CISA says 1,300 new hires in two years

Aug 23 – This week, U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director, Jen Easterly, announced that the agency has substantially increased its staffing, reaching 3,161 employees after an extensive two-year recruitment campaign.

More than 1,300 individuals have been hired, translating to more than 18M additional hours of labor every year.

CISA talent

CISA has explained that not only does it need to build an effective human capital “machine” to bring in top-tier talent, it also needs to develop a culture that will continue to attract and retain that talent. In some cases, relocation assistance is available, while in others, positions are advertised as remote.

Easterly joked that no one joins the federal government to get rich. Rather, people appreciate and wish to contribute to the mission, seeing it as an opportunity to serve the nation and to make an impact.

CISA growth

CISA does not intend to slow down on its recruiting drive. Although CISA was established as a comparatively small agency in 2018, the impact of threats on national security and the economy has incentivized Congress to provide more budgetary funding than agreed upon initially.

Talent shortage

Organizations that can’t recruit qualified cyber security staff will likely experience productivity losses, existing staff burnout, higher chances of a cyber threat, financial repercussions, legal challenges and/or the inability to take a product to market.

If you’d like to learn more about how organizations are contending with the cyber security talent shortage, please see:

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