Experts Highlight Ways Industry Can Address Cyber Workforce Shortage

Industry representatives told members of the House Homeland Security Committee’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection Subcommittee during a Thursday hearing that the private sector should do more to integrate unconventional cyber workforce prospects such as veterans and those without college degrees.

Tara Wisniewski, executive vice president for advocacy, global markets and member engagement at the nonprofit International Information System Security Certification Consortium, explained that companies need to shift their mindsets to welcome such workers and compel recruiters to reconsider the proper credentials for a given job.

According to Will Markow, Lightcast’s vice president of applied research, the firms with the best retention rates tend to approach hiring from a skills-based perspective instead of a credential-based one, FCW reported Friday.

Rep. Eric Swalwell, the subcommittee’s ranking member, said solving the United States’ cyber workforce shortage will require close collaboration with the private sector. 

A 2022 report from a Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency working group indicates that over 700,000 cyber jobs are unfilled nationwide.