How to Start Your Own Cybersecurity Consulting Business

The burnout rate of a Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) is pegged at about 16 months. In other words, that is what the average tenure of a CISO is at a business. At the end of their stay, many CISOs look for totally different avenues of work, or they try something else – namely starting their own Cybersecurity Consulting business. Although a CISO might have the skill and knowledge set to go it alone, it takes careful planning to launch a successful Cyber Consulting business. This ranges all the way from developing a business plan to choosing the specific area in Cybersecurity that they want to serve.

How to Start Your Own Cybersecurity Consulting Business: First-Hand Lessons from a Burned-Out Ex-CISO is written by an author who has real-world experience in launching a Cyber Consulting company. It is all-encompassing, with coverage spanning from selecting which legal formation is most suitable to which segment of the Cybersecurity industry should be targeted. The book is geared specifically towards the CISO that is on the verge of a total burnout or career change. It explains how CISOs can market their experience and services to win and retain key customers. It includes a chapter on how certification can give a Cybersecurity consultant a competitive edge and covers the five top certifications in information security: CISSP, CompTIA Security+, CompTIA CySA+, CSSP, and CISM.

The book’s author has been in the IT world for more than 20 years and has worked for numerous companies in corporate America. He has experienced CISO burnout. He has also started two successful Cybersecurity companies. This book offers his own unique perspective based on his hard-earned lessons learned and shows how to apply them in creating a successful venture. It also covers the pitfalls of starting a consultancy, how to avoid them, and how to bounce back from any that prove unavoidable. This is the book for burned-out former CISOs to rejuvenate themselves and their careers by launching their own consultancies.

Ravi Das is a cybersecurity consultant and business development specialist. He also does cybersecurity consulting through his private practice, RaviDas.tech. He is also studying for the CompTIA Security+ Certification.