Angela Hall

Client Trust, Risk and Compliance (CTRaC) & Trade Regulations Executive at Kyndryl

Angela Hall has worked in the IT industry for 25 years, most of them in IT security and in various roles: identity and access management, security analysis, security advisory and policy program management. She has rolled out a compliance education program, spent 12 months overseas setting up a security team, has held a process leadership role in Asia Pacific and several field management positions.

She has also worked in several non-security roles but says “It seems I have a natural affinity to security and have always gravitated back to this domain.”

Three years ago she moved into a chief security, regulatory and risk management leader position with Kyndryl, the world’s largest IT infrastructure services provider, spun out of IBM in 2021. “In a nutshell, I lead a team of approximately 40 IT security professionals to support Kyndryl’s and our clients’ infrastructure/ IT security needs, policy and risk management,” Hall says.

FROM FARMING TO CERTIFIED CYBERSECURITY PROFESSIONAL

She grew up in a small farming community “where gender bias was rife and with a father with very ‘old school thinking’.” She was not supported to attend university so instead joined IBM at age 19 in an entry level role and worked her way upwards. “Much of my learning has been through on the job training, experience based and short courses, and more recently I was encouraged to undertake further industry training,” she says.

“I have now become a Certified Information Security Manager (CISM) and a Certified Data Privacy Solutions Engineer (CDPSE). Having held many roles in the part of the organisation I now lead, I have gained a unique perspective on how to support our clients and my team. That helps me make decisions.”

Hall adds: “Sometimes the downside is that I can get into too much detail with the team, but the positives far outweigh the negatives!” She says her industry certifications and organisation memberships have

given her greater insights into evolving risks, and great networking opportunities.

NEVER STOP NETWORKING

“If I were to give advice to a younger version of myself I would say: ‘embrace the learning journey, continue to increase your skills, maintain your relevance and never stop networking.’ There is always something new on the horizon to learn. New skills are highly transferable to any role and you will always meet someone with great insights.”

Hall put off gaining industry certifications until after having children, believing it would be difficult to maintain these certifications while on maternity leave. “Now that I understand the requirements and the processes, I definitely would not have delayed achieving these certifications until after my family.”

Juggling family and work life has been one of Hall’s main challenges. “Prior to having children I could work unlimited hours to get the job done, but once I had a family my priorities altered, which at times meant I had to place my career on hold for several years,” she says.

COMPETING PRIORITIES

“Competing priorities forced me to become better at time management in order to survive! The years 2020 to 2022 have truly been unparalleled times with the fast rise of COVID cases, remote learning adding pressure to the family unit and requiring teams at work to find new ways of working and having to meet and engage with clients and teams in online meetings.”

Undertaking training remotely while trying to juggle being a teacher to three youngsters also had its challenges. “As 2020 progressed we soon understood the family unit was the most important, and that not everything could be achieved every single day. After the first lockdown my husband and I decided we were not going to pressure ourselves and our boys if time did not allow for all activities to be completed in a day. This removed a lot of stress and helped us maintain the level of dedication expected in our professional lives, along with a happier homelife.” “If I were to give advice to a younger version of myself I would say: ‘embrace the learning journey, continue to increase your skills, maintain your relevance and never stop networking.’ There is always something new on the horizon to learn. New skills are highly transferable to any role and you will always meet someone with great insights.” In conclusion, Hall says, “To anyone reading this not already in IT security, I would highly recommend it. There is such diversity. You can work with the business and/or clients on many levels, helping protect them from threats originating inside and outside their organisations. Eighteen of my 25 years have been IT security, and I still love it as much as on the day I began. I am sure anyone with an interest in security would be the same. https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-hall-787405120/