Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly on Cyber Innovation During the Iraq War
Jen Easterly
WSB Exclusive Speaker
Former Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency
Jen Easterly, the former Director of America's top cyber defense agency (CISA), stands at the intersection of cybersecurity, national security, and corporate resilience, guiding leaders to convert global threats into strategic advantage. Drawing on decades of high-stakes experience — from building the Army’s first cyber battalion to advising the White House — she delivers the proven, future-focused strategies every organization needs to thrive in the digital age.
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Jen Easterly stands at the intersection of cybersecurity, national security, and organizational resilience — exactly where technological disruption, geopolitical headwinds, and market forces converge. As the former Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) — America’s front line against digital and physical threats — she built a $3 billion operation of more than 10,000 professionals safeguarding the critical infrastructure underpinning modern economies. A combat veteran and former Wall Street technology executive, Easterly has repeatedly pushed boundaries, from establishing the Army’s first cyber battalion to leveraging cutting-edge tech to defeat terrorists and cybercriminals.
Her record spans pivotal roles at the National Security Agency and Morgan Stanley’s groundbreaking Cybersecurity Fusion Center — giving her a depth of operational and strategic expertise that’s second to none. A distinguished West Point graduate and Rhodes Scholar, Easterly’s accolades include the 2024 George C. Marshall Award in Ethical Leadership and the 2023 Champion of Internet Freedom Award. Drawing on decades of experience in high-stakes environments, she offers corporate audiences a clear road map for navigating the complexity of global risk — delivering practical insights on safeguarding assets, fortifying brand reputation, and fostering resilience in a world where the stakes for businesses have never been higher.
Why Your Audience Will Benefit from Hearing Jen Easterly:
- Proven Leadership: Easterly’s hands-on experience crafting robust cybersecurity frameworks translates into tangible strategies for today’s ever-evolving corporate landscape. From high-stakes government missions to frontline private-sector engagements, she highlights how leadership and operational rigor can align to mitigate global risk.
- Transformative Insights: Easterly charts a clear path for organizations grappling with emerging threats by combining military precision, governmental acumen, and business pragmatism. Her panoramic perspective—from building the Army’s first cyber battalion to transforming a multibillion-dollar industry—equips executives with the foresight to protect mission-critical systems and maintain competitive advantage.
- Inspiring Vision: Easterly’s high-energy approach galvanizes leaders to view risk as an accelerator for innovation rather than a barrier to growth. Drawing on her remarkable track record across military, White House, and Wall Street spheres, she illustrates how forward-thinking organizations can convert vulnerability into opportunity, ensuring they remain agile and prepared for what lies ahead.
Featured Videos
Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly: Speaker Reel
Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly on Helping Organizations Prepare for Malicious Cyberattacks
Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly on China’s Threat to U.S. Cybersecurity
Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly on How Public-Private Partnerships Drive Innovation & Mitigate Risk
Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly on Lessons from Other Industries to Fix Cybersecurity Defects
Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly on Cyber Innovation During the Iraq War
Jen Easterly’s Speech Topics
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Defending the Digital Frontier: Securing Critical Infrastructure in an Era of Innovation
Jen Easterly offers audiences a blueprint for safeguarding vital assets and operational technology, drawing from her tenure at the helm of America’s top cyber defense agency. Audiences will gain an actionable framework to protect against escalating cyber threats — laying the groundwork for sustained competitiveness and operational resilience in the face of relentless digital disruption.
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The Promise and Peril of Emerging Technology: Operating at the Intersection of Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity
In this high-impact keynote, Jen Easterly explores the revolutionary potential of AI to transform industries while revealing the hidden vulnerabilities that could undermine our collective future. Drawing on her tenure as the former Director of CISA, she unpacks how deepfakes corrode trust, how autonomous cyber weapons threaten vital infrastructure, and how an unprepared policy landscape can leave organizations dangerously exposed. With her unique blend of frontline government expertise and private-sector acumen, she provides an actionable roadmap for harnessing AI’s transformative power without sacrificing security and resilience. Attendees will leave with a clear vision of how to effectively drive innovation in an era of unprecedented technological disruption.
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The Imagination Coefficient: Leadership and the Art of Building Amazing Teams to Solve Your Toughest Challenges
Drawing from her experiences from West Point to the White House to Wall Street, multiple combat deployments, and her tenure as Director of America’s premiere cyber defense agency, Jen Easterly illustrates how failures of imagination have led to catastrophic events—from 9/11 to cyberattacks—and how imagination, combined with leadership and storytelling, can drive innovation, resilience, and security in the digital age. By blending her experiences in national security, finance, and technology, she imparts actionable guidance on leading in high-stakes environments—ensuring your organization is primed to thrive amid uncertainty, complexity, and technological upheaval.
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Transforming Cybersecurity: From Cost Center to Competitive Advantage
In this dynamic and inspiring keynote, Jen Easterly explains in detail how business leaders can turn cybersecurity from a cost center into a competitive advantage. Drawing on lessons from the battlefield in Baghdad to the boardrooms of Wall Street, Easterly illustrates how security builds trust, resilience fuels innovation, and companies that prioritize cybersecurity will be the market leaders of tomorrow. She calls for a shift from blame culture to continuous learning, from prevention to resilience, and from siloed efforts to operational collaboration. In a world where cyber threats are relentless, Easterly delivers a powerful message: organizations that embed security into their DNA will not just survive—they will thrive.
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Newsflash: “We Don’t Have a Cybersecurity Problem”
In this provocative and inspiring keynote, Jen Easterly reframes the story of cybersecurity as a tale of villains, victims, vendors—and ultimately, visionaries. She challenges the industry to move beyond glamorizing attackers and blaming victims, and instead confront the real issue: defective software products that have normalized insecurity. Easterly calls for a global movement to demand more secure software, urging technology vendors, policymakers, investors, and customers alike to stop blaming users and start fixing the root cause: insecure products. With rallying cries to challenge the status quo and reimagine a safer digital future, she inspires us all to become the visionaries who will change the story of cybersecurity—for good.
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