CyberVersed

In episode 35, Mandy Haeburn-Little chats with David Scutt, Head of Software Sales EMEA at HP, the global technology leader, operating in 170 countries and shipping three devices every second!  David begins the conversation by outlining the core focus areas of the business, which are Personal Computing & Printing, 3D Printing, Hybrid Work, and Gaming. Essentially, they provide innovative workforce solutions where security and sustainability are non-negotiable deliverables across everything they do. David provides some insight into how they maintain cyber security across the business using things like the HP Work Relationship Index to gain valuable insights into user needs and trends. He cites an astonishing example whereby their research revealed that only 27% of knowledge workers responding to a survey believed they had the tools to do their job! David goes on to explain why this information is essential to enable HP to provide innovative solutions that ultimately make work easier while improving efficiency and productivity. Mandy and David also discuss the HP Customer First Community, where employees share customer experiences to help build solutions and address specific problems, reinforcing HP's commitment to enabling users to work without worry by focusing on making products secure by design. David also explains why becoming a National Ambassador was important to HP, and he acknowledges the importance of the SME community to the UK economy, many of whom are HP customers.  Sustainability is paramount at HP. David explains what they are already doing to ensure materials are in use longer. He highlights that 95% of home and office printers shipped in 2023 included recycled materials, and HP-branded paper and paper-based packaging are derived from certified recycled sources. These are just a couple of examples of HP's approach to sustainability, which is central to everything they do. It's an interesting conversation that provides genuine insight into HP and how the user experience drives everything it does.

CyberVersed episode 34 is the final podcast of 2024, and fittingly, Mandy Haeburn-Little caught up with Nik Adams, Assistant Commissioner, City of London Police and Chair of the NCRCG National Ambassador Steering Group. Their conversation highlights the progress made during 2024 and, more importantly, outlines the opportunities and goals for NCRCG and the CRC network for 2025. Nik and Mandy reflect on the range of National Ambassadors and why it's essential to explore and understand the vulnerabilities sector-by-sector and work in partnership with the National Ambassadors in their respective sectors to encourage and support their supply chains to become more cyber resilient. Nik also touches on the fact that it's not only about having the proper companies in each sector but also about tapping into the expertise and experience of the right people within their organisations. During the engaging conversation, they also discuss the invaluable work being done in the nine regional centres and the commitment and passion shown by their teams to support SMEs in their communities. Nik highlights their vital role in collaborating with the National Ambassadors to deliver consistent messaging and guidance to their SME suppliers locally. The two also discuss the critical part that the Cyber PATH programme plays for cyber students whereby they deliver assistance to SMEs and, at the same time, gain valuable real work experience that is encouraging more young people into cyber and developing a talent pipeline for policing and law enforcement. They also note how Cyber PATH is addressing diversity and identifying how the programme is attracting a range of people, particularly those who are neurodivergent. Throughout the podcast, Mandy and Nik refer to the National Ambassadors and express gratitude for their support, the current National Ambassador portfolio includes: AVIVA, CGI, Chainalysis, CompTIA, HP, ISC2, Logistics UK, Mastercard, Microsoft, Nationwide, NatWest Group, Resilience, SANS, SAS, Sir Robert McAlpine, The Very Group, and Trustify.    Finally, we wish all of our listeners a Merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year.

In CyberVersed episode 33 Mandy Haeburn-Little catches up with one of the founding ambassador companies, The Very Group. She is joined by Muktar Mahama, Head of Product and Digital Experience, in a truly insightful conversation about The Very Group's total commitment to customer experience and the continuous monitoring and refinement to ensure the complete customer journey is the best it can be.  Muktar explains the process and how various teams, known as 'squads', collaborate in every aspect of the buying experience. He describes the responsibilities of each squad, which comprise Product Design, Research & Development, Onboarding, Discover, PDP (product detail page), Checkout, My Account and Mobile App. It's a fascinating look at what each team does and how they work together to refine every customer touchpoint and address any pain points they can identify through meticulous monitoring. Muktar also provides some insight into the scale of the business, which has 4.3 million customers and around one million visitors every day. He also touches on how they cope with the peak times around Black Friday and the lead-up to Christmas when the site experiences around a 30% increase in daily traffic. Muktar also provides some information about his recent graduation from the Ethenic Senior Leaders Programme, something he is passionate about and strongly recommends to other business leaders.

