Strategic Cybersecurity Talent Framework

Today, there is a shortage of nearly 4 million cybersecurity professionals worldwide and, with a consistent year-on-year increase in demand for qualified practitioners, the deficit shows no sign of abating. This paper is intended to serve as a source of reference for public and private decision-makers concerned by the industry workforce shortage and committed to developing and nurturing robust cybersecurity talent across their respective sectors.

Today, there is a shortage of nearly 4 million cybersecurity professionals worldwide and, with a consistent year-on-year increase in demand for qualified practitioners, the deficit shows no sign of abating. This paper is intended to serve as a source of reference for public and private decision-makers concerned by the industry workforce shortage and committed to developing and nurturing robust cybersecurity talent across their respective sectors.

Recognizing that a single actor alone cannot effectively tackle the cybersecurity workforce shortage, the World Economic Forum, in collaboration with more than 50 public and private organizations, has developed a strategic Cybersecurity Talent Framework (CTF) featuring actionable approaches to help organizations build sustainable talent pipelines. The CTF tackles the following four priority areas:

• Attracting talent into cybersecurity
• Educating and training cybersecurity professionals
• Recruiting the right cybersecurity talent
• Retaining cybersecurity professionals