Cybersecurity Upskilling Is Increasingly Important in Uncertain Economy

New Omdia and Cybrary Research and November 18, 2022 Webinar Illuminate “Hidden” ROI of Ongoing Cybersecurity Team Training: Retaining and Equipping Invaluable Assets to Do More with Less.

COLLEGE PARK, Md.--()--Cybrary, the leading training platform for cybersecurity professionals, today released new findings in “Myths of Training Cyber Professionals,” a research report from Omdia that dispels many of the myths associated with training cybersecurity professionals and the role of ongoing training in addressing the increase in security threats.

The report underscores the importance of cybersecurity readiness in uncertain economic times and busts myths around training and key staff retention.

Companies are increasingly being held accountable by customers, partners, insurers and other stakeholders for deficiencies in their cybersecurity practices when those issues are exposed by a cybersecurity incident, and this accountability is amplified during economic turmoil.

“The benefits of professional training are seen in the impact the employee has on the organization, in the overall risk posture of the organization, and in the costs associated with finding and retaining highly skilled employees,” wrote Omdia senior analyst Curtis Franklin. “The key takeaway at this point is that global business executives have recognized the tangible benefits that come from continuing professional cybersecurity education and the significant added risks that come from a workforce composed of under-trained individuals.”

Among key findings:

  • 73% of respondents said their team’s cybersecurity performance was more efficient because of ongoing professional cybersecurity training (efficiency encompasses threat intelligence, compliance audit readiness, and secure asset inventory).
  • 62% of respondents said that training improved their organization’s cybersecurity effectiveness (which encompasses decreases in the number of breach attempts and overall security events).
  • 79% of respondents ranked professional cybersecurity training at the top or near the top of importance for the organization's ability to prevent and rapidly remediate breaches and ensuing consequences such as reputational damage.
  • 70% of companies reported a relationship between an incident and training, and fully two-thirds of respondents reported increased investments in ongoing cybersecurity training after a security incident.
  • Large enterprises (15,000+ employees) are the least likely to delay upskilling until after an incident, indicating that companies with larger cybersecurity teams firmly understand the importance of ongoing professional training. In contrast, 67% of surveyed SMBs invested in cybersecurity training after a security incident, which served as a call to action.
  • 53% invested in professional cybersecurity training due to a cybersecurity insurance audit.
  • 48% of organizations agreed that cybersecurity training drives retention and decreases the likelihood that a cybersecurity professional will leave the organization that trains them, while 41% say that ongoing cybersecurity training has no significant impact on if a cybersecurity professional leaves.

“While headcount is a growing concern with hiring freezes and reductions, the pressure security professionals face doesn’t stop or slow. The Omdia research paints a clear picture of the rewards of organizations proactively investing in training and upskilling their security professionals. It codifies the fiscal and reputational paybacks in proactively improving cybersecurity defenses versus responding to attacks, and also codifies an often-underrecognized benefit of cybersecurity upskilling: helping the organization retain invaluable security talent despite market and organizational uncertainty,” said Cybrary CEO Kevin Hanes.

This report was based on interviews with a random sample of firms in the United States, Canada, and the U.K. A total of 275 executives, directors and security professionals who either procure or influence professional cybersecurity training were interviewed using a Computer-Aided Telephone Interview (CATI) methodology. Furthermore, additional primary and secondary research from Omdia’s ongoing coverage of cybersecurity training were brought to bear in the analysis.

Join a live webinar featuring Cybrary CEO Kevin Hanes on Friday, November 18, 2022, at 1pm ET to review key insights from Omdia’s research and help make the case for training in your organization. All registrants will receive a copy of the report. Register for the webinar here.

Download a copy of this research here.

About Cybrary

Cybrary is the industry-leading professional development platform that provides the right training at the right time to fully equip cybersecurity professionals at every stage in their careers. Cybrary’s threat-informed training, advanced assessment capabilities, and certification preparation helps industry professionals build the skills and knowledge to confidently mitigate the threats their organizations face and bridge the persistent cybersecurity skills gap. Cybrary enables more than 3 million learners, from individuals to service providers and government agencies to Fortune 1000 organizations, to be ready to respond in the fight against constantly-evolving cybersecurity threats. For more information on Cybrary’s offerings, visit www.cybrary.it.

About Omdia Consulting

Omdia is a market-leading data, research, and consulting business focused on helping digital service providers, technology companies, and enterprise decision-makers thrive in the connected digital economy. Through our global base of analysts, we offer expert analysis and strategic insight across the IT, telecoms, and media industries.

We create business advantages for our customers by providing actionable insight to support business planning, product development, and go-to-market initiatives. For more information, go to www.omdia.com or email askananalyst@omdia.com.

Contacts

Amanda Davi
Cybrary
press@cybrary.it

Dan Chmielewski
Madison Alexander PR, Inc.
Dchm (at) madisonalexanderpr.com
714-832-8716
C: 949-231-2965

Contacts

Amanda Davi
Cybrary
press@cybrary.it

Dan Chmielewski
Madison Alexander PR, Inc.
Dchm (at) madisonalexanderpr.com
714-832-8716
C: 949-231-2965