Become an IT Project Manager 

IT project managers oversee and direct the activities of information technology projects, including managing personnel, overseeing budgets and schedules, and executing a project communication plan. 

IT project managers may also be referred to as computer and information systems managers and must possess a bachelor's degree and considerable amounts of experience and on-the-job training. 

The majority of computer and information systems managers work full-time, with overtime commonly reported as projects' needs require. Though many IT professionals are able to telecommute, project managers generally have to report to an office setting in order to supervise their team and the project as a whole. There are few physical demands or risks associated with this career.
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• IT Project Management: Why include Cyber Security from the Start

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The IT Project Management Practices Guide (Guide) contains a repeatable, institution-wide approach for the management of application development and/or software procurement and deployment projects. 

These project management (PM) practices are transferable to other types of projects (beyond IT) that would benefit from project management. The following sections of the Guide represent the ordered steps for each project, to ensure that proper activities and management are utilized:

• Step 1. Application of Project Management – distinguishes what types of work should and should not be categorized as projects and includes the general flow of projects from idea into deployment. This step also defines and outlines project management process groups
• Step 2. Project Classification – assigns a classification level to a project based on a combination of complexity and risk; this step also defines projects that require an additional level of management, as defined by State of Texas guidelines;
• Step 3. PM Required Processes – details processes required to be completed for each level of project, as classified in Step 2
• Step 4. Document Management – outlines document management requirements for documents created as part of PM Required Processes

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Cybersecurity risks continue to grow each year and are a billion dollar industry.  Project Managers that include cybersecurity throughout the project lifecycle can save their organization money, time, and better align projects to the overall cybersecurity strategy of the organization.  When an organizations' system is compromised they can lose productivity, shut-down operations, erode consumer confidence, and cost millions to repair the damage.  Hacks over the past few years to include Saudi Aramco, Target, and Sony, highlight that this is a global issue.

Include cybersecurity from the initiating phase (Shutterstock)

Cost Savings

Cybersecurity as often bolted on to projects after the fact and this can be expensive and leave vulnerabilities.  Including cybersecurity experts from the inception of your project ensures that source coding, software, and hardware are scrutinized to meet the organizations' security standards from the beginning.  When Project Managers bring cybersecurity into the project late in the planning phase or the execution phase, it often drives costs up.  The security team may be required hardware or software hardening or may not allow certain programs or hardware on the network.  If hardware or software is already purchased there may be sunk costs that cannot be recouped. 

Cost Savings (Shutterstock)

Time Savings

Integrating cybersecurity into your project from the initiating phase allows for a holistic approach to IT. When cybersecurity members are brought in late into the project cycle, the project plan may require rework. Rework is wasteful and it is better to include cybersecurity experts from the start. Staff time once used can never be regained, time is a finite resource.  Telling your boss that you have to slip your project timeline to the right because you didn't include cyber security, is never pleasant.

Staff Time is your Most Limited Resource (Shutterstock)

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Cyber Security Strategy

The cybersecurity team should have an overall strategy for the organization. Integrating your IT project early will ensure that it is aligned with the vision.  The top executives need to be aware of potential vulnerabilities that a new IT project is exposing and accept the risk to the organization.  As a project manager, you need to add cybersecurity milestones to your project plan. 

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  Strategic Alignment is Critical (Shutterstock)

Conclusion

Including cybersecurity throughout your project will save your organization money and time.  In addition, IT projects will be aligned with the business and cybersecurity strategies to protect the data that is valuable to your organization.  It is never too early to integrate your cybersecurity team into your project team.  By including cybersecurity early, you will build your reputation as a farsighted and successful project manager.  Today's organizations realize the cost of not including cybersecurity and discovering a vulnerability after the project is in production can cost your organization millions.

Sources:

http://www.information-age.com/project-managers-need-know-cyber-security-123465431/

https://plus.google.com/+pmi/posts/823U5w5agnh

http://money.cnn.com/2015/08/05/technology/aramco-hack/