S624:E5🎙️ Industry Guest Speaker Diah Ra

Hi, I'm John Maxwell. When the top companies in the world are looking for trainers, speakers, and coaches, there's one name that stands above the rest, and that's Maxwell Leadership. Our certified team members have gotten proven results for companies all over the globe, and our reputation I'm proud to say is second to none. Some of our members have risen to the top of their profession, including the one you're going to meet today. I proudly introduce you to my friend Bob Fabien Zinga.

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All right, uh, you guys should hear me now. Sorry, I did this earlier and my sound was not on. Okay, uh, welcome to this very special episode of the Leadership and Success Podcast, and, uh, this one, uh, is what we call Industry Guest Speaker Series. It's a TEDx-like talk for my students at California Science and Technology University. And actually, Dayawa was here before. She's an alumnus of the Leadership and Success Podcast. She was here for Season 5, Episode 14. So you can go back and listen to our hour-long conversation about cybersecurity being existential. Today, we're going to be talking about the leadership gap in cybersecurity. The greatest cyber risk isn't technology, it is leadership. So let me see if I can properly introduce my guest today. So, uh, class, today Today, we are going to confront a hard truth about cybersecurity, right? One that many organizations are still struggling to accept. The biggest vulnerability in cybersecurity today is not technology, it is leadership. And that's exactly why I am honored to introduce our next guest speaker, Daya Rah. Daya is a visionary cybersecurity executive. She's the founder of Shiro Cyber and the Certified Chief Information Security Officer. Who has spent nearly 2 decades now operating in environment where failure is simply not an option. Healthcare, medical devices, insurance, and other highly regulated industry. She has built cybersecurity program from the ground up, contributed to national standards through organization like NIST and HSCC, and she's led enterprise-wide initiatives that integrate security, compliance, and business strategy. But what makes Daya truly special and why I brought her here today is this: she doesn't just talk about cybersecurity as a technical discipline, she frames it as a leadership responsibility. She has said it best: cybersecurity is no longer optional, it is existential. Today, she's going to challenge all of us, especially the next generation of leaders in this room, with her talk, The Leadership Gap in Cybersecurity. She's going to explore why organizations are failing, not because of missing tools, but because of unclear leadership. Why Gen Z may be the most important generation in redefining cyber leadership. What skills actually matter in today's AI-accelerated threat landscape. And most importantly, what your roadmap looks like from student to practitioner to leader. This is not just a talk about cybersecurity. This is a call to step up, to lead when others hesitate, to think beyond tools and framework and to take ownership of outcome, not just task. So as you listen today, I want you to reflect on this. Are you preparing to be a cybersecurity professional or a cybersecurity leader? There is a difference. When the moment comes, will you wait for direction or will you provide direction? And what kind of leaders will you become when the stakes are high and the path is unclear? Class, please join me in welcoming a leader who is shaping the future of cybersecurity governance and leadership. Please help me welcome Daya Raw. All right, good afternoon, Daya. How are you doing today?

I am doing very good, Bisi. Thank you so much for the invitation to share the topic, the leadership gap in cybersecurity My Generation Z will redefine the future with the students of California Science and Technology University. It is an honor to contribute to the growth of Gen Z, our future industry leaders. Thank you so much for the invitation, BC.

Absolutely. Like I say, you are an alumnus. You were here for Season 5, Episode 14. Today you are here to talk to us about the leadership gap in cybersecurity. The floor is all yours.

