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The Bottom Line: Each and every one of you who is asking for budget needs to accept the fact that you are a sales person! Focus on selling the problem, not the fact that you need money. Once you get leadership to understand how the problem affects them and the business, you will have a much easier time getting the support and resources you need!

In conducting research for the upcoming GTRA SecureGOV Council Meeting, it quickly became clear that one of the biggest concerns among IT executives is how to ensure proper funding for initiatives and mandates given the budget woes facing the federal government.   Even more alarming is the fact that while this fear holds true across most disciplines, cyber security is one area in particular where leaders were bracing for the worst.   

However dire the situation seems to be for those on the inside, the conversations I have had lead me to believe that these fears may be premature.  I say this because when probed deeper as to “why” security will be hit the hardest, the most common reason given is a lack of understanding on the part of senior leadership on the true level of risks posed by inadequate security.  To me, this is great news!  If a lack of understanding is the biggest obstacle between you and the resources you need, this is an easy problem to fix… if you know what to say and how to say it.

Now, before I go further I know many of you may be rolling your eyes and saying that it’s not so simple in the complex world of Government procurement, and to some extent you are right.  That said (and I say this with utmost love!), I think it’s a cop out to blame the problem on acquisition, procurement and budgets alone.  I think an equally important factor is that fact that many in the community still have a tough time building a case for what they need in a language that business leaders understand.  Until this problem is eradicated and IT leaders learn to talk non-tech, the community will continue to face an uphill battle when it comes to getting funding.

In my perspective, It all comes down to sales.  First and foremost, each and every one of you who is asking for budget needs to accept the fact that you are a sales person!  What are you selling, you ask?  Most may think they are selling the fact that they need some new software or application.  With that strategy you are doomed from the start.  What you should focus on instead is selling the fact that a serious problem exists which impacts the entire organization.  Once the person on the other end understands and accept this problem, you will have a much easier time getting support and resources for a solution.

When using this approach, it is critical to remember who you are selling to and frame the problem in a way that will resonate with them.  They don’t care (and often don’t understand) about zero-day attacks, vulnerabilities, and malware.  That is YOUR problem.  However, they do care about avoiding the front page of the Washington Post as the latest story of hacking or data breaches and looking bad to their boss and ultimately the President.   With this in mind, you should use language, examples, and scenarios that will make whoever you are speaking with feel personally connected to the problem. 

While this blog has only scratched the surface of this issue and given some very high-level talking points about how to overcome it, I strongly believe that the IT community should urgently focus on how its ability to verbalize needs is impacting the resources and support it receives from congress and other non-IT leaders.

What are your thoughts on this? 

Twitter:  parhameftekhari