“I’ve got an exciting opportunity for you …”
“We’re looking for a security architect …”
“Would you be interested in this security role …”
Thank you for reaching out and offering an “opportunity.” It is a fact that we will never have enough security professionals!
Mentoring, Consulting, and Helping Cultivate Security Talent
The shortage of security professionals is a problem that will continue to grow. People with 1-3 years of security experience claim to be “security experts.” All I ask if you are looking for a “security expert” is to do a little homework. It does not help your cause to offer a security sales SE job to someone who has over 30 years of security experience.
Given this, I mentor CIOs, CISOs, and other security executives to help them find security talent, attract security talent, and leverage that talent in ways that benefit the organization’s big priorities.
I understand the need to fill the security gaps. I publish, write, teach, mentor, coach, and consult to build our security capacity and capabilities in the industry. It is one reason senki.org exists. I train emerging talent. I mentor CxOs on how to build their security teams. I help enthusiastic talent start in the security world. I’m connected to the best of the best and will point organizations to paths to find the security talent in their organizations. I do this to build our security community, a community of which I’m one of many who depend on our powerful security community.
Is Barry Interested in Opportunities?
After 30 years in the industry, I focus my time. I intentionally seek organizations and teams that focus on the future of networking, interconnecting connecting people, and building to scale. Today, that is with Akamai Technologies to expand Edge Network Services, deploy new security services, and leverage Akamai’s strength to help make the Internet safer.
What Drives Barry’s Work?
If you are trying to poke at Barry’s interest, it is helpful to get to know what drives my work. I’m part of that Internet generation which will not give up building this Internet. It is a community of “never retire” peers who keep working to connect everything, everyone, in all parts of the world, transparently, fairly, with constant motion, and scale. In 1989 I signed on to the Internet’s Quest of “connecting everything and everyone while everything is moving.” Every job role and position I’ve taken on has been to promote that Internet Quest. I have faith that the interconnection of people in all parts of the world, in all languages, in all economics classes, and all age groups are and will continue to have an unforeseen transformation of humanity. That means the big issues we have are scale and the impact of massively interconnected humanity (i.e. what we call security).
Building/Leading Teams, Listen for the Yet to Be Seen Problem, Finding the New Solution
I solve problems by listening to people/organizations, finding the underlying scaling issues, and then instigating solutions. My “get it done” methodologies are wide and broad, using the +30 years of execution to apply to today’s challenges. These methodologies range from building teams, clearing the path for people, seek success by empowering others, build new products, influencing new ASIC/FPGAs, crafting new standards, or fostering connections between people whose interaction will then uncover the solution. This work requires me to lead teams (and be the Executive). Most times I prefer the mode of the service and clearing the path (and others get motivated by getting the credit). The service mode/clearing the path allows me to expand my ability to affect more challenges simultaneously. As Mike O’Dell said during the 1996 IETF in Montreal, “The only problem we have on the Internet is Scale! If you don’t understand the problem, get out of the room!” As one of my old supervisors, Tom Herbst said to my face, “you will only work for someone or some organization which is aligned with your scale the Internet agenda.” If you are looking for someone who is a widget in a company, please look elsewhere. If you are looking for someone who will boost your organization and offers something that will transform the Internet through scalability interconnecting people and things, then knock.
Over the past three decades, I have the wonderful fortune to work with the most amazing people in the industry…. especially the ones who are also working on the cause of “connecting everything and everyone while everything is moving.” That means I check out the people inside the organization. I’m a people optimist, viewing all people as gems of capability and capacity. But, people and the organization’s leaders need to be receptive to investing in “polish” to uncover the capability/capacity of their people. I also really look at the sustainability of the solution to the problem. Remember, we cannot avoid entropy. It is a law of the Universe. You need sustainability energy that pushed back against Entropy. This could be as simple as a profitable business model or as complicated as an enmeshed – interlocked ecosystem.
If your “exciting opportunity” is something that will solve problems around the Internet’s Cause, have a team that wants to live up to their best potential, and seeks sustainability, then come knocking. We can always have a conversation.
Until this, think Internet exponentially and the impact on humanity. Imagine what happens as we connect everyone to everyone, everything to everything, and all people/things are constantly moving. Then what happens?
Your next actions ….
- Connect with me on LinkedIn. Let me know that you are looking for security talent.
- If you are looking for mentorship or coaching, reach out to me via E-mail bgreene@senki.org