The Future of Security: Adapting to AI, Remote Work & Leadership with Michelle Lambiasi

Show Summary

In this episode, host John Dillard interviews Michelle, CSO of a prominent defense organization, who shares her journey from HR to security leadership. Michelle discusses how security has evolved beyond "guns, gates, and guards" to become a collaborative function across organizations.

She recounts managing the return of 800 employees during COVID-19 when airspace closed globally. The conversation covers how remote work, emerging threats, and AI are reshaping traditional security approaches.

Key takeaways

• Leadership requires different skills: What gets you to individual contributor roles won't get you to leadership positions - management requires thinking at the 10,000-foot level rather than doing the hands-on work.
• Security has transformed: Security has evolved from administrative "paper pushing" to becoming a strategic business enabler, particularly after insider threat programs became mandatory following the Snowden incident.
• Remote work challenges: The security field faces significant talent retention issues as younger professionals seek remote work flexibility that's incompatible with classified environments like Sensitive Compartmented Information Facilities (SCIFs).
• Collaboration is essential: Breaking down departmental silos by focusing on the company's interests first creates more effective security.
• Policy reform needed: Current security policies take too long to change (approximately seven years) and must be modernized to support innovation, particularly in the AI race.
• Talent crisis looming: The security field is losing experienced professionals to retirement without adequately replacing them, while potential recruits are deterred by inflexibility and outdated processes.

Quotes

"I treat every security problem just like I treat every chronically ill client and it's find the source of the illness or problem. Don't treat the symptom."

"People love working from home. People love hybrid, and it is very, very, very hard to work from home when you have to work in a skiff every day."

"I can teach anybody security, but I can't teach the passion."

"It's not a nuclear arms race now, it's an AI arms race. And if we want to be the best in the world in AI, we have got to get more flexible with our security policies and procedures."

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