A Booz Allen Cyber Leader Shares Her Technology Journey

Booz Allen Lead Associate Jyoti Wadhwa helps pharma companies and healthcare manufacturers understand their cyber risk and guard against threats. It’s a complicated mission in today’s world of escalating attacks, IT automation, and overall digital transformation. 

“The ultimate mission is to serve the patient,” she said. “You’re there because the organization must provide a secure environment to deliver lifesaving medicine, and anything that can disrupt that can impact the patient.”  

From wireless networks to healthcare security needs

Wadhwa’s IT career began in Singapore, helping the wireless division of Nortel, working with different carriers and systems to bring last mile capability to houses and businesses.

“If you can influence critical infrastructure and help build that out, then you’re helping to raise the standards and ability of society and people,” she said.

This led to roles with a diverse array of companies involved in areas including data protection, multi-platform application protection, and application security testing. 

“I was able to be a part of the new wave of applications and technology sets that were coming out that not only required compliance support, but more significantly security aspects as core ingredients of success for these cutting edge innovations,” she said.

Her work in data protection led to an interest in the healthcare vertical. “This is where I started to focus more on the specific security risk and privacy requirements needed in the industry,” she said.

The demand for multifaceted skills and perspectives 

Such a range of experience is essential in today’s world of digital transformation, which is expanding how organizations must think about risk. “It’s not just financial or brand risk anymore,” Wadhwa explained. “It now requires thinking about the implications of introducing a new technology, a third-party connection, or supplier into your organization.”

People in traditional information technology roles understand system, application, and process for functional areas such as architecture but may not be as versed in the security or risk dialogues that need to go with it, she said. Or on the other hand, an expert in cyber requirements, mitigations, and best practices may not be as familiar with the IT environment and technology.

Making the cyber world a more inclusive place 

When she’s not driving security and privacy initiatives in the healthcare sector, Wadhwa is working to bring more women into technology and cyber careers. 

She’s a mentor for Girls in Tech and the Executive Women’s Forum Lift program, which helps forum members define their career goals, find encouragement and support, and navigate the challenges of work/life integration. She’s also involved with Women in Tech, the Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu, and the northern Virginia chapter of (ISC)2, which represents more than 140,000 cybersecurity and information security professionals worldwide.

“With inclusion comes empowerment, and that means being empowered to affect impact, and be in a position to change the world around you,” she said. 

Read more about cybersecurity at Booz Allen.