Influential Woman · Cybersecurity Critical Infrastructure

Kandace Jennings

Senior Analyst, Security & Safety, GFT

Salem, VA

Certifications · Degrees · Memberships

Degree Biomedical Science degree Degree Microbiology minor Cert Project Management Professional (PMP) Cert Certified Risk Management Professional Cert CRISC (scheduled)

Her Story

About Kandace

I work with multiple utilities on securing their operational systems, managing a team of cybersecurity professionals who conduct assessments and develop roadmaps for improving the cybersecurity posture of critical infrastructure utilities and agencies. On any given day, I'm working with clients to help them understand the threats to their utilities and how to realistically mitigate those risks. A big part of what I do is quantitative assessment, which involves research, spreadsheets, and applying numeric values to assess the financial downstream impacts of cybersecurity events for critical infrastructure. Communication is really a big part of my role in terms of helping executive level teams understand the threats, the risks, and what needs to happen to mitigate those risks. I'm a strong believer in coaching my team, meeting with them regularly to help them work through their career goals and what expertise they want to develop. As a leader, I'm there to support them and make sure they have everything they need to be successful. I'm very happy to be those shoulders that they can get on to reach for the next rung of their career goals. I also work to maintain a well-rounded team by doing strengths finders assessments and coaching them towards directions that play to their strengths rather than just chasing the hot new certification.

Her Interview

Ten minutes with Kandace

01What do you attribute your success to?

I attribute my success to doing the work and putting in the effort. I always make sure I have facts that back me up, and that gives me confidence. It isn't something that I had in the beginning, but I did learn over time that if I've done the work, and I have put the effort in, and I've checked it and made sure that I have facts and that my facts are correct, then I need to walk in with my head held high and with confidence and be unwavering in that confidence. That's what's developed over the years. I don't ever argue my point unless I have hard facts to back them up. They might be able to discount me as a woman, they cannot discount numbers. They cannot discount facts. They cannot discount history. So that's where I always go back to and where I always land.

02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?

Be confident. And don't let anyone steal your confidence. If you've done the work, and you have put the effort in, and you've made sure that you have facts and that your facts are correct, then you need to walk in with your head held high and with confidence and be unwavering in that confidence. I know it's a challenge to be taken seriously, especially by older men who have been in the field for some time. The level of professionalism that you have to maintain is much higher than that of a male counterpart. You can't joke around, or pal around, or even be off your game one day, or your credibility suffers significantly. It's a lot of pressure. But maintaining your professionalism, maintaining your composure, and being factual is key. They might be able to discount you as a woman, they cannot discount numbers. They cannot discount facts. They cannot discount history.

03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?

The biggest challenge and opportunity in my field right now is finding a way to bring utilities and their operational technology into the current time, to really be able to harness all of the cool technology we have now to be used in an operational setting, in a safe and secure way. When I started working with water utilities, I noticed that a lot of the technology was lagging. The computer screens looked like they were from 1998, and when I asked why, they explained that a lot of it was because they couldn't safely upgrade because of security, and how important it was to keep it secure. So I saw the problem of how do we bring all of this cool automation into the present time, utilizing all of the cool technology that we have available, how can we do that safely and affordably for utilities. I still haven't found that answer, but that's my quest.

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