Director | Cyber Defense
CurrentAs the Director of Cyber Defense at Southwest Airlines, I lead a diverse and highly skilled team responsible for safeguarding critical systems, data, and operations. My role spans key areas of cybersecurity, including Threat Response, Governance, Risk, Compliance (GRC), Engineering Operations, and Cyber Aircraft Security.๐๐ฒ๐ ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐๐ฝ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ฏ๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ฒ๐:๐ญ. ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ฒ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐ป๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐:- Oversee strategic and tactical initiatives across Incident Response, Threat Intelligence, Vulnerability Management, and Application Security.- Ensure the security of IT, IoT, and OT systems while maintaining operational excellence.๐ฎ. ๐๐ป๐ต๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ข๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ฒ๐๐:- Direct the care, maintenance, and optimization of cybersecurity tools and infrastructure critical to our defense posture.- Drive seamless integration and alignment across all teams to mitigate risks and address emerging threats.๐ฏ. ๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐๐ถ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐:- Collaborate with government and industry partners to define and implement cybersecurity requirements for aircraft and stations.- Ensure compliance with regulatory standards while proactively addressing evolving aviation security challenges.๐ฐ. ๐๐๐ถ๐น๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฎ ๐๐๐น๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ:- Foster innovation, resilience, and accountability across a team of 150 professionals.- Strive to set the standard for cybersecurity operations in the aviation industry.
