Having led two Northern Information Security practices for Big 4 firms (PwC and KPMG) I moved out of professional practice and took up the role of CISO at Morrisons 8 years ago to oversee its security improvement programme.Since then I've been the CISO at the UK subsidiary of a large French insurer and am currently the CISO at Asda, overseeing the security programme that forms a key component of one of Europe's largest IT transformation programmes as Asda divests from Walmart.I have more than 25 years' experience working with many of the UK's largest financial services, telecoms and retail companies. Qualifying as a Chartered Accountant and working in the Big 4 has given me an understanding of business and finance that is rare amongst CISOs.I am highly experienced in security strategy, key security technologies (with a particular focus on networking and cryptography) and operational security. I am pragmatic and flexible but quite capable of standing my ground when necessary.My background has given me extensive exposure to C level executives and communicating complex technical subjects to senior, non-technical colleagues is one of my core strengths. I have a proven ability to build strong, well-functioning and dedicated information security teams that work with business teams in an effective, collaborative manner.