Unleash the Full Power of Secure Digital Transformation

In today’s economy, technologically advanced organizations are most likely to thrive. However, digital innovation has widened the cyber threat landscape, and almost every organization is grappling with how to manage increased cyber risks. 

Technology and security leaders are being diligent in their efforts to drive secure digital transformation, and this is evident in their top priorities for the year. Cybersecurity is the top priority for CIOs for the second year in a row, and both cloud security and strategy and Zero Trust architecture have risen in importance for CISOs. 

At the recent Global CIO and CISO Executive Summits held in Nashville, Tennessee, executives who lead global IT and security teams came together to discuss their most pressing priorities and challenges, including cybersecurity and cyber resilience. During each summit, Jay Chaudhry, CEO, Chairman, and Founder of Zscaler led a keynote presentation with members of the Evanta community to address how CIOs and CISOs can securely harness new and disruptive technologies and the advantages of Zero Trust architecture.

At the Global CIO Executive Summit, Chaudhry was joined by Corrado Azzarita, Global CIO at The Kraft Heinz Company for a session entitled, “Secure, Simplify and Transform Your Business.” They discussed how CIOs can do more with less to reduce risk, eliminate costs and improve agility; how Zero Trust architecture can reduce security risks and drive productivity; and techniques leaders can use to drive essential cultural changes to accelerate transformation. 

During the Global CISO Executive Summit, Chaudhry was joined by Tim Callahan, SVP, Global CISO at Aflac to discuss how security leaders can “Unleash the Full Power of Secure Digital Transformation.” This included a detailed discussion about how Zero Trust architecture can relieve businesses of the security shortcomings of legacy network architecture, how to reduce network complexity without exposing organizations to new risks, steps for a phased approach to digital transformation, and how to drive cultural change.

Here, Chaudhry shares insights into the presentations and why CIOs and CISOs should utilize new, innovative technologies to keep their organizations secure.
 

What are some greatest challenges CIOs and CISOs are facing today?

Globally, organizations invest $219 billion in cybersecurity programs annually. Yet breaches still make headlines daily. Today’s CISOs and CIOs are expected to enable productivity, reduce costs, and secure their organizations on increasingly limited budgets. Zero Trust network architecture and AI/ML capability enhancements represent opportunities to make IT and security budgets more reasonable and effective. But doing so requires understanding and commitment from senior leadership if lasting, transformational change is to happen.
 

Why is it critical for the Evanta CIO and CISO Community to have this conversation now?

Both Zero Trust and AI/ML can be dismissed as buzzwords, the hot topics of the day, but together, few topics are as timely as Zero Trust network architecture and the AI/ML functions that enhance it. Legacy technology like VPNs have, again and again, enabled breaches that threaten organizations’ financial livelihood and even our national security. As we saw with SolarWinds, as we saw with Colonial Pipeline, and most recently as we saw with Viasat in Ukraine, implicit trust and the ability to move laterally across networks undermine long-dominant, castle-and-moat security practices. 

Today, we also have the opportunity to capitalize on advances in artificial intelligence that can arm IT and security professionals with the insight they need to both establish and demonstrate the effectiveness, efficiency, and overall value of their departments. The Evanta community has much to gain by deploying each technology thoughtfully and responsibly.
 

What did you most enjoy about the sessions?

We always look forward to sharing the journeys of customers, in this case from Aflac and Kraft Heinz. It's all well and good for a company to talk about how their solutions can help protect against cyber threats and simplify networking, but until you hear specific case studies, it's all just marketing. We appreciate these customers sharing with their peers the profound impact Zero Trust network architecture has had on their business.
 

Special thanks to Jay Chaudhry and Zscaler.

Jay Chaudhry is the CEO, Chairman, and Founder of Zscaler. He has more than 25 years of security industry expertise, including engineering, sales, marketing, and management experience with leading organizations. Chaudhry is also an accomplished entrepreneur, having founded a series of successful companies, including AirDefense, CipherTrust, CoreHarbor, SecureIT, and Zscaler, a public company since March 16, 2018.

Chaudhry will be presenting a keynote entitled, “Accelerate Secure Digital Transformation with AI/ML and Zero Trust Architecture” at additional Executive Summits across the CIO and CISO communities this year:

• Atlanta CISO Executive Summit - November 7, 2023
• Southern California CIO Executive Summit - December 6, 2023
• Florida CIO and CISO Executive Summit - December 7, 2023
• Chicago CIO Executive Summit - December 12, 2023
• Houston CISO Executive Summit - December 14, 2023

Join your local community to attend a summit and connect with likeminded executive leaders on the most critical issues impacting your business today.