Pete Strouse, MBA, PHR

Talent Gap Fireside Chat

Talent Gap Fireside Chat is your source for solutions to cybersecurity’s biggest hiring challenges. We discuss common challenges in hiring security professionals with some of the industry’s leading hiring managers, discovering solutions to those challenges along the way. You’ll see a live discussion of a cybersecurity recruiting expert and CISO finding ways to bridge the cybersecurity talent gap through candid dialogue, humility, and humor. The security industry needs MORE cybersecurity practitioners, and we’re figuring out how to make that happen.

Founder & Host

InfoSec Connect

Bridging The Talent Gap One Connection At A Time

Services for clients
- Executive search
- InfoSec recruitment
- Hiring process advisory
- Employer branding support
- Employee retention advisory

Complimentary services for candidates
- Resume reviews
- LinkedIn profile reviews
- Job search strategies 
- Career advice 

Skill sets in our wheelhouse:

- Digital Forensics and Incident Response (DFIR)
- IT Audit, Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC)
- Offensive Security
- Data Privacy
- Identity & Access Management
- SecOps
- Cloud Security
- Security Executives
- Security Sales

CEO and Founder

InfoSec Hires, LLC

Skill sets in my wheelhouse:

- Digital Forensics and Incident Response (DFIR)
- IT Audit, Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC)
- Offensive Security
- Data Privacy
- Identity & Access Management
- SecOps
- Cloud Security
- Security Executives
- Security Sales

Co-Founder and Managing Partner

A-LIGN

- Was responsible for recruiting and hiring 100+ people in 2.5 years; many of which were IT Auditors, Security Assessors, and Penetration Testers
- Built company HR and recruiting departments from scratch
- Self-taught in information security
- Developed campus recruiting program from scratch
- Architected applicant tracking system
- Designed certification tracking system to track disparate CPE requirements for certifications including CISA, CISM, CISSP, QSA, ISO 27001 Lead Auditor
- Developed policies and procedures in compliance with ISO 27001

Human Capital Manager

Kforce

- Promoted to "Recruiter" level faster than company average
- Filled high-level IT positions including Solutions Architects, Linux Admins, Software Developers, Project and Program Managers, and Business Analysts
- Served as the go-to on my teams for the hardest-to-fill IT positions
- Famously recruited an HP-UX architect for a short-term contract position in Detroit during the winter months
- Recruited a Linux Admin husband/wife team for an enterprise client in Detroit
- Supported Fortune 500 clients in Telecom, Financial Services, and IT Professional Services

Talent Qualification Specialist (Recruiter)

- Recruited candidates for IT positions in multiple markets including Detroit, Atlanta, and Dallas
- Demonstrated strong technical recruiting ability early on in my career in staffing
- Supported Fortune 500 clients in Telecom, Financial Services, and IT Professional Services

Talent Identification Specialist (Junior Recruiter)

Thompson Sales Company

Sales Consultant

Sears Holdings Corporation

Consultative Sales Associate

Aflac

Insurance Agent

We help security hiring managers quickly find top 10% talent with zero ramp-up time. If you’ve been frustrated by unqualified candidates, we specialize in delivering highly passive, in-demand professionals who are ready to make an impact.

With over a decade of experience building and scaling security teams, we understand the unique needs of the security industry. Our proven approach reduces time-to-hire, improves offer acceptance rates, and ensures you make the right hire the first time.

Examples of previous placements:
- Entire SOC for an MSSP including L1-L3 SOC Analysts, SIEM Engineer, etc
- Sales teams including Account Executives & Director of Sales for multiple MSSPs
- Sales Engineer for Compliance Automation SaaS company
- Customer Success (Compliance Architect) for compliance automation SaaS platform
- Audit Staff through Sr. Manager for multiple GRC consultancies (SOC 2, HITRUST, ISO 27001, PCI QSAs, etc)
- Security Engineer for SaaS company
- DFIR Consultants - Consultant through Sr. Director for multiple DFIR consulting firms
- Sr. Marketing Managers for GRC consultancies & MSSPs

Cell: 314-489-9332 (Call OR text!)
Email: pete.strouse@infoseconnect.com

Bridging The Talent Gap One Connection At A Time

Services for clients
- InfoSec recruitment
- Hiring process advisory
- Employer branding support
- Employee retention advisory

Pro bono services for candidates
- Resume reviews
- LinkedIn profile reviews
- Job search strategies 
- Career advice 

Skill sets in our wheelhouse:

- Digital Forensics and Incident Response (DFIR)
- IT Audit, Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC)
- Offensive Security
- Data Privacy
- Identity & Access Management
- SecOps
- Cloud Security
- Security Executives
- Security Sales

Here's part 2: How to fix hiring in tech.

➡️ If you're a hiring manager, be as flexible as you can be. This means being flexible on remote/hybrid, being flexible on skillset, being willing to train people. Would you rather have a position go unfilled for 3-12 months holding out for a unicorn or have someone start contributing on day 1? Even imperfect skillset matches can get ramped up quickly if they have the right traits like intelligence, adaptability, curiosity, passion, etc.

➡️ Recruiters should be doing OUTBOUND sourcing. Yes, for some high volume positions like customer service, posting a job might make sense. But for tech positions where hiring managers have specific mandates, outbound sourcing makes the most sense. STOP wasting applicants' time!

➡️ Create entry-level jobs. This is easier said than done. But if you create a training system or internship program, it's a one-time heavy lift and you get to reap the rewards for years to come. It's good for the company and it's good for hopefuls trying to break into the field.

➡️ Analyze and check your biases! Every candidate is unique. Treat each candidate/applicant like the individual they are and avoid assuming things. If someone has the right skillset, give them a shot! As far as the "out of work" bias, many top performers have been laid off through no fault of their own over the last ~5 years. This is simply a fact.

➡️ Show loyalty to employees and they'll show loyalty back. It's not that hard.

➡️ Job seekers should stop shotgun blasting applications to roles they're not qualified for. This practice is worsening the signal to noise ratio problem, and unqualified candidates are NOT getting hired for those jobs in this market.

➡️ Surround yourself with positive people. I forget the exact quote, but it's something like "you're the average of the 5 people you spend the most time around."

➡️ ALWAYS, ALWAYS be networking. Whether you're a hiring manager or a job seeker, that next employment match often occurs when people already know each other.

What did I miss?

Pete Strouse

"The GRC Recruiter" | Many additional placements in DFIR, GTM, SecOps, OffSec | AI curious

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