Governing Body Spotlight

Kyle Headley is Group CISO at Phoenix, the UK’s largest Pension and Long Term Retirement Savings business operating across Europe with over 12 million customers and £300b AUM. Kyle leads a team of professionals across Information Security, Operational Resilience, Data Governance and AI Risk. 

Kyle has worked in technology for nearly 20 years and has a passion for innovation and continuous improvement. He has held roles across Engineering, Operations, Finance and Security within both the private and public sectors. Based just south of Edinburgh, Kyle lives with his wife and three boys and in his spare time, (when not acting as dad’s taxi) he enjoys reading, gaming and exercise.

Learn more about the UK & Ireland CISO community here.
 

Give us a brief overview of the path that led to your current role.

My first technology role was as a modern apprentice, and since that starting point I’ve maintained a mantra of open mindedness when it comes to opportunities. That has led to a career spanning Engineering, Strategy, Operations, Customer Relations, Finance and Architecture at various levels of seniority, before starting in Information Security in 2021.

I’ve worked with companies across multiple sectors before I landed in Financial Services. 

This ‘squiggly career’ has left me with a very diverse skillset, but I’m very open to admitting I’m no expert in any particular field. The successes we achieve now are a product of leading fantastic teams with a relentless focus on innovation, improvement and business led outcomes.
 

What is one of your guiding leadership principles?

I’m a strong believer that in the long run people don’t remember what you do, they remember how you did it. Focus on how you turn up every day as a leader.
 

What is the greatest challenge security leaders face today, and how are you addressing it?

I think the greatest challenge for many leaders in the market today is achieving all you want at a price point you can afford. To maintain an environment of continuous improvement we focus on productivity and optimisation to support the cycle of re-investment as opposed to uncontrolled cost growth.
 

What is the key to success for someone just starting out as a CISO?

Assemble a fantastic team and get out of their way. It’s a cliche but it’s true, as a leader you need to spend your time wisely, focus on the material priorities and trust that your team will do the right things and make the right decisions using agreed guardrails and governance.
 

How do you measure success as a leader?

I don’t measure success by eliminating risk. I measure success by enabling our business to achieve its goals securely.
 

Gartner C-level Communities Governing Body members share their insights and leadership perspectives to shape the agendas and topics that address the top priorities impacting business leaders today.
 

By CISOs, For CISOs®
 

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