This article was originally published in The Wall Street Journal‘s CIO Journal on September 11, 2014.
Today as companies increasingly realize the value of strong cybersecurity, those CIOs who successfully implement an effective cybersecurity system should be viewed as a critical part of the revenue generation effort. An effective CIO who maintains a robust cyber risk management program will not only help ensure efficient operations, but will also play a role in crossing cybersecurity thresholds established by customers that would otherwise serve as a barrier to entry.
The shift from regarding cybersecurity–and the people responsible for implementing it–as a “tax,” to something that can further the business comes after some hard lessons. The value of intellectual property stolen by cyber espionage is measured today in billions of dollars. Meanwhile, operational disruptions caused by other malicious cyber events have managed to cripple productivity and harm relationships with customers.
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