Press Release
Last Updated on January 15, 2024
The ongoing cybersecurity talent shortage is forcing businesses and hiring managers to rethink how they compensate and treat their people. There’s more to the equation than salary and benefits.
What can orgs concretely and realistically do to improve their ability to attract and retain good people in today’s job market?
On recent episode of The Virtual CISO Podcast, Deidre Diamond, Founder and CEO at CyberSN, shares her 8-step framework for creating an “inclusive” company culture where managers care for their people and support their careers. The show is hosted as usual by John Verry, Pivot Point Security CISO and Managing Partner.
Encouraging self-care
Step #3 in Deidre’s “inclusivity framework” is: self-care culture.
It’s definitely not about making people eat salads or do jumping jacks. More like a pervasive attitude of encouraging better health and wellness so that people feel good and can bring more strength and energy to their jobs.
Deidre shares how, early in her management career, she was motivated to embrace a healthier lifestyle so that she could “stay powerful” and physically keep up with her advancing career. She also relates the pain of seeing people she admired in the workplace lose their health as they got older because they neglected self-care.
“There’s a responsibility to care for ourselves and to care for others at work or at home,” Deidre says. “Plus, as a manager you have a responsibility to take care of yourself because people look up to you. And it’s not true that one will be successful past a certain age if you don’t take care of yourself.”
Keep the conversation open
Deidre emphasizes that supporting self-care is about leading and mentoring by example, not with a litany of “shoulds.” For example, as a manager you can check whether people are scheduling their time wisely so they have time for themselves, however they want to use it.
Promoting self-care in the workplace can be as simple as making supportive ideas and options available. Like bringing in a chiropractor to talk about desk ergonomics. Suggesting a “walk and talk” meeting. Or giving gift certificates for massages instead of bottles of wine. Letting people know that somebody cares about their health and happiness is a big deal for your company culture, whether they take you up on an idea or not.
“We can’t make people change,” Deidre notes. “But we can hold space for the conversation around, the stronger we feel the stronger we are.”
What’s next?
To hear the full episode with cyber recruiting expert Deidre Diamond, Founder/CEO at CyberSN, click here.
Can better inter-departmental communication help your business? Check out this podcast on talking to the C-Suite: EP#46 – John Sheridan – How to Communicate Across Departmental Divides
