

Suzanne Vautrinot: From the Military to the Corporate Boardroom, with a Focus on Cybersecurity.
Jun 29, 2020
01:04:20
- Start of Interview [1:33]
- Suzanne's start in the U.S. Air Force [2:50]
- Her transition to cyber operations [4:25]
- Suzanne's take on transitioning from the Military to corporate boardrooms [7:25]
- Adding former military leaders in the boardroom adds to "diversity of thought": "[Board composition] should seek concinnity, rather than falling into the lowest common denominator which would be consensus" [09:07]
- At the time of Suzanne's transition to the private sector, "the Government had recognized that [cyber] was an area where there was going to be significant change and significant attention was needed" [11:15]
- Collaboration in the Cybersecurity field: "The private sector wants to protect who they are, the Government wants to protect how they know" [13:19]
- How to think about offensive and defensive capabilities in cybersecurity: "On the offensive side of cybersecurity you only have to succeed once, on the defensive side you have to protect everything, all the time." [15:42]
- General Alexander: "the difference between bolting it in on and baking it in" [16:00]
- "In 2020 we are in the half-way point, we still have an architecture that relies on technology that is fundamentally at risk but technology is getting better and more secure" [17:58]
- How sitting on boards in different industries shapes her cybersecurity approach: Battelle Memorial Institute, Parsons Corporation, Wells Fargo, CSX [19:38]
- How to think about cybersecurity expertise in the boardroom [22:52]
- Cybersecurity education for corporate directors [24:39]
- What is the best way for the board to address cyber risk [28:30]
- "You want to have good baseline security systems, plus resilience and redundancy" [30:25]
- Recommended cybersecurity resources for directors: [33:03]
- Recommended Frameworks: [36:48]
- "The people in your organization are the greatest risk vector because that's the easiest path in" [38:56]
- How COVID-19 has impacted cybersecurity risks [39:30]
- The increase in cyber risks, particularly with "work from home" trend. "the vectors have increased for ransomware attacks involving health professionals. Sans "Work from Home" Guide. [42:45]
- Her take on greatest cyber challenges moving forward: [46:12]
- Critical shared infrastructure (power, transportation, etc.)
- Supply chains (praising DARPA doing bug bounty program for hardware)
- Her recommendations to other directors on cybersecurity matters [51:14]
- Ask about current tech or framework and what are the risks to such foundations/systems
- Where are you most at risk for litigation (for example: privacy)
- Her favorite books [53:21]:
- She's a Malcolm Gladwell fan, most recently read "Talking to Strangers" and "David & Goliath."
- "Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power" by Jon Meacham.
- "First Ladies" by Margaret Truman.
- "Dr Seuss and Philosophy" by Jacob Held.
- Suzanne's mentors [55:35]:
- Earlier in her career: Gen. Thomas S. Moorman, Jr., Gen. John Shalikashvili, and Col Adelbert Buz" Carpenter"
- As a board member: Dan Schulman and Doug Baker.
- Her favorite quotes: early in life "Here is Edward Bear coming downstairs now, bump bump bump..." Later: Colin Powell's "Eternal optimism is a force multiplier." John Schofied: "The discipline which makes the soldiers of a free country reliable in battle is not to be gained by harsh or tyrannical treatment..."
[59:40] - The living person she most admires: Condoleeza Rice [01:02:25]
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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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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