In our industry we're used to filling in surveys. Whether it's for a white paper we want to download, a software we need or someone gathering information about a specific topic, we're familiar with clicking radio buttons, flagging checkboxes and rating "on a scale of ..." type of questions. We do them because there is a certain return we have from them, preferably immediately.
Ever so often a survey passes by that we think would produce interesting results and then it drowns in our already over-crowded mailbox, never to be completed. It is therefor that, this year especially, I want to draw your attention to our "Global Information Security Workforce Study". For the 6th time since 2005 doing the survey, this year(ISC)2 partners with Frost & Sullivan to collect as much information as possible about the "state of affairs" in information security land and share it with the world free of charge.
Yes, it's an elaborate process and it is a LOT of work for the team but in the end the reward is a 360° view on our industry. Where do budgets flow? What roles do information security professionals play in the organizations they serve? What skills are needed and what kind of training is required to fulfill that need? What are the priorities and how have they shifted (or not)?
So if you think, like I do, that gathering and sharing this information is important, please take some time to visit the survey website here : https://www.isc2.org/workforcestudy/Default.aspx. If you are a member you should have received an e-mail from isc2-at-frost.com with a link to a member-specific survey that you can take at your leisure.
Only by sharing our perception of the industry, its strengths and its shortcomings can we advance together. I sincerely hope a high turn-out increases the quality and the impact of the results.
