Critical Topics Evanta’s EMEA and Australia CISO Communities Tackled in 2024

As we wrap up 2024, it's time to look back on the jam-packed year we've had with Evanta’s CISO Communities across Europe, the Middle East, and Australia. Over 500 CISOs shared their insights through the Leadership Perspective Survey, a crucial tool that helps tailor their programs to meet the evolving needs of security leaders.

With 24 Town Halls, 10 Executive Summits, and 13 Inner Circles, we've connected 16 communities across 10 cities in 8 countries, fostering peer-led dialogue on mission critical priorities, challenges and solutions.

In the second half of the year, our discussions centered around three key themes:

• Balancing Risk Mitigation and Value Creation
• Facilitating Decision-Making with Outcome-Driven Metrics
• Thriving Amidst Complexity and Uncertainty
   

These themes were reflected across various gatherings, offering invaluable insights and strategies for CISOs navigating the complex landscape of cybersecurity. 

Here’s a peek at some of the highest-rated sessions that our CISO community members particularly enjoyed:

Breakout Session: Responding to Cyber Attacks with Effective Crisis Management Strategies at the Melbourne CISO Executive Summit

Bo Falk, CISO at ISS World Services, shared a gripping account of responding to a significant ransomware attack. This session was all about crisis management, focusing on immediate response efforts and long-term recovery strategies. Participants gained insights into the psychological impact on incident response teams and the importance of having a robust incident response plan.

“Great content, easy-to-follow delivery,” said a Melbourne CISO Community Member.

Executive Boardroom: Securing the Supply — An Open Supply Chain Deep Dive at the UK & Ireland CISO Executive Summit

In this session, led by Roy Shiromani from Legal & General, participants explored the intricacies of securing the supply chain. The conversation delved into navigating diverse security postures, embedding security into procurement contracts, and the importance of strengthening business relationships.

One community member said: “Valuable discussion providing a better understanding of the issues out there and suggesting ways to improve.”

Breakout Session: Securing AI - Building a Framework for Future-Ready Organisations at the Benelux CISO Executive Summit

With AI driving rapid transformation, Florence Mottay, VP & CISO at Zalando, shared how they are staying ahead by building a secure AI framework. Mottay highlighted the need to understand AI's risks and vulnerabilities, while integrating security and agility from the get-go. Bridging the gap between security and business teams was a key takeaway, ensuring that organisations can adapt and innovate effectively.

“Fascinating topic. It’s great to hear a real-world example on how to go about securing usage of AI and internal business projects rather than off the shelf tools,” noted a Governing Body Member.
 

Breakout Session: CIO and CISO Collaboration — Balancing Digital Innovation and Cyber Resilience at the Sydney CISO Executive Summit

In today’s fast-paced business environment, collaboration between CIOs and CISOs is crucial. This session explored how these leaders can work together to balance digital innovation with cyber resilience. It emphasized embedding security into digital initiatives and unlocking business opportunities through collaborative approaches.

One Sydney Community Member had this to say: “Excellent insight and great to see that the CIO and CISO relationship can work.”

Breakout Session: AI Opportunities and Risks for Information Security — Insights from Allianz at the DACH CISO Executive Summit

Christoph Bernius, CISO at Allianz, took fellow peers on a journey through the opportunities and risks AI presents to information security at their Executive Summit in November. The session showcased how AI can enhance fraud detection and defense strategies while also posing new challenges. It was a deep dive into leveraging AI for effective risk management and regulatory compliance, with Bernius sharing his expertise on using AI to bolster security.

A Governing Body Member shared: “Thanks a million for sharing real-life business experience!”

Town Hall: Prioritising Security Spend - Making Every Investment Count

In a world where resources are stretched thin, this UK & Ireland CISO Community Town Hall, moderated by Cloudflare, focused on making security investments count. Panelists from Harvey Nichols, Constellation Automotive Group, and Walkers Global shared strategies for improving ROI on existing investments. The discussion highlighted translating risk into business outcomes and overcoming the challenges of scaling security without compromising business growth.

One new Community Member attending their first gathering said: “Good conversation, useful contributions from the contributors. Comments and discussion in the chats were also helpful.”

Most Popular Content

In addition to community gatherings, CISOs share insights in various formats on evanta.com. Explore some of our most-read articles in 2024:

• Infographic: 2024 CISO Leadership Perspectives
  More than 1,000 CISOs across Evanta communities shared their key priorities and opportunities in our annual Leadership Perspective Survey – here’s what they reported.
• Blog: 8 Trends for CISOs in 2024
  Here are 8 observations and trends about CISOs’ functional priorities, enterprise priorities and planned investment areas for 2024 – based on more than 1,000 responses to our CISO Leadership Perspective Survey.
• Town Hall Insights: CISO Hot Topics - What's Your Take?
  The Global CISO Community gathered for a town hall to discuss emerging trends in cybersecurity and share key strategies for communicating these trends to business stakeholders, as well as the Board – these are their takeaways.
• Blog: Three Key Themes for CISOs in 2024
  At the start of the year, we reflected on key topics, conversations and current events to predict the critical focus areas for security leaders in the year ahead. These are the three themes we anticipated CISOs would focus on in 2024.
• Leadership Profile: Laurent Amsel of Carrefour on 3 Priorities for CISOs Today
  Laurent Amsel, CISO at Carrefour and France CISO Community Co-Chair, outlines three key priorities for CISO success: board communication, peer collaboration, and cybersecurity roadmap management. Read more for his insights.

Below are a few sentiments shared by CISO community members that sum up a year of learning and collaboration.

Excellent communication and preparation, curated agenda, fantastic regional networking, customized program responding to each industry in terms of challenges and opportunities.”

– Benelux CISO Governing Body Member

The team has done an amazing job building the agenda with a ‘by-you, for-you’ mindset with key topics selected by the Governing Body Members on common challenges. It was a great networking opportunity for all of us to meet like-minded people. Notably this year, we had more participation where we had a great mix of Governing Body Members, speakers and vendors to enrich the discussion.”

- CISO Governing Body Member in the Middle East CISO Community

Great conversation with peers. Almost like a reunion.”

- DACH CISO Community Member

As we look to the year ahead, we wanted to share the CISO key themes for 2025. These will be embedded throughout the CISO gatherings, both virtually and in-person.

1. Integrating AI in Cybersecurity for Enhanced Risk Management
2. Modernizing Security Operations
3. Evolving CISO Roles for Strategic and Operational Resilience
    

If you’re interested in joining your regional CISO community, you can do so here. If you are already an Evanta member, sign in to MyEvanta to find upcoming opportunities to connect with your community. We’re looking forward to seeing our existing CISO community members next year and welcome new faces along the way. Roll on 2025!