Paul Connelly
VP/CSO
HCA
Paul Connelly has 38 years in the field, starting at the National Security Agency (NSA) in 1984. He built the White House information security program as the first Information Security Officer, serving under three Presidents.
Connelly built an information security consulting practice and became a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers. He also built the information security program at HCA Healthcare, the country’s largest healthcare provider, as the company’s first CISO. Thirty-two members of Paul’s teams have been selected as Chief Information Security Officers at other organizations.
Learn more about leaders in the Atlanta CISO community here.
Give us a brief overview of the path that led to your current role.
It has been my path since I finished college and went to work at the NSA.
What is one of your guiding leadership principles?
Servant leadership and the importance of culture.
With disruption being a key theme of recent years, where do you see the CISO role going in the next 1-2 years?
Continuing as a member of our CEO's senior leadership team with growing influence on company operations.
What advice would you give to someone just starting out as a CISO?
Your communication is critical — in setting the culture of your team, developing others, and developing support and relationships with key stakeholders.
Tell us 3 fun facts about yourself.
- I'm one of six siblings, and we all graduated from the University of Florida and remain active with the school.
- I went to elementary and high school in Ft. Lauderdale with Hall of Fame tennis player Chris Evert.
- My brother Michael has written 32 best selling novels, three movies, and three television series.
What is the value of participating in an Evanta community?
Connecting and supporting fellow-security officers; helping us all improve.
Evanta Governing Body members share their insights and leadership perspectives to shape the agendas and topics that address the top priorities impacting business leaders today.
by CISOs, for CISOs
Join the conversation with peers in your local CISO community.