The role and responsibility of a CISO is often misunderstood. Thankfully we have the CISO Mindmap by Rafeeq Rehman. It’s an excellent breakdown of the roles and responsibilities of a CISO. The new just got released as is available here.

One of my favorite sections from this year’s CISO Mindmap by Rafeeq Rehman, and something I think many non-CISO struggle with is the “branding” of security at the organization. That's why I love the Internal Branding section from the Mindmap.

Internal Branding (Selling Security)

The "Selling InfoSec (Internal Branding)" section from the CISO Mindmap is all about promoting and communicating the value of information security within your organization. Sure, some folks might see it as a cost center, but effective security practices can actually save your company big bucks in the long run by preventing data breaches, regulatory fines, and reputational damage.

To get everyone on board, you need to create a culture of security where everyone understands the importance of security and feels empowered to contribute to the overall security posture of the company. This means delivering killer security awareness training, setting up easy communication channels for security best practices, and tracking metrics to see how well your security program is doing.

Basically, if you can build a strong internal brand for the security function, you'll get everyone to buy in and be part of the solution. That way, you'll be able to keep your company safe and sound from security risks and protect your most valuable assets.

CISO MindMap Overview

Below is a google sheet of many of the common responsibilities of a CISO at an organization. Feel free to copy and use this for your own infosec budget approval and justifications.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1nj69_sJbwbSgymB7LkwZ26EtuVr_J0a3ltEfxX6hkbs/edit#gid=0