Overview

The CISO will be responsible for implementing and running the enterprise cybersecurity program. That will involve identifying, evaluating and reporting on some or all of legal and regulatory, IT, and cybersecurity risk to information assets, while supporting and advancing business objectives.

The CISO position requires a visionary leader with sound knowledge of business management and a working knowledge of cybersecurity technologies covering the corporate network as well as the broader digital ecosystem. The CISO is responsible for establishing and maintaining the cybersecurity program to ensure that information assets and associated technology, applications, systems, infrastructure and processes are adequately protected in the digital ecosystem in which we operate.

A key element of the CISO's role is working with executive management to determine acceptable levels of risk for the organization. They will proactively work with business units and ecosystem partners to implement practices that meet agreed-on policies and standards for cybersecurity. The CISO should understand and articulate the impact of cybersecurity on (digital) business and be able to communicate this to the board of directors and other senior stakeholders.

The CISO must be knowledgeable about both internal and external business environments and ensure that information systems are maintained in a fully functional and secure mode and are compliant with legal, regulatory and contractual obligations. They serve as the process owner of the appropriate second-line assurance activities not only related to confidentiality, integrity and availability of information owned or processed by the business but extend their expertise to aid the organization in meeting safety, privacy, reliability and resilience requirements. The CISO understands that securing information assets and associated technology, applications, systems and processes in the wider ecosystem in which the organization operates is as important as protecting information within the organization's perimeter.

The ideal candidate is a thought leader, a builder of consensus and of bridges between business and technology. They are an integrator of people, process and technology. While the CISO is the leader of the cybersecurity program, they must also be able to coordinate disparate drivers, constraints and personalities, while maintaining objectivity and a strong understanding that cybersecurity is foundational for the organization to deliver on its business goals and objectives. Ultimately, the CISO is a business leader, and should have a track record of competency in the field of cybersecurity and/or risk management, with seven to 10 years of relevant experience, including five years in a significant leadership role.

General Information

The Chief Information Security Officer fulfills the following tasks.

Establish Governance and Build Knowledge

• Facilitates an cybersecurity governance structure through the implementation of a hierarchical governance program, including the formation of a cybersecurity steering committee or advisory board covering IT applications / infrastructure, customer data, and commercial products.
• Provides regular reporting on the current status of the cybersecurity program to enterprise risk teams, senior business leaders and the board of directors as part of a strategic enterprise risk management program, thus supporting business outcomes
• Develops, socializes and coordinates approval and implementation of security policies
• Works with the vendor management office / procurement to ensure that cybersecurity requirements are included in contracts by liaising with vendor management and procurement organizations
• Directs the creation of a targeted cybersecurity awareness training program for all employees, contractors and approved system users, and establishes metrics to measure the effectiveness of this security training program for the different audiences
• Understands and interacts with related disciplines, either directly or through committees, to ensure the consistent application of policies and standards across all technology projects, systems and services, including privacy, risk management, compliance and business continuity management
• Advises on the cyber risk posture of the organization, including the mandatory application of controls
• Embeds Cyber Judgement across a centralized or decentralized or distributed decision making model
• Owns the security champion program to mobilize employees in all locations

Lead the Organization

• Leads the cybersecurity function across the company to ensure consistent and high-quality information security management in support of the business goals
• Determines the cybersecurity approach and operating model in consultation with stakeholders and aligned with the risk management approach and compliance monitoring of non-digital risk areas
• Manages the budget for the cybersecurity function, monitoring and reporting discrepancies
• Manages an effective cybersecurity organization, consisting of direct reports and dotted line reports (such as individuals in business continuity and IT operations). This includes hiring (and conducting background checks), training, staff development, performance management and annual performance reviews

Set the Strategy

• Develops a cybersecurity vision and strategy that is aligned to organizational priorities and enables and facilitates the organization's business objectives, and ensures senior stakeholder buy-in and mandate
• Develops, implements and monitors a strategic, comprehensive cybersecurity program to ensure appropriate levels of confidentiality, integrity, availability of information assets owned, controlled or/and processed by the organization as well as the meeting of safety, privacy, reliability and resilience requirements as needed.
• Works effectively with business units to facilitate cybersecurity risk assessment and risk management processes and empowers them to make the right decisions that fall within the risk appetite of their organization.

