October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM). This week’s NCSAM theme is “Millions of Rewarding Jobs: Educating For a Career in Cybersecurity”. Since its inception, the CIO Council Workforce Committee has worked in partnership with the federal human capital community to develop, implement and communicate strategies to recruit, retain, and manage a fully trained and qualified IT and cyber workforce. As Co-Chair of the CIO Council Workforce Committee, I want to highlight some of the recent achievements the committee has made towards addressing federal cybersecurity workforce gaps and provide resources for those seeking a dynamic and rewarding career within the federal government.
Last year, the CIO Council, in partnership with Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), hosted the government’s first-ever Federal Tech/Cyber Hiring and Recruitment Event. The event attracted about 2,000 candidates from across 42 states to fill over 400 IT and cybersecurity vacancies in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The event successfully recruited dozens of highly qualified cyber professionals, and highlighted recruiting as high priority for the Federal CIO community.
The Committee also hosted the inaugural Women in Federal IT and Cybersecurity celebration. The event brought together the nation’s top federal IT and cyber executives to celebrate the success of women thriving in today’s federal IT enterprise and to discuss strategies that engage, inspire, and motivate more women to pursue a career in IT and cyber. The Committee looks forward to hosting another Women in Federal IT and Cybersecurity summit next year.
The Committee is working on several government-wide and nation-wide initiatives targeted to be rolled out over the next several weeks. To learn more about federal cybersecurity careers, please visit CyberCareers.gov. If you are currently an undergraduate or graduate student, I encourage you to also check out the Scholarships for Service (SFS) program at sfs.opm.gov for unique scholarship and federal employment opportunities in cybersecurity. To stay engaged and up-to-date with the Workforce Committee, please visit us here at CIO.gov or follow the CIO Council on twitter @ciodotgov.
