From The Register
Cybersecurity not the hiring-’em-like-hotcakes role it once was
By Iain Thomson
It’s a familiar refrain in the security industry that there is a massive skills gap in the sector. And while it’s true there are specific shortages in certain areas, some industry watchers believe we may be reaching the point of oversupply for generalists.
It seems every year there’s another warning about a shortage for security talent – the first warning we found on The Register is from 2009 – yet lately this reporter has run into more and more people in the field who are recounting that even getting an interview can be tough.
Speaking to The Reg, Mary McHale, who works as a careers advisor for UC Berkeley Master’s in Cybersecurity, said: “I kind of joke with my students that when I started, I felt like if you could spell cybersecurity you would get an interview. Now a lot of things have changed...
Experience in the field is by far the most attractive thing for employers, McHale told us. Yet qualifications are useful in both demonstrating knowledge and getting around automatic HR filtering systems.
A CompTIA Security+ certificate is de rigueur these days and being a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) doesn’t hurt either - and without them HR software will bin an application for a cybersecurity role almost without fail, she said. But once you actually get an interview certificate collections are less important than practical experience and a more formal education...
Mary McHale is currently a MICS Career Advisor and has been assisting organizations through large scale change as an executive coach, speaker and workshop facilitator in tech, manufacturing, finance, telecommunications, healthcare and biotech industries.