Develop the Frameworks

• Enhances the security posture by adopting a cybersecurity framework(s) that is applicable to the organization.
• Creates and manages a unified and flexible, risk-based control framework to integrate and normalize the wide variety and ever-changing requirements resulting from global laws, standards and regulations
• Develops and owns a document framework of continuously up-to-date cybersecurity policies, standards and guidelines. Oversees the approval and publication of these cybersecurity policies and practices
• Creates a framework for roles and responsibilities with regard to information ownership, classification, accountability and protection of information assets
• Facilitates a metrics and reporting framework to measure the efficiency and effectiveness of the program, facilitates appropriate resource allocation, and increases the maturity of the cybersecurity, and reviews it with stakeholders at the executive and board levels

Build the Network and Communicate the Vision

• Provides input for the IT section of the company's code of conduct
• Creates the necessary internal networks among the cybersecurity team and line-of-business executives, corporate compliance, R&D, audit, physical security, legal and HR management teams to ensure alignment as required
• Builds and nurtures external networks consisting of industry peers, ecosystem partners, vendors and other relevant parties to address common trends, findings, incidents and cybersecurity risks
• Liaises with external agencies, such as law enforcement and other advisory bodies, as necessary, to ensure that the organization maintains a strong security posture and is kept well-abreast of the relevant threats identified by these agencies
• Liaises with architecture teams to build alignment between the security, product, and enterprise (reference) architectures, thus ensuring that cybersecurity requirements are implicit in these architectures and security is built in by design (Security by Design)

Operate the Function

• Collaborates and liaises with the global privacy officer / data protection officer to ensure that privacy requirements are included where applicable
• Defines and facilitates the processes for cybersecurity risk and for legal and regulatory assessments, including the reporting and oversight of treatment efforts to address negative findings
• Ensures that security is embedded in the project delivery process by providing the appropriate cybersecurity policies, practices and guidelines
• Manages and contains cybersecurity incidents and events to protect corporate assets, intellectual property, regulated data and the company's reputation
• Monitors the external threat environment for emerging threats, and advises relevant stakeholders on the appropriate courses of action
• Develops and oversees effective resilience policies and standards to align with the enterprise resilience program goals, with the realization that components supporting primary business processes may be outside the corporate perimeter
• Coordinates the development of implementation of incident response plans and procedures to ensure that business-critical services are recovered in the event of a security event; provides direction, support and in-house consulting in these areas
• Facilitates and supports the development of asset inventories, including information assets in cloud services and in other parties in the organization's ecosystem

Requirements

A successful Chief Information Security Officer candidate will have the expertise and skills described below.

Education, Training and Previous Experience

• Demonstrated experience and success in senior leadership roles in risk management, cybersecurity, product security, and IT or OT security
• Degree in business administration or a technology-related field, or equivalent work- or education-related experience

Desired, but not required:

• Master of Science in Cyber Security, Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Certified Information Security Manager (CISM), Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA), Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC) or other similar credentials
• Experience successfully executing programs that meet the objectives of excellence in a dynamic business environment
• Experience with contract and vendor negotiations

Technical and Business Experience

• Knowledge and understanding of relevant legal and regulatory requirements, such as: Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX), Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Payment Card Industry/Data Security Standard
• Knowledge of common information security management frameworks, such as ISO/IEC 27001, ITIL, COBIT as well as those from NIST, including 800-53 and Cybersecurity Framework, and FDA Cybersecurity regulations such as 524b.
• Sound knowledge of business management and a working knowledge of cybersecurity risk management and cybersecurity technologies
• Up-to-date knowledge of methodologies and trends in both business and IT

Knowledge and Skills

• Excellent communication skills, interpersonal and collaborative skills, and the ability to communicate cybersecurity and risk-related concepts to technical and nontechnical audiences at various hierarchical levels, ranging from board members, employees, and technical specialists
• Strategic leader and builder of both vision and bridges, and able to energize the appropriate teams in the organization
• Ability to lead and motivate the cybersecurity team to achieve tactical and strategic goals, even when only "dotted" reporting lines exist
• Excellent stakeholder management skills
• Financial/budget management, scheduling and workforce management
• A master of influencing entities and decisions in situations where no formal reporting structures exist, but achieving the desirable outcome is vital
• Business acumen and an understanding of the organization’s risk profile
• Ability to develop and implement security strategies that are aligned with the organization's business goals