WHAT DO CISO COACHES DO? A CHIEF INFORMATION SECURITY OFFICER CONSULTANT EXPLAINS

You asked, we answer: From a Chief Information Security Officer’s standpoint, what does a CISO coach work on?

• Strategic planning – Guiding the CISO to develop information security strategy aligned with business goals and cyber risks. Helping weigh security priorities and programs.
• Risk management – Advising as a CISO coach on security risk assessments, analysis, and mitigation approaches. Aid as executives determine risk appetite and tolerance levels.
• Policies and compliance – Coaching on developing security policies and standards across the organization. Ensuring alignment with regulations and compliance requirements.
• Data protection – Working on strategies as a CISO coach for data privacy, access control, encryption, retention policies and disaster recovery.
• Technology adoption – Evaluating emerging security technologies and making recommendations on integration with existing defenses and infrastructure.
• Vendor management – Guiding selection of security vendors and managing those supplier relationships and services.
• Team building – Mentoring on attracting, developing and retaining high-performing security teams as a CISO coach. Fostering collaboration between IT and security.
• Crisis management – Preparing incident response plans and advising on crisis communications in case of a major breach.
• Executive communication – Coaching on communicating security matters effectively to senior leadership, the board and other stakeholders.
• Career development – Providing guidance from a CISO coach’s perspective on developing the executive’s skills, experience and visibility to advance their career.

For lack of a better way to put it, a CISO coach serves as a trusted advisor focused on maximizing the executive’s impact in leading enterprise cybersecurity programs and influencing strategic decisions.