As the founder and executive director of Australian Women in Security Network (AWSN), Jacqui Loustau has been working to grow and retain the number of women in the security community for more than a decade.
The largely male-dominated cyber security workforce is currently made up of only 17 per cent women—a startlingly low proportion, considering that protecting people, systems and businesses is both a human and a technology challenge affecting all of us.
“It requires all types of people to prevent, detect and resolve current and future incidents,” Loustau said. “We believe that defending, protecting, and educating all types of individuals, companies, small-medium enterprises, not-for-profit organisations, education institutions, and all Australians, requires different minds and types of people.”
This year marks the organisation’s 10th year of operation in fostering the capabilities of women in the industry. Since 2015, AWSN has been equipping women looking to enter the field with the tools, knowledge, network and platforms needed to build confidence and interest in fields including security, cyber security, and AI.
Loustau and her network have been working to change the perception of what someone working in cyber security looks like, which, according to her, is typically viewed as male-dominated, highly technical, where you need to code all day, and you need to work in a hoodie in a dark basement.
“We are changing this perception through training and support programs to get more women speaking at events and conferences and being role models and mentors for up-and-coming talent,” she said.
In the early days, Loustau heard from women who said they were often discouraged from continuing in the field because of their gender. Many women felt they could not ask questions during the working day out of fear that they would seem incompetent.
Sponsorship from the Australian Signals Directorate and other corporate partners meant that Loustau’s organisation could establish safe spaces, events, workshops and technical, business and leadership training opportunities for women in the industry.
“Event organisers and industry [are making] an effort to make them more inclusive and to get more women on stage sharing their expertise,” Loustau said. “Gone are the days of booth babes, and the line at the female bathrooms are growing.”
When a problem was observed, Loustau worked to explicitly address it. For example, in the early days, she saw that women were often struggling to land job interviews, so the network worked with several organisations to make their job ads more inclusive. The network also provided guidance on how employers could recruit candidates differently, as well as provide women with career guidance sessions and job opportunities.
Around the time, Loustau also noticed that women were not applying for leadership roles. So her network created the emerging leader program to empower the women’s community with the skills and tools to step into a leadership role when the opportunity arose.
“We provided them with opportunities to uplift their business communication, presentation and board understanding to help them gain confidence with a network of leader peers,” Loustau said. “This helped them to be seen.”
“In certain workplaces, we unfortunately saw women leaving the more specialised cyber security teams due to toxic culture, so we are working with the government, industry and academia to provide some best practice approaches that organisations could consider if they want to improve their culture,” she continued. “We know that women don’t need to change or be fixed. There are multiple things that need to happen to instil change, and we cannot do this alone.”
When it comes to the variety of careers and opportunities available within the security industry, Loustau hopes that women looking to enter the fields of security, cyber-security, and AI remember that there is no linear pathway.
“If you like problem solving, working on new innovative techniques and technology, being creative, working on different things, and like the sound of a job that gives you variety and where you can help protect people, then this is an incredible career choice,” she said. “You need to continuously learn, to have persistence, and to have a curious mind.”
The network’s long-term vision is to educate all women and girls on security so that they can protect themselves, their family, the organisations they work for and their loved ones.
Loustau believes that men have a huge part in a female colleague’s career and can ultimately help change the industry’s culture to be inclusive of all people.
“I have been fortunate to have several men who championed and continuously encouraged me throughout my career,” she admitted. “Without them, I’m not sure I would have had the same career path and AWSN wouldn’t be where it is today. Any effort can make a difference in someone’s career. Respectfully and with permission, champion and sponsor your female colleagues.”