Roles and Responsibilities in the Cyber Resilient Organization

Achieving effective cyber security governance requires defining and establishing the organisation’s cyber security roles and responsibilities. After they are created, consider at what level in the organisation they need to be performed.

In smaller organisations, most cyber security functions may fall to a single person. In such cases, it is even more important for senior leaders to ensure cyber security duties are realistic, clearly understood, and well communicated. Everyone in the organisation should understand their role in supporting effective cyber security.

At a mile-high level, cybersecurity professionals are responsible for protecting IT infrastructure, edge devices, networks, and data. More granularly, they are responsible for preventing data breaches and monitoring and reacting to attacks. Many have backgrounds as programmers, and systems or network administrators, and in math and statistics. Those skills are undoubtedly relevant to the role of an IT security professional, but equally as critical are the things that are not necessarily things that can be taught – critical thinking, curiosity, and a passion for learning and research. People from all kinds of backgrounds possess those qualities, so companies should not limit themselves to a narrow pool of candidates. Further, hackers are creative by nature. To outsmart them, security pros need to be, as well.

New security threats pop up all the time, and IT security professionals need to stay up to date with the latest tactics’ hackers are employing in the field. In addition to the high-level responsibilities mentioned above, some specific duties IT security teams do, include:

Set and implement user access controls and identity and access management systems
Monitor network and application performance to identify any irregular activity
Perform regular audits to ensure security practices are compliant
Deploy endpoint detection and prevention tools to thwart malicious hacks
Set up patch management systems to update applications and operating systems automatically
Implement comprehensive vulnerability management systems across all computing assets on-premises and in the cloud
Work with IT operations to set up a playbook for data recovery and a shared disaster recovery/business continuity plan
Work with HR and/or team leads to educate employees on how to identify suspicious activity

Three Critical Skills for Cyber Security Professionals

Successful IT security professionals need more than technical skills. To truly advance in the field, these experts should be:

Strategists - Cyber Security professionals should be able to proactively implement security measures and controls within organizations, weighing the consequences of any action. Advanced security protocols require tactical and strategic evaluations of workflows, dependencies, budgets, and resources. Because new methods to hack information are continually developing, professionals must be a step ahead, studying how hackers enter networks and procedures for thwarting them.
Communicators - Management and communication skills ensure effective coordination with teams and clients. Technology and security touch every professional in an organization. Security professionals must interact in meaningful ways by training and empowering employees to help protect systems.
Lifelong Learners - Another must-have skill is technical competence. With the pace of development in IT security, this means ongoing research, training, and earning standard certifications. These professionals should constantly be learning new advanced technology skills to be able to resolve complex security issues.

Conclusion

Highly skilled security professionals are in high demand. No organization is immune to cybercrime, meaning that all need to make IT security a top priority. The first step is finding the most qualified professionals to lead the way or hire a professional cybersecurity expert.

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Roles and Responsibilities in the Cyber Resilient Organization