Thank you so much. Before I jump into the subject, I want to share something about me. Across my career working with the executive leaders and operations from single founder organization to enterprise where we have big forces, I have had a front row seat to how organization actually make decision about technology risk and innovation. My work across technology services, healthcare, banking, global tourism, and multi-million dollar product development organization has revealed me that the biggest gaps in cybersecurity is not just the technology, but it is leadership. My conversations span CISOs, AI leaders, and regulatory officers, and operators responsible for the stewardship of global platforms. These interactions have shaped my ability to translate business strategy to technology and innovation pipelines and translate complex technical realities back into business language with the clarity and foresight. And I believe that dual fluency is one of the exact thing what today's and tomorrow's cyber leadership demands. As a Carnegie Mellon-trained CISO, I have learned to evaluate cybersecurity through the lens of an entire ecosystem, not just a technical stack. I have studied the full life cycle of a product from concept, design, development, commercialization, on-market surveillance, enterprise risk, business governance, revenue models, and more importantly, the resilience and long-term sustainability. And I believe cybersecurity is existential because it determines whether an organization can survive disruption, maintain trust, and continue to operate in a world where every business is now a digital business. It is now the single greatest determinant of organizational survival, trust, and long-term sustainability. So every company, regardless of industry size or business model, runs on digital infrastructure, digital workflows, digital data, and digital decision-making. That means every company is one bridge one failure of leadership, or one moment of silence away from operational collapse. Trust is the currency of modern business, as you all know, and a breach destroys it instantly. Regulators now treat cybersecurity as a core element of governance, not just as a technical detail. AI, automation, and interconnected system amplify both the risk and impact, making leadership, not tools, the deciding factor. And this is exactly why the leadership gap matters, and this is why the mindset matters, and this is why cybersecurity is no longer a technical discipline, but it is an existential one. We should not be seeing cybersecurity as a silo, but we should see it as part of the business engine. Many leaders still treat cybersecurity as a technical function, and that is the leadership gap the industry is facing today. And I believe Generation Z is uniquely positioned to deliver some of this leadership transformation. So today, let's not talk just about cybersecurity, but let's talk about the leadership. Because the greatest vulnerability in our field is not a miss— missing patch, not a misconfiguration in system, or a zero-day exploit. Yes, of course, it all does matter, it is all important, But it is the widening leadership gap and the right mindset toward ethical leadership is the biggest important factor in any business success going forward. And you, Gen Z, are stepping into this moment at a time when the world needs a new kind of leader. Not the leader who waits for permission, not the leader who hides behind hierarchy, But the leader who sees what others don't see moves faster than the threat and leads with values, ethics, integrity, clarity, and courage. I believe this is your moment and you have an opportunity to transform the industry. So, um, what is the wake-up call here? As I mentioned, cybersecurity is not just a technical problem But it is a leadership problem. How many of you understand that cybersecurity has never been just about technology? Technology is only one of the battlefield, but leadership is the weapon. Every major breach you have read about in the last decade, everyone traces back to a leadership failure, a decision not made. A risk not really understood, and very importantly, a culture that silenced the truth, a leader who did not listen, a system that rewarded speed over safety. And AI has accelerated that— the threat landscape, but it has also exposed something deeper. Organizations are not suffering from shortage of tools. They are suffering from a shortage of leaders who know how to think, decide, and act in complexity. The speed of threats has outpaced the speed of organizational maturity. Response timelines have collapsed, and the gap between what leaders need to be and what leaders are has never been wider. And that is why your generation matters. Let me tell you about the leadership crisis and the opportunity. As you may already know, we have a global workforce shortage in cybersecurity. Uh, BC, could you please move to the slide where I am demonstrating the metrics about the global workforce shortage in cybersecurity and in IT? Alright, so we have organizations that fail to grow internal leaders. We have AI accelerating threats faster than leadership models can adapt. But I do not think it is a crisis for your generation. I believe it is an opportunity. I am someone who naturally transforms problems into advantage, and that is exactly why I see this moment as an opportunity for you guys. Because you were generation, you are uniquely positioned to lead. You were born into a world of digital acceleration, global accessibility, and constant change. What older generations had to learn, you absorbed by simply existing in this era. What others treat as a disruption, you treat as normal. What others fear, you navigate with instinct. Your adaptability, your creativity, your values-driven mindset, and your ability to see system holistically— these are not just strength, they are the leadership signals. The industry is facing a leadership gasp, as I mentioned, and you are the generation capable of closing that gap. Not because of you have all the answers— of course