Last month I covered an array of university-based executive education courses that contain strong leadership components.
This column focuses on other programs and courses that focus on leadership, particularly ones that work closely with or incorporate elements of the security industry and profession.
Whole + Intentional Leadership Development (WiLD) Leaders has an almost messianic mission to “lead the way in reflecting light into a world where darkness is the default” and develop a “generation of leaders who will bring thoughtfulness, conviction, hope, resourcing, strategic thinking and deeply rooted care to the institutions and people they serve.” Founded by Dr. Rob McKenna, WiLD provides a tool kit for leadership development based on three decades of research.
WiLD offers an array of resources and training opportunities, including a two-day intensive experience. The organization hosts a video series called WiLD conversations every Friday. Past topics have included “Building Your Personal Board of Advisors” and “Artificial Intelligence and Authentic Leadership.”
Dale Carnegie wrote “How to Win Friends and Influence People” 87 years ago, yet his profound impact on self-improvement and leadership persists. Dale Carnegie Leadership offers a wide array of courses — both in person and virtual — on leadership, self-development, communications and related topics. It benefits from a massive reservoir of content and scale of operations. Students come from every industry and part of the world.
ASIS’s Security Leaders Mentoring Program matches mentors and protégés based on interests, career level and needs. The mentor-protégé relationship, which lasts six months, covers topics such as organizational agility, career pathing, influencing and ethics.
The Security Industry Association likewise sponsors mentoring for its members. Through its RISE program, young professionals can apply to the Talent Inclusion Mentorship Education (TIME) initiative. Successful applicants can then select “Leadership” as a skill area to be developed and get matched with appropriate mentors. Protégés can even select their top three choices from a list of more than 50 potential matches.
DisasterReady.org offers online courses that address leadership and associated competencies. Examples include “Building a Leadership Development Plan,” “Relationships for Leadership Success and High Performing Teams,” and “Leading Your Team Through Change.”
LinkedIn overflows with leadership courses uploaded by large numbers of providers. Though “caveat emptor” applies, almost no aspect of leadership goes unaddressed. Some of the security-relevant courses include “Leading With Stability During Times of Change and Disruption,” “Leading With Stories,” and “Compassionate Leadership.”
Coursera curates leadership courses from universities such as Yale and the University of London. Need to lead a cybersecurity team without being an expert yourself? Perhaps University of Colorado-Boulder’s “Principles of Leadership: Leading Technical Teams” is for you. Heading a global working group? “Leadership in Multinational, Cross-Cultural Teams,” from the University of California Davis might speak to you.
The National Initiative for Cybersecurity Careers & Studies, a clearinghouse of courses for infosec professionals, lists about 75 leadership-related courses, most of them online. Among the 35 different course providers are brands such as The SANS Institute, The McAfee Institute, Cybrary and National Defense University. New Horizons Raleigh offers multiple classes, including “Becoming a Transformational Leader” and “Discovering Your Leadership Voice.”
Collectively, these programs offer thousands of different courses, mentoring opportunities, developmental initiatives, skill-development exercises and immersion experiences — delivered in person or online. Yet they barely scratch the surface of the universe of leadership development programs for security practitioners.
The choices are overwhelming. But if you wish to be an authentic leader, a good step is identifying the program or approach that best suits you.
