By Sara Velasquez Posada

There is no doubt there is a constant and growing concern amongst CEO’s, and particularly CISO’s, concerning the hiring of the cybersecurity talent their organizations require to safeguard against cyberattacks.

According to Cybersecurity Ventures, by 2025 there will exist a gap of over 3.5 million unfilled cybersecurity positions. Moreover, of the current worldwide workforce, surveys conducted by PwC have shown that there is only a 38 percent ‘availability of key skills’, considering the new and more sophisticated emerging threats developed by

malicious actors.

These stats are both alarming, and pose an important question that we will try to help you figure out : Where are you supposed to find the right cybersecurity talent for your organization?

Various industries, particularly those that have been recently targeted the most by cyber attackers (such as critical infrastructure and even governmental entities) have increased their need for hiring cybersecurity talent.

And even though people are becoming increasingly aware of the immense possibilities that exists when starting a career in the field, the pace at which they are gaining the required skills and knowledge to meet the security needs of organizations is not as high as the growing demand for their assistance.

To ensure your organization hires the best cybersecurity talent currently available in the market, we have gathered a list of tips that can be helpful during this critical process:

•Leverage specialized platforms. Posting your job vacancies on any online job board will possibly limit your stakes at finding top cybersecurity talent.

Try reaching out to the best, consider specialized job boards such as Seccuri or hiring a professional recruiter, since both options already gather experience in the field and a strong network with attractive contacts.

•Look in-house. Analyze your current cybersecurity team and define interesting career paths for each of them that align with your organization’s current and future cybersecurity needs. Take it from there to start investing in your current team and focus on training!

•Make vacancies appealing. Attracting top cybersecurity talent to your organization will be a challenge if your job proposal is not strong and competitive enough.

Make sure you reach out to new talent with both interesting vacancies and career growth opportunities to ensure a higher positive response rate.

•Try non-traditional channels. Consider approaching cybersecurity talents though non-traditional channels, such as social media, cybersecurity events and forums. Use these spaces wisely to scout new prospects.

•Train prospects. Cybersecurity is a field anyone is welcome to explore, no matter their current or past careers. Enthusiasts can come from a variety of different fields, which means you should not limit yourself to finding talent potential in those who have sought careers in STEM or InfoSec.

Becoming a highly skilled cybersecurity professional is all about having the motivation to learn, challenging yourself to new and complex scenarios, and constantly being trained on the latest cybersecurity trends that relate to your area of interest.

In case you do consider hiring people with high potential in cybersecurity and seek to train them once they become part of your organization, problem-solving abilities, and team collaboration, as they will become essential when becoming part of your cybersecurity team.

About the essayist: Sara Velasquez Posada is part of Seccuri, the Global Cybersecurity Talent Platform, where she works as a Growth Lead helping cybersecurity professionals upscale their career paths through job opportunities and training. By focusing on closing the cybersecurity talent gap that exists worldwide, she helps companies find the professionals they require and supports the growth of the cybersecurity talent pool.

May 8th, 2023