How NOT to Lead – GovInfoSecurity

Leaders in cybersecurity – and in any other business – need to keep a bank account filled with the trust and respect of their employees and make sure that account stays in the black, said Chase Cunningham, aka the Doctor of Zero Trust.

In his new book, “How NOT to Lead: Lessons Every Manager Can Learn from Dumpster Chickens, Mushroom Farmers, and Other Office Offenders,” Cunningham describes many things a leader doesn’t want to be, including a “dumpster chicken” that flies in, makes noise, sullies the workplace and abruptly leaves. He also details the qualities a good leader needs and says that trust is “the most valuable currency.”

“Look in the mirror,” Cunningham said, and ask yourself, “What are you doing wrong?” If there’s a leadership problem, he said, it “probably starts with you.”

In this episode of CyberEd.io‘s podcast series “Cybersecurity Insights,” Cunningham discussed:

• Why flat organizations fail;
• The meanings of his aphorisms, such as “You deserve what you tolerate,” and “Go slow to be fast.”
• The importance of not chasing unicorn status and of avoiding “analysis paralysis.”

Cunningham, aka the Doctor of Zero Trust, is the vice president of security market research at G2. He previously served as an advisory board member of Akeyless and was the chief strategy officer at Ericom Software. He also served as vice president and principal analyst at Forrester Research. A retired U.S. Navy chief, Cunningham has over two decades of experience in cyber forensic and analytic operations and previously held senior security and analyst roles at the NSA, CIA, FBI and other government agencies, as well as at industry leader Accenture. He hosts the “Dr. Zero Trust” podcast.