Chief IT Security Officer: Job Description and Responsibilities
The job of the chief IT security officer of any organization is concerned with the functioning and operation of the entire corporate security model. It is the duty of the chief IT security officer to maintain the entire physical as well as digital facade of the IT security in his or her organization. One of the main tasks of the chief IT security officer is the supervision and monitoring of the various security measures implemented in the organization. Such security measures may be taking place in any of the domains of the organization such as communications, information technology, human resources, legal, facilities management and many other domains of working. Quite often, the chief IT security officer in an organization takes active interest in the planning and execution of various tasks of strategic importance to the organization. Being the top security officer or authority in the organization, the chief IT security officer in an organization has the senior functional officer as his or her immediate senior or direct reporting authority. The following are the various duties of the chief IT security officer:
One of the most important tasks is to oversee and supervise the functioning of various security directors as well as vendors who are concerned with the task of safeguarding the computer systems, intellectual property and other assets of the organization.
The physical security and safety of the employees and the visitors to the organization is the responsibility of the chief IT security officer. The physical security measures involve the prevention of any act of violence at the workplace, apart from the management and maintenance of the assets of the organization in proper order. In order to achieve this, the chief IT security officer is also required to be able to access and use video surveillance as well as various access control systems.
The chief IT security officer is also concerned with the management and development of the various global security policies, standards as well as the guiding procedures for enabling perfectly safe and sound networks as well as the security of the IT assets in any organization.
The chief IT security officer is involved with the identification of the various goals, objectives as well as the metrics of protection. This is all done with a corporate strategic plan in mind.
They are also required to work in complete synchronization with other officials of the company in order to initiate proper spending on various security measures as well as guidelines imbibed by the organization.
The task of maintaining a cordial relationship with the federal, state level, national as well as local law making and enforcing bodies, together with working in accordance with the norms set by these organizations also falls within the scope of working of a chief IT security officer.
The job of the chief IT security officer also involves conducting security audits.
Requirements
Academic Qualifications
There is no specialized degree course to be taken in order to find the job of a chief security officer. However, having a bachelor's degree with a background of academic courses in database or network security is a minimum requirement for finding the job of a security officer in a reputed firm, from which one can progress through performance to reach the ultimate post of the chief IT security officer of the company. A solid base in information technology, database protection and network security is an essential requirement. CISCO offers a certification in database and network security.
Skills Required
More than academic qualifications, what is required in this job is a set of excellent skills. The job requires you to be highly alert at all times and this makes it all the more challenging. One should have the ability to think fast, solve problems quickly and efficiently, take important decisions in short time spans and be able to judge situations well and efficiently. You must have excellent problem solving abilities and time management skills and be able to decide the best course of action in times of a crisis. Working efficiently under stress is an absolute prerequisite in this job as the safety and security of the entire organization depends on the chief IT security officer.
Employment Outlook
With the boom in the IT sector the need for efficient chief IT security officers is growing at a tremendous pace. A person can join an organization as a junior security officer and gradually be promoted to the top post of the chief IT security officer through perseverance and hard work. There are companies, firms and government organizations all over the country and also globally who are recruiting people for business security and other related issues on a regular basis. This job sector has an immense growth potential.
The remunerations offered in this field are pretty handsome and can range between $60,000 and $70,000 per year. Depending on the size of the organization it can even go up higher to around $80,000. Overall, this is a highly-paying job with high and lucrative salaries and other perks.
Conclusion
The chief security officer in any organization is a person who assimilates great value in himself and is very crucial to the smooth and risk-free functioning of the organization. The job involves a high amount of challenge and demands working under a lot of stress. One must remember the entire issue of the security of the assets, and that the personnel and the business of the company is dependent on the chief IT security officer. At the same time, this is a highly paying job that has lots of potential in terms of remuneration and growth.
