Truthfully, every individual at a company has some responsibility for managing cybersecurity. However, enterprises today employ Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) to lead and direct cybersecurity initiatives within an organization. CISOs are C-level executives who work to assess risk and find solutions. Here are other personnel responsible for managing cybersecurity: Cybersecurity analysts Cybersecurity analysts protect their employer from cyberattacks and/or unauthorized access of company property — including networks, hosts, servers, and apps. In this role, analysts work directly to proactively protect against cyber threats, and respond to any breaches if/when they do occur. See what a day in the life of an analyst looks like. Security engineers/architects In this role, engineers/architects lead the collaboration between developers, engineers, administrators, business leaders, and others within the organization to implement and improve upon the security infrastructure. The architect must balance a sound foundational cybersecurity policy, encryption methodology for sensitive data, and outline necessary or desired security features. Security operations centers (SOC) managers A SOC manager leads an organization’s security operations team, establishes processes, oversees hiring and training, and relays high-level insights to the chief information security officer (CISO). Cybersecurity consultants A cybersecurity consultant can serve one or more organizations in an advisory role, providing insight on anything from basic system infrastructure to advanced security technology implementation. Their ultimate goal is determined upon their contracting, but all will share the same mission of protecting a company’s data. Vulnerability analysts/penetration testers Vulnerability analysts and penetration testers are hired or contracted to identify and assess potential vulnerabilities of an organization’s systems, networks, or broader ecosystem. Penetration (pen) testers serve as "white hat" hackers who find system weakness using a variety of tools that may also be used by nefarious, "black hat" hackers. Network engineers/architects From network design to initial configuration to monitoring, a network engineer/architect’s role handles all things network to ensure optimal performance. Handling much more than just firewalls, this role manages the policies attached to how network traffic flows in and out of an organization. System engineers/administrators Oftentimes known as SysAdmin, a systems administrator or engineer manages the organization’s broader IT infrastructure — servers, applications, operating systems, etc. This role is critical to the success and uptime of the business.