As cybercriminals become more advanced and attacks more common, it’s no longer a question of whether your business will become a target, but when it will be. That simple fact has pressured many companies to reflect on how they confront security concern, and how best to devote limited resources in an effort to mitigate the damage caused by an attack.
A top priority for today’s companies should be hiring IT professionals with the right blend of security skills. Consider the following essential security skills for the next time your company has to make IT hiring decisions.
Knowledge of security tools
A solid security plan starts with understanding the essential tools. However, many companies take a set-it-and-forget-it approach to security tool, usually because they don’t have the know-how to make the most of their security assets.
For example, security information and event management (SIEM) tools are excellent because they provide a broad view of your network and infrastructure, but also provide a granular view so a user can spot trouble spots. Obviously, using this tool to its full potential requires in-depth knowledge and ability.
Security analysis ability
In addition to security tools knowledge, your company must also have the capacity to understand to the business side of cybersecurity. This includes understanding the company’s distinct qualities, markets, clients and infrastructure.
A knowledgeable security analyst can spot the points that make attacks far more probable and help reduce those attack surfaces.
Project management ability
Back in the day, you could just install some antivirus, spam filtering and perimeter defense tools. But now, you must consider security solutions a weeks-long or months-long project, as well as determine how to incorporate security within your systems.
This requires project management abilities, which are sought after in every industry. However, project supervisors who are experts in taking care of security projects are becoming particularly valuable. What was once the domain of a general network admin has now developed into a more specialized role. These professionals must handle training, maintenance and upgrades in a long-term, strategic manner.
Automation/ DevOps ability
Cybersecurity threats and instruments are continuously evolving, making it challenging to keep pace. In the past, companies would have security personnel manually tracking and minimizing weaknesses, but that’s not a practical solution these days. Businesses are increasingly utilizing DevOps and automation to be capable of managing the threat environment.
Automation can recognize and de-activate threats before they overpower a business, after which IT can step in and carry out the more complicated, context-sensitive security duties. These security specialists have to problem solve and diagnose; take in a great deal of data and make a judgment about where the investigation must go by using what the tools let them know and their own understanding, which requires a great deal of experience gained over time.
At SSi People , we stay on top of the latest challenges that IT professionals are facing so we can better serve our clients. If your company is currently looking for a talent acquisition partner, please contact us today.
