How do you align your IT security and risk strategy with your business goals and objectives?

While it may be encompassed in "values," one important thing to call out explicitly is the risk appetite of your company. Maybe you store PHI data that's both incredibly valuable and not something that can be changed/mitigated if it's exposed, so your company has a very risk averse posture. Maybe your company has a very high tolerance for risk because it builds free online games where people would be irritated if their email addresses got leaked, but the exposure of the rest of the data isn't a big deal. Your default posture will play a large role in determining how much time and effort you put into risk management.

It is essential to have a clear understanding of what the organization aims to achieve. This involves collaborating with key stakeholders and decision-makers to gain insights into the strategic priorities, growth plans, and desired outcomes of the business.

While understanding the business context is essential, it's also crucial to recognize the human factor in IT security. Employees are often the weakest link in security chains, and understanding their behaviors, motivations, and awareness levels can significantly enhance the effectiveness of risk management strategies. In addition to understanding the business, invest in understanding the people within the business.

While setting objectives is critical, it's equally important to ensure these objectives are communicated effectively to all stakeholders. Often, IT security is seen as a responsibility of the IT department only. However, in reality, every individual within the organization plays a role in maintaining security. Therefore, objectives should be set in a way that fosters a culture of shared responsibility.

In the process of assessing the current security and risk posture, companies should also evaluate their culture of security. Is there an awareness of security best practices among the employees? Do they understand the implications of their actions? A robust security culture is an invaluable asset in mitigating risks.

In addition to SMART goals, you should also have some easily determined KPIs that help you measure a baseline and any improvements (or deterioration) against it. Some common ones include things like: comparison to industry benchmarks (such as NIST, CIS, SOC 2, HITRUST, ISO 27001/27002, GDPR, FISMA, etc) and performance on formal audits, pen testing and bug bounty program findings, patching status/cadence, attempts vs incidents, mean time to detection/response/contain/resolution (including vendor response), training effectiveness, freshness and testing of policies and documentation.

Identify the potential risks and dependencies that can impact the achievement of business goals. Conduct a comprehensive risk assessment, considering both internal and external factors such as cybersecurity threats, regulatory compliance, supply chain vulnerabilities, technology disruptions, and operational risks.

Flexibility is key here, since you'll need to stay aware of emerging threats. It's useful to be part of various security communities (either paid or free) so that you're learning about new threats and ongoing incidents before they hit the news. If you're outsourcing part of your security program, look for companies that offer this as part of their service.

When developing the security and risk plan, it's important to be proactive rather than reactive. A common mistake many organizations make is to react to incidents after they occur. Instead, the focus should be on predicting potential threats and vulnerabilities and developing strategies to prevent them. This also includes proactive training and awareness programs for employees.

Conducting a gap analysis is an important step in aligning IT security and risk strategy with business goals and objectives. It helps identify the current state of security and risk management practices in relation to the desired state. Conduct Gap Analysis: Compare the current state to the desired state and identify the gaps between them. This involves analyzing the KPIs, assessing the effectiveness of controls and processes, and identifying areas where the organization falls short in meeting the desired objectives. These gaps could include deficiencies in policies, lack of employee awareness and training, inadequate technology controls, or insufficient risk mitigation measures.

When monitoring and reviewing performance, don't just focus on the negative - also celebrate the wins. If a potential threat was identified and mitigated effectively, recognize and reward those involved. This can encourage proactive behavior and foster a sense of ownership and responsibility among employees.

Continuous improvement is crucial, but remember to consider the changing human dynamics in your organization. As the company grows, the culture may evolve, new employees will join, and others may leave. Keep the security training and awareness programs up-to-date and relevant to the current workforce.

Continuously monitoring and adapting your IT security and risk strategy is crucial to maintain alignment with changing business goals, evolving threats, and emerging technologies. Here are some key steps to effectively monitor and adapt your strategy: 1. Stay updated on threat landscape 2. Conduct risk assessments 3. Engage with Stakeholders 4. Foster a culture of security 5. conduct regular strategy reviews 6. Embrace new technologies and best practices 7. Learn from past incidents and lessons learnt 8. Collaborate with external partners