CyberVersed episode 32 focuses on Trustify, one of the newest National Cyber Resilience Centre Group's National Ambassadors. Mandy Haebrun-Little talks to John Madelin, Advisory Board Member at Trustify. John is a highly respected cyber professional with 30+ years of experience in the design, build and management of Cyber Security. It is evident during the conversation that John is passionate about delivering high-quality security solutions that are accessible to the SME community. He provides his views on what is often overcomplicated messaging and the need to demystify and simplify the topic of cyber security. It is refreshing to listen to John as he demonstrates an excellent understanding of the issues faced by SMEs and how Trustify works with each client to understand and adapt their offering to meet the unique challenges of each organisation. Beginning with a risk assessment, they quickly address what are usually straightforward issues that get the client to a point where they can 'sleep at night'. Then, the focus is on a customised action plan that addresses issues relevant to the business. John talks about the importance of detection and the critical need for continuous monitoring. However, he again demonstrates his desire to uncomplicate things by emphasising that there are only 15 signals used by cybercriminals to get into your systems. Indeed, he offers a case of champagne to anyone who can cite a material cyber incident that doesn't fall within one of the 15 signals! John's passion and energy are evident throughout the conversation, especially towards the end when he explains why he is looking forward to collaborating with NCRCG to help make cyber resilience more attainable to the SME community and the work he'd like to do around inclusivity and encouraging young people into careers in cyber.

In episode 31, Mandy Haeburn-Little chats with members of the team at Sir Robert McAlpine, a valued member of our growing portfolio of National Cyber Resilience Centre Group National Ambassadors. Mandy is joined by Andy Black, Chief Information Security Officer, and Rachel Lloyd-Moseley, Head of Procurement - Nuclear. Sir Robert McAlpine describes itself as a family building and civil engineering company with a desire to be renowned for their work with clients and communities as they construct a better world for future generations. Sir Robert McAlpine's strong family values indeed come across in the discussion, which looks at the history of the company, the sectors where they work and the inter-department collaboration across a wide variety of projects. The chat also explores why Sir Robert McAlpine joined NCRCG as a National Ambassador and how it is a perfect fit with their commitment to raising awareness of cyber security throughout their supply chain. It's a fascinating and engaging conversation during which Andy and Rachel provide examples of how the company is embracing AI to achieve greater levels of efficiency and safety.

In episode 30, Mandy Haeburn-Little chats with members of the team at ISC2, the latest National Cyber Resilience Centre Group National Ambassador. Mandy is joined by Ed Parsons, VP, Global Markets & Member Relations; Dr Sanjana Hehta, Senior Director, Advocacy; Andy Woolnough, EVP, Corporate Affairs; and Alex Mortimer, Manager, Global Academic Partnerships. ISC2 is the world's leading membership association for cybersecurity; it is probably best known for its gold standard certification, CISSP. However, as you will discover on the podcast, there is much more to the organisation. The team talked about the work they do in research, training, and certification. They also explain the vital work they do in advocacy to ensure the relevant policymakers understand the needs of their members in three main areas of focus: workforce development, professionalisation of the sector, and critical issues of the day. During the discussion, Ed Parsons also explains why ISC2 decided to become a National Ambassador and how they see the NRCRG model as a perfect fit to demonstrate their commitment to making an impact in the UK, particularly in developing and expanding the cyber talent pipeline, and working closely with the regional centres to make a positive impact in local communities.

In Episode 29, we turn on another National Ambassador, Baseel Group. Mandy Haeburn-Little is joined by the dynamic husband-and-wife team that is the driving force behind Baseel. Paresh Deshmukh is the Group CEO, while Poorva Deshmukh is the Group Managing Director. Baseel is familiar to the CRC network; they have been working with multiple centres as Cyber Essentials Partners, but, in line with their global operation and ambitions, they have become National Ambassadors of the National Cyber Resilience Centre Group. During the conversation, they explained the global nature of the business and how they use specialist partners with particular areas of expertise, which enables them to offer multiple high-quality services and solutions to all customers, regardless of their requirements.  They also explain their appetite for innovation and development, which keeps Baseel at the forefront of technology. Paresh teases listeners by sharing a few of the products in development, such as a Happiness and well-being platform and another to provide end-to-end funding solutions for businesses of all sizes.  Paresh and Poorva also share their reasons for becoming National Ambassadors and their wish to be involved in various workstreams and the Cyber PATH programme, which aligns perfectly with their global Intern Programme. It is clear from the conversation that Baseel has solid values and a desire to give back to the business community. Both Paresh and Poovra speak with passion about the Baseel 'family' and what they are doing to give back to the business community and their charitable work through the Maulee Foundation, an organisation dedicated to promoting sustainable development and improving the lives of marginalised communities around the world.  Once again, it is an open and passionate discussion led by Mandy that reveals the genuine and core values on which Baseel Group is founded.