we do not have all the answers, we— nobody can have all the answers. But because you have the digital fluency to grow into the leaders this era demands, you are the first generation born into a fully digital world, and you bring 3 leadership advantages no previous generation had at your age. So, you know, I got my first mobile phone when I was 17 years old. But you were born into the era of digital platforms, right? And so you can't understand patterns, signals, and digital behavior instinctively. And that is a leadership superpower in cybersecurity. My generation grew up reading paperback books because that was our window into the world. Our access to global knowledge was limited. Slow and often dependent on what we could physically find or afford. But you were born into the era of digital platforms, a world where information, perspectives, and global learning are available instantly. And if you use this platform wisely, they can help you build a value-driven mindset. You can learn how to care about ethics, transparency, inclusion, and accountability. And cybersecurity desperately needs leaders who make decisions rooted in integrity, not ego. Cybersecurity leadership needs who has the courage to challenge outdated norms, who are not afraid to ask questions. Why are we doing this, this way? Who does this serve? And why hasn't this changed? And change is the only permanent thing, as you know. That mindset disrupts stagnation. That mindset drives innovation. That mindset is leadership. So if you, Gen Z, use the available resources wisely, you can not only be the future of cybersecurity leadership, but You can be the correction. You can transform the industry. Okay, let me tell you something about skills that actually matter to be a transformational cybersecurity leader. The next era of cybersecurity leadership will not be defined by who knows the most tools, who knows the best technologies. It will be defined by who can lead in uncertainty, because we cyber leaders are always dealing with the uncertainty. So here are the skills that matter most: system thinking, seeing the whole picture, not just the incident in front of you; emotional intelligence, because cybersecurity is a human problem before it becomes a technical one; decisive Velocity, decision-making. Leaders who hesitate to— who hesitate and who avoid crucial conversation create vulnerabilities. Leaders who is not afraid to have difficult conversation, leaders who can decide, create resilience. And of course, communication mastery. If you cannot explain risk, you cannot lead risk. And very importantly, Ethical judgment. In an AI-accelerated world, ethical judgment is the differentiator, and trust me, ethics is not optional. And cross-functional influence. As I mentioned earlier, cybersecurity is not just about technology, but a good cyber leader must understand the technology and business and be able to influence legal, HR, compliance, engineering, product, and the board, and many more. Not just the security teams, the entire organization depends on these capabilities. And these are not just technical skills, these are leadership skills, and they are absolutely learnable. And the future generation You have a remarkable opportunity in front of you because of the digital accessibility you were born into. You can learn these skills faster, earlier, and more broadly than any generation before you. You can use these platforms to understand the world better, to shape values-driven mindset, and to develop a deep commitment to ethics, transparency, inclusion, and accountability. And cybersecurity desperately needs leaders who make decisions rooted in integrity. Let me tell you what the future cyber career actually looks like. The cybersecurity workforce is being rewritten in real time. AI is automating tasks that used to take team— a lot of, you know, employees to analyze. But here is the human advantage: AI cannot fully automate judgment, integrity, courage, leadership, vision, and humanity. I consider myself as an ambassador of capability-based hiring and leadership without titles. Do you know why? Because the workforce of the future will not be built around the job titles. It will be built around capabilities, and in the next era of work, it is capability, not hierarchy, that will determine who leads. And you, the future generation, bring capabilities that the industry has been missing for years. Because of the era you were born into, you are naturally more adaptable, more creative, and more socially aware than any generation before you. Those strengths become the foundation for something far more important: a deep ethical consciousness, a refusal to tolerate toxic cultures, and, and expectations of transparency and accountability from every system and every leader you interact with. These are not technical skills, these are leadership skills, and they are exactly what cybersecurity has been starving for. So you have a rare opportunity in front of you to use digital fluency, your digital accessibility, and your values-driven mindset to become the next generation of cybersecurity leaders. Leaders who protect not just systems but people, trust, and the future of the organization you will one day guide. You are not entering just a workforce. You are redefining it, and you got all the capabilities to do that. And the roles of the future will be hybrid. I'm talking about not hybrid locations, as you all know, uh, currently we are in hybrid location most of the time. I am talking about how cybersecurity leadership and workforce development will evolve. I envision the future of cybersecurity workforce moving away from single discipline roles and into a hybrid model where the most impactful leaders sit at the intersection of multiple domains. Please note this clearly, it is very important point. Cyber plus psychology, cyber plus policy, cyber plus leadership, cyber plus AI, cyber plus AI governance, and cyber plus organizational culture, and so more. This is the future of the field. Not narrow expertise, but integrated capability. Not