| | DECEMBER 20238CIOReviewIN MY OPINIONAs I sit in my living room watching Jumanji, kids huddled around, I hear the faint noise of my generator humming in the background. I'm at home on a Wednesday morning, here in my small North Central Florida town. My teams are working away on various projects, and I'm getting meeting alerts that no one expects me to join. Hurricane Idalia is passing over as I type. In times like this, I can't help but think about how to make everyone's life easier. My wife, my teams, my kids, my boss, and my friends are all top of mind. How can I do that? How do you make lives easier?After over 25 years in Cyber Security, 15 years teaching upper baccalaureates, and main jobs which have progressively escalated into leadership roles, it's hard to separate work from just living. We also must acknowledge how our personal lives affect work. There is an idea that executive leaders must be stoic, methodical, and calculated. That's not me. I'm passionate about everything I do. Trust me, I know who I am, and I also am keenly aware of how my peers perceive me. I have special needs children (3) that will live with me for the rest of my life. Life is too short to beat around the bush, nor do I care to. My life is busy from the time I get up until I lay my head on the pillow (which most nights include me designing something to be better in my head). My kids can watch TV when half the state is out of power because I'm overboard on my home's availability features. Not because I want to be but because it makes their lives easier. Don't get me started on the other security features I've played with here. Let's just say I have a Protection Level 5 (for all the old school DCID folks) certification. To further explain how MAKING LIVES EASIER WITH EMPATHYBy Jeff Youmans, MSc. IA, CISSP, Director & Head of Cyber Security, Holiday Inn Club VacationsJeff Youmans
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