward. If you’re not looking for the potential stress and challenges that an executive role brings, there’s no shame in focusing on what you do want.

4. Technical Chops

Being a CISO is still, at its foundation, a technical discipline. CISOs may not need to have hands-on keyboards any more, but they do need to be able to understand and make decisions about technical topics. It’s difficult to defend against attacks that you don’t understand, and even if you have a team of technically talented people supporting you, you still need to be able to meaningfully lead and participate in technical (Read more...)