Organised by Eskenzi PR in media partnership with the IT Security Guru, the Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aim to shed light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on one of 2024’s Top 20 women selected by an esteemed panel of judges. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words with minor edits made by the editor for readability and where relevant, supplemented with additional commentary by their nominator.
In 2024, the awards were sponsored by BT, Think Cybersecurity Ltd. and Plexal, with Eskenzi PR, Assured and Women in Cybersecurity UK & Ireland Affiliate as partners.
Lauren Zink, Manager of Security, Culture and Awareness at Indeed
What does your job role entail?
Being the Manager of the Security Culture Awareness and Training team at Indeed entails creating and delivering security information needed to develop a culture of secure behaviour across the organization. This includes tailored training, security communications, social engineering simulations and so much more.
How did you get into the cybersecurity industry?
I actually started out as an educator, both at the high school and college level, and through that I started to take courses in information technology. A position opened up at a large, global organisation with the title “security awareness analyst” and I applied because it married by two passions- adult learning and technology. The hiring managers saw something in me that gave me my chance to get my foot in the door of the security industry. From there I became like a sponge, trying to learn from all the intelligent people I was surrounded by and I never looked back. I fell in love with the cybersecurity industry, but more specifically the human risk side of the house and the passion for that remains and continues to grow stronger.
What is one of the biggest challenges you have faced as a woman in the tech/cyber industry and how did you overcome it?
I would be lying if I didn’t say there were a few. Some of the biggest and most difficult ones I have encountered include being either the only, or one of a very small subset, of females on the team. Another is ensuring that my voice was heard even though I had a seat at the table- not allowing the voice of others being loud to drown mine out. And of course I, along with most women, have experienced imposter syndrome in this field where I questioned whether I belonged and/or what I brought to that seat at the table.
While these are just a few of the challenges I’ve faced I’ve tried to look at it through the lens of not being a roadblock, but instead a small hurdle that was creating an opportunity to challenge myself, learn from the situation and grow. I tried to create my own confidence if I wasn’t always getting it from within my work environment and advocate for myself when others wouldn’t. I also always try to find time to reflect and create lessons learned from everything, not only so that I can remember how far I’ve come, but also so I can share my story so that it will hopefully help others.
What are you doing to support other women, and/or to increase diversity, in the tech/cyber industry?
I actively try to become involved and advocate for both women and minorities through various non-profits, speaking engagements and other efforts such as #sharethemicincyber.
I also think continuing to share our stories and support each other goes on a long way in this industry. If women can’t find support in their team at work, they should know there are networks of women out there cheering them on from afar. If there is ever an opportunity to celebrate a woman or minority in cyber and their accomplishments I believe we should all take it and cheer them on all along the way. Though we’ve made great strides there is still so much more to do to create a more diverse tech/cyber industry for the future.
What is one piece of advice you would give to girls/women looking to enter the cybersecurity industry?
Take the leap. Dive in head first and immerse yourself in it and learn as much as you can. Share you passion, grow your network and get involved beyond just what is required at work. Don’t be afraid to apply for positions if you don’t meet 100% of the listed requirements. You never know who may see something in you and give you a chance. Everyone started somewhere, so therefore so can you. Cyber is really an amazing field to be in as it is always ever changing due to new risks and you get to make a difference every day making the world a safer and more secure place.