Practical Risk Management for the CIO

Mark Scherling, CISSP, CRM, has been working in IT for over 30 years. For the past four years, he has been managing information security and privacy for the Justice Sector in the Government of British Columbia (Canada). Prior to the Justice Sector, he managed the Information Security Investigations Unit for the entire BC government.

He has designed and implemented public key infrastructure (PKI) and security solutions for numerous clients. He is considered a Subject Matter Expert in Risk Management and Information Security by the Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA). He contributed to the Risk IT Framework and Certification in Risk and Information Systems (CRISC), a new ISACA Certification. He is viewed as a Security and Risk Management Expert by many people within and associated with the Government of British Columbia.

His background includes sales, marketing, and information management. In the mid-1990s, he was instrumental in developing and implementing the Canadian Department of National Defence Intranet or the DIN. He has significant experience in information and knowledge management. He combines this expertise with information protection to create an information risk management strategy for Chief Information Officers (CIOs).

He has been part of the evolution of information technology (IT) from Digital Equipment’s Vaxes and PDP11s to mobile computing, the Internet, and cloud computing. The interconnected world we now live in holds exciting promise to link people, computers, applications, and information. There are risks when we link everything together and share information. Organizations are always trying to reduce costs and improve customer relations. Mark has been involved in information security for over 13 years and has oriented his approach from simple information security to risk management strategies. As the Internet continues to evolve, so evolves information security and risk management.

The reality is that we need better ways of managing risks to our information and services. His approach takes a more holistic approach to risks, considering not just liabilities but also service delivery because information is one of our most important assets.