Cyber Security | The Mission Beyond the Mission
Whether you are a security analyst (operations), or in business development (sales & marketing), the answer should be the same, it truly is awesome.
The question gets asked on a regular basis: “How awesome is it to work in cyber security?”
The answer, typically, is: “Pretty awesome.”
Whether you are a security analyst (operations), or in business development (sales & marketing), the answer should be the same, it truly is awesome.
I could go on and on about how rewarding the feeling is, when a customer tells you how much better their organization is, because of the work you have done with them. Regardless of what industry you are in, that is a great feeling.
Of course, anyone can ramble on and on about how great their company is, or how many problems they solve. That is important when you believe in your organization’s mission.
Then, out of right field, an email comes in, and you are reminded of the mission beyond the mission:
(email from client, which can you also read HERE)
And here’s a quick story about what working with Beryllium has meant to me personally while being the IT guy for [customer].
6 months ago I had never heard of NIST. It was suggested by Ryan at my initial interview that I look it up and get a little more familiar with it. So I did some Googling and got a 5 minute crash course on what NIST is from one of my still-in-college analysts at [large big box retailer] before starting at [customer]. I thought I understood what I would getting in to. But no, I did not.
So then I started working at [customer], learned a little more about NIST compliance, and then thought I really understood what NIST was and what I was getting into. But nope, still wasn’t even close to understanding.
It wasn’t until the first meeting with Ben that I really understood where we were at in terms of NIST compliance and the size and shape of what we’re looking to implement. Prior to that meeting I wasn’t even close to understanding but I thought I did – something I now see as being quite dangerous for a person in my position.
One of my greatest fears is making some unnoticed change to our IT environment that gives “Bad Ben” and his fellows conspirators a way in to [customer] and then having no clue what to do next. I don’t want to be that guy. But in the event that I do end up being that guy I’m glad I’ve got you guys at Beryllium to reach out to. Seriously, it makes it easier for me to go home at the end of the day without so much of the worry. That’s the service Beryillium provides for me.
Regardless of what industry you work in, if you believe the mission is simply to “sell more” of the service/product/solution your organization provides, you are doing it wrong.
The mission should always be more than just a “positive outcome.” In cyber security and information security, it is easy to chase shiny objects. Things are changing on a daily basis.
Also, it is easy to get greedy because you think your service or product is the best in the market. Unfortunately, that shifts the focus from the customer, to the bottom line.
But, when you have the ability to make it easier for someone to go home at the end of the day, you better believe the mission is bigger than your company’s bottom line.
At Beryllium InfoSec Collaborative, we take pride in our mission of taking people and businesses from paralyzed, to empowered.
We believe in collaborating. Like, actually collaborating. Not just “partnering” and “re-selling” other organization’s services to make a buck.
Collaborating with our customers, other industry leading security companies, top information technology (IT) providers, and others, are how problems get solved.
We (and anyone in cyber and information security) have the unique opportunity to do more than “our job.”
We can accomplish the mission beyond the mission.
And that makes it easier for us to go home at the end of the day.
