About me
Hi there!
I’m Cristina Magro, a leadership and personal development coach for cybersecurity professionals.
I strongly believe in human resilience. Given enough support and positive regard, anyone can flourish.
I never thought I would work in Cyber Security. I always believed it was a male-dominated field. My aspiration to make a difference initially led me through a different path, studying politics and International Relations.
And yet, life is full of surprises and it often puts us in front of unexpected challenges.
Sometimes, those challenges are exactly what we need.
A Woman in Cybersecurity
Hired by one of the leading companies in the industry (SANS Institute), I started my Cyber Security training obtaining the highest GIAC scores of the entire company (GISF and GSLC). I quickly discovered I was in my element, and I was starting to see how I could make more of a positive impact. However, it didn’t take long before I started to encounter several obstacles on my path.
As a young woman in an industry dominated by men, I always had to work twice as hard to prove my skills. I had to build my self-confidence if I wanted to be able to stand up, have my say, and carve my place. Despite that, I never ran away from a challenge because I knew that every obstacle would make me stronger and be a sign of my determination. Deep down I knew that the experience I was accumulating would serve me in the future.
I used to love my job but I didn’t want to feel trapped into it. I felt somewhat out of place, as if I needed to wear a mask to fit in. It didn’t feel right for me or my colleagues.
Time for change
10 years ago I had the chance to work with a group of coaches for a few months. It was then that I started getting interested in coaching. The changes we experienced were so amazing that I immediately thought: I want to be able to bring the same transformation in people.
The world of Cyber Security needs strong, communicative, empathetic leaders. Having experienced it, I also knew that the field needed a lot more nourishment to be able to bring this change to life.
I strongly believe that to be good leaders one must be aware of one’s own value and purpose. This is what coaching gave me, and this is what I want to share with more people. This, I decided, is my next challenge.
I quit my job and embarked in a 2 years MA programme in Coaching and Mentoring Practice at Oxford Brookes University. I therefore became an accredited career and personal development coach for cybersecurity professionals. Today, I work for CAPSLOCK Cyber Education as their Head of Coaching and I also coach cybersecurity professionals through my private practice: Cristina Magro Coaching. This allows me to serve even more people and to have a wider impact in the world of cybersecurity.
My goal and purpose
My goal is to contribute to the growth of a new generation of cybersecurity professionals who are not only competent in their sector, but also not afraid of being themselves.
They are open, honest, emotionally intelligent, inclusive.
Coaching can really change your life and I want to use this power to help cybersecurity professionals to:
- Rediscover their authenticity and their authentic way of leading in their organization and in life.
- Develop self-awareness, emotional intelligence, overcome impostor syndrome and build more confidence in their cybersecurity career.
- Get ownership of their own life and time, finding balance.
- Deal with difficult decisions, find their purpose and meaning.
This is how new cyber leaders will help me impact positively the whole industry. They will create companies that favour a new way of working which allows for people to lead balanced lives.
Within cybersecurity, balanced and happy employees mean more effective teams that fight against cybercriminals and make the world a safer place.
My credentials
- Over 200 cyber professionals (and aspiring professionals!) coached
- EMCC (European Mentoring and Coaching Council) Accredited Practitioner
- 10+ years of experience working in business
- MA in Coaching and Mentoring – Oxford Brookes University
- GISF and GSLC (GIAC Security Leadership) certified (expired)
- Part of the GIAC Advisory Board
- ILM Level 5 Award in Leadership and Management
- CISMP certification in progress