In episode 28, Mandy Haeburn-Little is joined by Karen Blake, CEO of Tech Talent Charter, and Caroline Turner, Founder and CEO of Creased Puddle. Karen's mission with Tech Talent Charter is to drive inclusion and diversity across the tech ecosystem. She discusses the need to equip organisations with practical insights to make a real difference and encourage senior-level buy-in. She highlights that this starts with recognising why data is essential, understanding how to interpret it, and what to do with it. Karen also shares her thoughts on how we ensure we're not working within a system that is set up for neurodiverse people to fail. Caroline Turner's reasons for launching Creased Puddle were based on personal experience. She is an ex-police officer whose son was diagnosed as neurodivergent. In her quest for information, she discovered there was a lack of quality guidance and support, and any that was available focused on a deficit narrative, which she believes only tells half the story. This, and her drive to improve the understanding and neurodivergence within the criminal justice system led her to start the company. She outlines why it's essential to work with companies to identify their specific requirements and then deliver training that meets these needs. It's a compelling episode that celebrates the progress that has been made in recent years. However, both guests are quick to highlight what still needs to happen if we are to tap into the opportunities of embracing a neurodivergent workforce. Both are not only passionate but also highly knowledgeable on the topic, which makes it an engaging, interesting, and worthwhile episode.

In episode 27, we return to our National Ambassador Focus to introduce our latest National Ambassador, Resilience. On the podcast, Mandy Haeburn-Little is joined by four senior members of the Resilience team: Si West, Director, Customer Engagement; Rehan Hussain, Head of Underwriting, International; Jack Jenner, International Head of Distribution & Strategy; and Tom Egglestone, Global Head of Claims.    Si West opens the conversation by stating Resilience's mission is to make businesses cyber resilient to material losses. He goes on to explain that they do this by helping companies assess, measure, and manage cyber risk by connecting risk quantification software, in-house cybersecurity expertise, and insurance into a single solution. This enables continuous improvement and clear alignment across risk, therefore improving cyber security and financial leadership by translating security threats and controls into actionable financial prioritisation.   The conversation among the team explores a number of facets that make Resilience's offering unique and innovative. During the chat, they discuss how they assist clients in communicating in a financial language that resonates with the Board, something they believe is essential if adequate cyber budgets are to be maintained. They ably explain why "Being able to quantify risk is a game changer".   They also discuss how they are bringing a risk management culture to cyber and how they build rapport, starting with their innovative onboarding approach for new clients.   It's an interesting discussion that covers a wide range of topics related to the business and its products, such as the Risk Profile Builder and the Breach Attack Simulation tools. It also provides some interesting insights into the variances of risk across different countries and how they adapt to the nuances of local markets.

In our latest episode of the Cyber Versed podcast, we continue with our mini-series on Diversity in Cyber; this time, we are looking at Neurodiversity. Three exceptional guests join Mandy Haeburn-Little: Dr Emma Philpott MBE, CEO at IASME Consortium; Jonathon Ellison OBE, Director of National Resilience and Future Technology at the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC); and Jess Burden, Security Engineer at IASME Consortium. During the discussion, all three more than adequately explain the numerous advantages of employing neurodivergent people. Both Jonathon and Emma outline how they have not only embraced neurodivergent workforces but also demonstrate the many benefits and how both organisations are thriving because of it. Indeed, Jonathon explains that he considers their attitude towards recruiting a broad range of neurodivergent people as 'mission-critical'.  Jess Burden also provides an open and very honest insight as a neurodivergent employee who has progressed in IASME to become a security engineer. She explains very clearly some of the challenges faced by her and many others and how her colleagues and the culture at IASME have helped her progress and grow as an individual and a valuable employee.   All in all, it's a great insight into neurodivergence and the vital role a neurodiverse workforce can play in the success of all businesses of any size.