Hub Responds to Call for National Cyber Workforce Strategy Recommendations from the White House

Aspen Tech Policy Hub Director Betsy Cooper and Deputy Director Mai Sistla responded to a Request for Information from the White House’s Office of the National Cyber Director (ONCD) on what a national cyber workforce, training, and education strategy should look like. The Hub’s RFI response focuses on actions that ONCD should take to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the cybersecurity space. The memo’s recommendations are based on findings from two workshops hosted by the Hub and Aspen Digital in 2021, where an intergenerational, multidisciplinary, and multicultural group of cybersecurity professionals came together to draft recommendations to improve DEI in cybersecurity.

In this RFI response, the Hub proposes that the ONCD improve its DEI work in cybersecurity recruitment, hiring, career development, and retention by: rewriting federal job descriptions to remove jargon; reconsidering the current criminal background check process; working with the private sector to improve their DEI practices; and more.

Click below to read the full set of recommendations.