The Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA) has announced the new Strategic Leadership Programme under the SG Cyber Leaders Programme1.
Cybersecurity is an important growth sector in Singapore. According to IMDA’s Infocomm Media (ICM) Development manpower survey in 2020, there were 10,770 cybersecurity professionals in Singapore in 2020, a sharp increase from 6,000 cybersecurity professionals in 2018. As the economy digitalises further and cyber threats continue to grow in scale and sophistication, there is a growing need to strengthen the cybersecurity workforce and support the continued growth of the sector, by building a strong and diverse talent pipeline. Strong cyber leaders are important to lead and groom the next generation of cyber talent so that they can perform cybersecurity roles at various levels in organisations. A “cyber leader” is someone who holds substantive cybersecurity responsibility in his or her organisation.
The SG Cyber Leaders Programme seeks to grow a pool of world-class local cyber leaders who are familiar with the international best practices and innovative technologies to tackle ever-evolving cyber threats. This will be achieved through the i) new Strategic Leadership Programme, ii) communities of practices and iii) study trips to expose participants to global best practices and technologies.
The topics covered under the Strategic Leadership Programme will equip them with the essential skills and strategic knowledge to hone cybersecurity leadership and drive their organisations’ cybersecurity strategy and posture. Examples of the topics include Security Architecture, Application of Emerging Technology, Public and Private Partnership on Cybersecurity, Understanding Cyberspace with Geopolitics, and Role of a CISO and Perspective from a CEO. The training period could take up to a month depending on the length of the study trips and would be spread over a period of up to nine months to accommodate participants’ busy schedules.
An external training provider will conduct the Strategic Leadership Programme in collaboration with CSA. Open enrolment is expected to start by early 2022, with successful local applicants receiving up to 90 per cent of the programme funding by CSA. Each run of the annual programme will benefit up to 20 local participants, and CSA will conduct a review of the programme after gathering feedback from participants of each run. More details on the qualifying criteria and application process will be released at a later date at www.csa.gov.sg/programmes/sgcybertalent.
1 The SG Cyber Leaders Programme – one of the initiatives under CSA’s SG Cyber Talent – aims to strengthen the knowledge, leadership and networks of Singapore’s current and upcoming generation of cybersecurity leaders, so that they can more effectively lead and advance the cybersecurity function in their organisations.
About the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore
Established in 2015, the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA) seeks to keep Singapore’s cyberspace safe and secure to underpin our Nation Security, power a Digital Economy and protect our Digital Way of Life. It maintains an oversight of national cybersecurity functions and works with sector leads to protect Singapore’s Critical Information Infrastructure. CSA also engages with various stakeholders to heighten cyber security awareness, build a vibrant cybersecurity ecosystem supported by a robust workforce, pursue international partnerships and drive regional cybersecurity capacity building programmes.
CSA is part of the Prime Minister’s Office and is managed by the Ministry of Communications and Information. For more news and information, please visit www.csa.gov.sg.
