Navigating Your Career in Cyber Security - Steve Santini & Drew Fearson

Navigating Your Career 1


Steve Santini, Founding Partner and Managing Director at Cyber Intersections Group

With over 30 years of technology and finance experience, Steve is an expert in cyber

security, particularly as it relates to the financial industry. Working with executives at cyber

solution providers and financial institutions, he helps them develop and execute strategies

to better communicate with and expand their client base, as well as address the ever-

changing cyber- security threat landscape. Before launching Cyber Intersections Group,

Steve spent 18 years at Bank of America in global leadership roles.

Drew Fearson, Chief Operating Officer at NinjaJobs

Drew is responsible for daily operations at NinjaJobs, an invitation only, community

supported, and highly vetted jobs service for information security professionals. Drew has

more than ten years of technical recruiting experience matching top talent to critical roles. In

addition to successfully teaming with companies to place thousands of technical

professionals, Drew speaks regularly at industry events on job hunting and successful

sourcing techniques.


Each ‘turn’ you take progresses your career.

Don’t let them be random and just happen to you.

Continuing to do what you enjoy doing takes planning!

Key Takeaway: Doing what you enjoy doing takes planning

Your Career is Your Responsibility





Plan your career out.

Think about where you want to be and by when.









That plan changes daily.

As your interests, obligations, opportunities and the world

changes – continually re-evaluate your plan and adjust.









That plan changes daily.

As your interests, obligations, opportunities and the world

changes – continually re-evaluate your plan and adjust.



Key Takeaway:

Your career is the sum of the risks you take!


Turns or pivots in careers generally have two primary drivers:

Accruing knowledge, experience and marketability

Managing your compensation level and lifestyle

Advancing Through Your Turns





You have to manage the balance between the two.

In both cases, plan for this turn to position you to develop in

preparation for the next turn.






You have to manage the balance between the two.

In both cases, plan for this turn to position you to develop in

preparation for the next turn.

Key Takeaway:

Make turns for the right reason.

Sustain your personal agility by minimizing debt.



Your network is your most valuable asset in making your turns

It transcends your turns, and changes in companies and location.

Connect with every person you meet or get a card from on LinkedIn.

Take ownership of your relationships.

Network, Network, Network






Buy people breakfast, lunch, dinner or just a cup of coffee!

Bring interesting groups of people together for conversation!

Send out a bunch of emails, it’s free!










Ask people what they are working on – they’ll love to talk about that

and will associate it with a great conversation.

And you gain intel on what is going on!










Ask people what they are working on – they’ll love to talk about that

and will associate it with a great conversation.

And you gain intel on what is going on!


Key Takeaway:

You must invest time and energy into your network.


Core To Your Network

You network is built over time on a foundation of trust.

Perform consistently.

Base decision on what’s best for your team, not yourself.






Never Lie.

It is better to be wrong than dishonest.






Never Lie.


Bring Personal Energy.

Have high energy when you interact.

Bring new ideas, support peers, challenge status quo.

High energy people tend to find opportunity.

Low energy people not so much.


Key Takeaway:

Leaders bring people they trust along on their journey.





Never Lie.


Bring Personal Energy.

Have high energy when you interact.

Bring new ideas, support peers, challenge status quo.

High energy people tend to find opportunity.

Low energy people not so much.


As your turn to leadership – you become trusted to solve problems.

Show you understand the problem

and

Show you know how to solve it.

Sell the Problem You Solve




and


Develop a simple framework defining the scope and educating on

the dynamics of your professional area.

The framework should partition the scope into digestible pieces so

the solution appears solvable.





and






Be able to explain it in simple terms in a short amount of time.

Be politely outspoken, believable, and push the envelope.





and






Be able to explain it in simple terms in a short amount of time.

Be politely outspoken, believable, and push the envelope.


Key Takeaway:

You are a professional. You know the space as well as

anybody. Act like it.


Take Responsibility for Your Career

Plan your career out, don’t let it happen to you.

Advance through your turns for the right reasons.

Your network is your most valuable asset.

Your must invest time and energy in your network.

Build your network with performance and trust.

Sell the problem you solve.

Not a member of the NinjaJobs community?

Expand your network today.

Visit ninjajobs.org/register and join with code:

EXECUTIVE.

Navigating Your Career in Cyber Security - Steve Santini & Drew Fearson

Career

Transcript of Navigating Your Career in Cyber Security - Steve Santini & Drew Fearson