siloed roles, but hybrid leaders who understand technology, people, system, business, ethics, and strategy as one interconnected ecosystem. It is important because new technologies like AI can do a lot of technical work, but the industry needs leaders who can connect the dots and who has emotional intelligence. I envision the leadership readiness will outrank technological specialization because the world doesn't just need technical analyst, uh, but we need leaders who can think clearly. So let me tell you about roadmap to your success, how to step into cybersecurity leadership now and in future. The first important thing, of course, build depth in one area but breadth in many. Become known for something but stay curious about everything and be able to connect the dots, because as I mentioned, the industry would change to a hybrid model soon. Second, Learn to communicate like a leader. Uh, your technical skills get you to the room, of course, but your communication is what keeps you there and what earns you the recognition. And let me be clear, you don't need to fake accents, you don't need to mimic anyone else, you don't need to perform a version of leadership that does not belong to you. Your authenticity is your advantage. Your voice is your credibility, and your clarity is your power. This industry doesn't need more polished performers, trust me. It needs leaders who communicate clearly with integrity, confidence, and truth. Leaders who can translate complexity into meaning, who can speak with purpose, and who can move people toward action. And the future generation, Gen Z, this is where you can shine. You have the opportunity to communicate with a level of transparency, emotional intelligence, and values-driven clarity that cybersecurity has been missing for decades. And I want you to redefine the norms, move faster than the hierarchies around you, not by confirming, but by standing in the strength of who you are. Let your credibility come from your capability, your integrity, and your authenticity. And very importantly, develop your ethical frameworks early. AI will test your values. Know your boundaries before you need them. Then build relationships across the organization Because cybersecurity is a team sport. Collaboration, adaptability, and your influence will matter far more than your title ever will. Please don't focus on building, you know, empires. Build your tribes. Find the people who elevate your thinking, protect your spirit, and challenge you to grow. And as you rise, help others rise with you. Leadership is not about climbing alone, but it's about creating, uh, momentum that lifts the entire system, including, um, your team, including your colleagues, your collaborators, your organization, your society. The future of cybersecurity will belong to leaders who can connect across disciplines, as I mentioned earlier. Bridge cultures, and cultivate trust at every level of the organization. And Gen Z, this is where your natural strengths become your strategic advantage. Also, practice decision-making. Leaders are not defined by how much they know, they are defined by how they decide. Protect your energy and mental health Because cybersecurity is of course demanding. Please don't enter this field believing there will be no stress. You will face influential leaders with the high expectation, fast timelines, and complex demands. That is the reality of cybersecurity, and it sits at the intersection of risk, trust, and organizational survival. But trust me, this is not something that you have to fear about. But just to prepare for it, strengthen your mindset, build your resilience, develop the emotional intelligence to stand your ground, communicate with clarity, and navigate pressure without losing yourself. Because the leaders who thrive in cybersecurity are not the one who avoid stress, not the one who avoid crucial conversations. But they are the ones who learn to transform it into focus, discipline, and strategic action. Prepare yourself not to survive the expectation but to meet them with confidence and exceed them with integrity. And last but not least, lead before you have the title, because leadership is not a promotion, it is a behavior. It is a commitment and it is a journey, a beautiful journey. Trust me, leadership is the opportunity to elevate others, strengthen your organization, serve your community, and change people's life for the better. When you step into a leadership ecosystem, you are stepping into something very divine, very spiritual. You are accepting a divine opportunity, and with that comes divine responsibility. Treat it with respect, treat it with humility, treat it with purpose. You are called to serve, not to be served. You are called to lift, not to dominate. You are called to lead long before anyone gives you a title, because titles may open the doors, but your behavior, your ethics, your integrity is what keeps them open. So trust me, you are not stepping into cybersecurity at a time of crisis. You are stepping into cybersecurity at a time of transformation. The world does not need more technical analysts. It needs more leaders. Leaders who think differently. Leaders who challenge the status quo. Leaders who understand that cybersecurity is not just about system, but it is about people. You are the generation that can redefine what cybersecurity leadership means, and the industry is waiting for you. And, you know, we all are here to support your growth and the transformation you can bring to our industry. I am truly grateful for the opportunity to be even a small contributor to your growth and success. Thank you for giving me your time, guys, and your attention today. If you have any questions about anything we discussed, or if you ever need support with mentorship, leadership development, or coaching, please feel free to reach out to me on LinkedIn and of course BC. I am— we are here to help you navigate this journey with clarity and confidence. And thank you BC for creating this space and inviting me to be part of it. Thank you all.

