Finally Navigating the Business Acumen with CCISO, 20 Years of Cybersecurity Leader's Trailblazer's Story!
Uma Rajagopal
Job Title: Senior Information Security Specialist
Uma Rajagopal, a senior information security specialist with over 20 years of experience in the IT industry, expressed a strong desire to gain solid business knowledge. Recognizing the importance of securing critical assets and embracing the evolving technology landscape, she pursued the EC-Council’s Certified Chief Information Security Officer (Certified CISO) credential which enabled her to align security strategies with business objectives, effectively communicate with top-level executives, and bridge the gap between technology and business.
Learn how the Certified CISO program fulfilled her aspiration for business knowledge, equipping her with the leadership skills and insights needed to excel as an information security leader.
While the CISSP certification provides the foundations of IT security principles, the Certified Chief Information Security Officer (Certified CISO) program focuses on information security leadership.
Tell us about your current role and your professional journey.
I am a senior information security specialist with over 20 years of experience in the IT industry
I specialize in information cybersecurity transformation and have experience managing and developing global teams and addressing multi-regional security requirements. Prior to the internet boom, I worked as a programmer, building applications for the finance and healthcare industries. As the internet and its technology evolved, I evolved along with it, and I realized the importance of securing what matters the most. I have always had a curious mind, loved puzzles, and seen my failures as learning opportunities. All these qualities made cybersecurity a great fit for me. I have evolved from an individual contributor to a coach, mentor, and leader.
You hold a CISSP certification, why did you pursue the Certified Chief Information Security Officer credential after the CISSP?
While the CISSP certification provides the foundations of IT security principles, the Certified CISO focuses on information security leadership. Thanks to my background in IT engineering, it was easy for me to hone my technical skills. However,
“I felt that I needed to know more about the business side of the industry. While looking for strategy and leadership programs, I came across EC-Council’s Certified Chief Information Security Officer course.
This course combines governance, IS controls, and management expertise, which is critical to implementing successful cybersecurity programs.
How is the Certified Chief Information Security Officer different from the CISSP certification?
The Certified CISO is not an entry-level certification and is meant for those who have at least five years of experience. A Chief Information Security Officer is a senior-level information security leader who develops and manages information security strategies aligning with business objectives to address rising threats to the organization. They play an essential role in creating and leading teams of technical professionals to defend organizations by responding to incidents, building controls, and establishing and implementing policies and systems. CISOs must formulate security strategies from a technical and executive perspective
The course provides a general overview of past, current, and future information security issues and relevant cybersecurity topics.
To prepare for the exam, I took EC-Council’s online training through iLearn and read the Certified CISO body of knowledge. Since you only have four hours to complete 250 questions, you must be able to answer them quickly. I believe that it was the perfect test because in the real world, CISOs must act quickly when a security incident occurs.
What skills from the Certified CISO program helped you at your workplace?
One of the biggest challenges was getting buy-in from the top-level executives. Security is not always tied to an organization’s business goals and is sometimes considered an outlier.
The Certified CISO program helped me effectively communicate with business leaders to gain support and prioritize organizational information security.
It enabled me to communicate in a language that everyone in an organization could understand.
How has the Certified Chief Information Security Officer benefitted your career?
I applied the concepts I learned to enhance the security program within my organization and set a culture that ensured senior leadership and the security team remained in sync. Since I am fluent in business and technical language, I am valued and respected by both teams. The Certified Chief Information Security Officer certification ensures that candidates possess managerial skills to build security programs and the technical expertise to execute them effectively.
