Bethany Mayer: On Cybersecurity Governance, Risk and Strategy.
Boardroom Governance with Evan Epstein
Introduction
A deep dive discussion with experienced Silicon Valley corporate director, Bethany Meher, on her tech career and role on public and private company boards. The chapter highlights cybersecurity governance, covering breach evolution, board responsibilities in risk management, and challenges from AI and geopolitical factors.
0:00 -- Intro.
1:35 -- Start of interview.
2:15 -- Bethany's "origin story".
3:35 -- Her experience working at Lockheed Martin.
5:55-- Her transition to Apple Computer, Cisco, startups in networking technologies and Blue Coat.
8:17 -- Her time at HP, where ended running the Networking division.
8:55 -- Her role as CEO of Ixia (later sold to Keysight Technologies for $1.6bn in 2017)
10:17 -- On her board journey. Her first public company experience with Ixia, under the mentorship of Chairman Errol Ginsberg.
11:07 -- Her experience serving on the board of Sempra Energy and as an Executive Advisor with Siris Capital (a PE firm). Her board positions with Box, Marvell Semiconductor and Lam Research.
13:38 -- On her decision to complete a Masters Program in Cybersecurity Risk and Strategy from NYU: "to be a good board member in this area [in addition to technical issues] you need to understand issues related to technology, law, regulation and governance."
17:09 -- The current cybersecurity landscape from the board's perspective. "Over the last ~10+ years, the incidence, frequency, sophistication and damage of cybersecurity breaches has continued to significantly escalate." "For companies, it has been very costly (examples: Equifax, Target, Home Depot, Colonial Pipelines, Solar Winds, etc.)" "The attacks will continue and they are getting easier to do, ie. ransonware as-service-attack." "This is only going to get worse." "Nation states are also involved, and it's very hard to keep up."
21:15 -- Where does cybersecurity fit in board committees? Audit committees vs special cybersecurity committees and full board discussions.
25:05 -- On cybersecurity experts on boards. "It's important to have someone on your board who has a reasonable technical understanding of what the CISO and/or CIO is talking about re cybersecurity (ability to translate technical discussion to board level discussion.)" It's different to raw technology expertise. "Why wouldn't you have someone in the room with cybersecurity expertise (when the cybersecurity risk is so high)?"
28:39 -- On cybersecurity challenges going forward. 1) Nation-state risks (ie Russia, China, North Korea, Iran), 2) AI risks (ie. using certain automated AI-based coding could insert malicious code into software source-code).
34:30 -- On staying updated on the latest cybersecurity threats. Recommended experts: Bob Zukis from the Digital Directors Network (he was guest speaker on my E81 of the Boardroom Governance Podcast) and Ed Amoroso with Tag Cyber / NYU. You should also pay attention to the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). *Other sources:
- The Cipher Brief
- Cyber Initiatives Group
- Harvard Business Review ("a lot of good articles on cyber governance")
- The Cyberwire
37:41 -- On the enhanced duties of directors in the market downcycle. "Innovation will continue despite the economic crisis." "The pendulum swings back and forth, and there will be a recovery."
42:28 -- On the increasing geopolitical risks with China and how boards should approach this "decoupling" or "de-risking". "As a board member, this is a risk issue and it has to be managed and mitigated."
47:56 -- The books that have greatly influenced her life:
- A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, by Betty Smith (1943)
- Let My People Go Surfing, by Yvon Chouinard (2006)
- The Outsiders, by William N. Thorndike Jr. (2012)
51:04 -- Her mentors, and what she learned from them.
- Her Father
- Judy Estrin (a networking technology pioneer and Silicon Valley leader)
54:55 -- Quotes she thinks of often or lives his life by: "The best way out is always through." (Robert Frost)
56:20 -- An unusual habit or an absurd thing that she loves: Bird watching (influenced by her husband).
58:14 -- The person she most admires: Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Bethany Mayer is a Silicon Valley-based corporate director with 30 years of experience in general management, marketing, product development and operations. She previously held executive roles at HP, Cisco, Blue Coat, Apple, and start-ups. Bethany has served on several public and private company boards, including at Ixia, Pulse Secure and Marvell Semiconductor. She currently serves as the Chair of the Board of Box, and is a director at Sempra Energy, Ambri and Lam Research.
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You can follow Evan on social media at:
Twitter: @evanepstein
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/epsteinevan/
Substack: https://evanepstein.substack.com/
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Music/Soundtrack (found via Free Music Archive): Seeing The Future by Dexter Britain is licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License
You can follow Evan on social media at:
X: @evanepstein
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/epsteinevan/
Substack: https://evanepstein.substack.com/
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Music/Soundtrack (found via Free Music Archive): Seeing The Future by Dexter Britain is licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License
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