Thank you so much, I really, really appreciate your help today. We do have one question from the audience. Let me see, it says, uh, on a mood question: when the students live here, what is one weekly behavior that turns their certification into a real standard of care for their teams, not just a line on their resume? How can they make their certification more valuable after they've been employed in the cybersecurity field?

If I understand your question correctly, you are asking what are some of the behavior that will stand out, not based on the certification. Yeah, for sure. As I mentioned in the presentation, integrity, ethics, and authenticity, definitely, because We are in a world of AI, and AI can do a lot of technical stuff, which is a truth, and we all have to accept that. But, uh, AI cannot automate so many of human behaviors— the right judgment, the humanity, the ethics, and the integrity, and the respect, things like that. So I would say, to be a wonderful leader, adapt those kind of human behavior rooted in values.

Very good. So, uh, one question the student have, Daya, is, uh, many organization now recognize that cybersecurity is a leadership issue, but they still struggle to act decisively. So the question is, in your experience, what is the moment or trigger that forces leaders to move from awareness to true accountability, and how can emerging leaders accelerate that shift before a crisis happen.

Shivarthin, so leaders shift from awareness or have to shift from awareness to accountability when the moment an issue becomes real, when a failure impacts people and trust or credibility, right? For example, connecting to the cybersecurity industry, an incident that is going to kill so many of our patients. It is the point where avoiding responsibility costs more than owning it. So emerging leaders can accelerate that shift by naming risk early, modeling integrity, and creating a culture where clarity and accountability are the norm. And as I mentioned earlier, silence is not a good practice. So you should be able to speak up, um, that is where you should be able to name the risk early. That is as part of culture too. And Generation Z, I think they can stand out when they move beyond technical skills and demonstrate outcome of ownership, emotional intelligence under pressure, as I mentioned, and the ability to translate cyber risk into business impact. So, you know, I would say when an issue become real, you know, it impacts the trust, people, and everything around you, that is the time that, you know, you have to transform transform the awareness to accountability, right? Us having cybersecurity literacy and awareness, not just enough, that is important aspect of it, but we have to take accountability.

Thanks so much. If I can ask one more question.

Sure.

One of the students is asking, you said that Gen Z is uniquely positioned to close the leadership gap in cybersecurity. In my class, that's about 50% of my class. So the question is, what specific behavior or habit should they build right now that will differentiate them from technically strong peers who never make the leap into leadership?

Yeah, Shivarthin. So as I mentioned in the presentation, you know, importance of ethical leadership and importance of understanding a hybrid model, because as you, you know, as we all can see previously, historically, if you look at the industry, We have cybersecurity compliance, we have product security, we have application security, and there's so many more, right? But now, uh, after the invention of AI, most of those things, uh, AI can do less than, you know, better than us sometimes, and within less time. So what are they missing? They are missing the ethical, uh, leadership and integrity and human based judgment and also the business understanding. So I would say for next generation to be a wonderful cybersecurity leaders, learn to adapt a couple of things like, for example, cybersecurity plus psychology, cybersecurity plus AI, cybersecurity plus compliance, things like that. That will prepare you to communicate with the different audiences. For example, if you understand cybersecurity and, you know, psychology. And you, if you become a cybersecurity leader who is managing people, you will be able to understand their negatives and positives better than an AI can. And that is going to help you as a cybersecurity leader and help your team, help your organization. So I would say understand the business, understand the multi-aspect of any business, you know, whether you are in medical device, whether you are in transportation, whether you are in tourism industry, wherever you are. Learn the business, learn technology, and to be an authentic human being. And I think that aspect is going to, um, you know, make you a better, uh, human-centered and an ethical cybersecurity leader.

Thank you so much. Can I ask one last question?

Sure thing.

Okay, we have the last question from a student which has to do with leading in AI-accelerated risk. So With AI accelerating both the innovation and threats, the decision-making window for leaders is shrinking. So how should future cyber leaders balance speed versus risk when the cost of being wrong is high, but waiting is no longer an option?

