In recent years, the threat of cyberattacks has been exacerbated throughout the globe. Between advanced persistent threats, the shifting geopolitical landscape, and an ever-expanding canon of technology, it has become imperative for multinational companies to consider digital risks and craft plans around cyber resilience and cybersecurity models. In order to do so, the changes will have to be woven into the primary design of the companies. Member of The National Association of Corporate Directors and Independent Board Director Sali Osman expounds on the needs and status of threats, digital risks, and resilience in cyberspace.
Recognized globally for her prowess, Osman is a C-level Cyber Risk Executive who is skilled at leveraging technology, risk and security strategies, and tactics to safeguard corporate and privacy assets for big multinational corporations during development. She holds a B.Eng. in Computer & Electronics Engineering, a Masters degree in Computer Systems (Internet Security), and a graduate degree in Information Security Management from George Washington University. George Mason University awarded her an (ABD) Doctorate in Bio-Defense.
Osman began her career in law enforcement and has dedicated her life to safeguarding corporate assets, preventing cyberterrorism, building incident response teams to investigate high-profile cases, and handling the security logistics of acquisitions, mergers, and divestitures.
With her experience across multiple industries, Osman understands the severity of the threat facing multinational organizations and companies on the cyber front. At the same time, she believes that it opens new ways of revamping industry staples. For one, the role of the board of directors is now laden with more responsibility. The technology executive believes the two areas of utmost importance are strategy and governance.
The role of a board director when it comes to the former includes making sure the organization is being guided in the right direction, taking into account that the plan provided by the executive team is sound and properly staffed, with adequate resources to pursue new opportunities, and above all, sustainable. On the other hand, when it comes to governance, it is the responsibility of the board directors to ask the right questions: Are we meeting the right mandates and standards? Did we bring in the right audit firm for third-party attestations? In Osman’s own words, “Such questions are essential in successfully navigating a highly volatile environment.”
On the level of strategy and governance, it is important that board members oversee contingency plans and, through needle-thin inquiry, probe the factors that might seem vulnerable areas to attackers. This allows board members to possibly generate intelligence about the cyber-risk environment and anticipate where potential attackers might strike. Furthermore, cybersecurity, like other critical risks that organizations face, cannot be considered in isolation. Members of the board must understand the organization’s security are critical business objectives to profitability and growth in a competitive climate.
As a successful board member, Osman has worked with many known organizations like IMF, US Federal Government, and Saudi Aramco. She has also helped develop not-for-profit organizations like Alsudaniya Mentoring Program, which helps young girls from impoverished backgrounds to get proper education to move forward in the world. More notably, she founded The Nubian Village – A cultural and heritage center empowering disadvantaged Nubians in villages and diaspora.