Oh, sure thing. So I think many of us, you know, deal with that kind of situation in our everyday life because we have set up timelines, release date, things like that. And, you know, new technology like AI is running faster than us, of course. So when the cost of being wrong is high, the answer is not to really slow down, and it is to move fast with guardrails, not guesswork, right? So, um, you know, I think future cyber leaders can balance speed and risk by building systems where velocity is safe, not reckless. So that is why if you think about the time of AI and AI governance. That is why we put governance and guardrails, things like that, because, uh, they make decisions at 70% of clarity. But, uh, with, you know, we should make it with the strong guard, like, you know, guardrails. So automated controls and rapid validation loops and, uh, clear accountability. And that is where the governance piece, the importance of governance these come into picture, right? They move quickly, but it should never be blindly. So, um, you know, to coming back to your question, in one sentence, um, we have to, uh, you know, it doesn't mean that, uh, this, um, you know, the fast or slower, but the thing is we have to make sure that we face a, um, scenario or, you know, for example, an incident with accuracy, with clarity. And we have enough, more than enough tools and new technology to support us to get there.

So, you know, fantastic. Well, thanks a million. I really, really appreciate you speaking to my students today. This was just fabulous. Thanks a million.

Thank you so much, BC. I am so happy and I am so humbled that I was able to be part of this initiative. Thank you so much, and we do appreciate all that you do for the society and your students. Thank you so much.

Thanks. Well, all right, class, uh, I must, uh, tell you, um, this was quite, uh, fascinating. And I believe that what you heard today was really more than just a presentation on cybersecurity, right? It was a leadership briefing. Because the reality is this: the future of cybersecurity will not be one by the best tools, it will be won by the best leaders. And that future is sitting in this room. You are entering a world where AI is accelerating both innovation but threats as well. Decisions must be made faster with less certainty. And the cost of leadership failure is no longer just in theory, it's operational, it's financial, and even national security risk. So the question is not, Will there be problems? There will be. The real question is, who will step forward to lead when those problems show up? Because leadership is not a title you wait for, it is a decision you make early. Let me leave you with 3 challenges. Number 1, own the mission, not just the task. Don't be the person who says, "That's not my job." Be the leader who says, "That is our responsibility." from I to we. Number 2, develop judgment, not just skills. Okay, technical skills may get you hired, but judgment, especially under pressure, is what will make you trusted. And number 3, close the leadership gap starting right now. The best time to do it was yesterday. The next best time is today, right this very minute, right? You don't need permission to lead. Speak up when something doesn't make sense. Ask better questions, take accountability for outcome, not just effort. So as I reflect on my own journey from the quarterdeck of the US Navy to the boardroom of Silicon Valley, I can tell you this, the leaders who rise are not always the smartest people in the room. Actually, if you are the smartest person in the room you are in, you are in the wrong room. That's what my major, primary mentor, tells me, Dr. John C. Maxwell, if you are the smartest person in the room, you are in the wrong room. Get in another room so you can learn, so you can grow, right? This is important. Leaders are the ones who take ownership, they build trust, and act decisively when it matters most. And another one of my mentors, General Milford Beagle, taught me that rank is rented. Whatever your rank, whatever your position, you may be that right now, but eventually you are going to retire, you're gonna be replaced. It's only for a season. But trust, trust is earned. You have to earn trust and it takes time. And once you lose trust, it's almost impossible to get it back. So I'm going to leave you with this. When the moment comes, and it will, will you wait for direction or will you provide direction? Let's give a strong round of applause and thank Dayara for pouring into your growth as future leader in this wonderful field. And thank you so much for watching. Okay, bye for now.

Thank you for tuning in to the Leadership and Success Podcast with your host, Coach BZ. If today's episode added value to your leadership journey, Be sure to subscribe, share, and join us again for more wisdom nuggets on how to lead better and achieve greater success. Remember, leadership is the most critical skill of our time. The world will always need leaders to inspire others, drive innovation, and execute meaningful strategy. So why not count yourself among the bold leaders shaping the 21st century? Until next time, stay inspired, stay committed, And keep leading with excellence.