"Creativity is intelligence having fun." - Albert Einstein.
In a professional's life, one encounters complex situations where finding new and innovative solutions requires thinking outside the box (some might even say, what box?). I was fortunate to face several of these situations, and Albert Einstein's phrase served as a motivating force to overcome challenges and discover solutions. Sometimes you need the courage to take risks and try new things.
In 2015, I was appointed as the HR lead for establishing an autonomous driving team, a remarkable opportunity. I collaborated with an exceptional leader and professional, Markus Schupfner, who became the newly appointed CTO of the company.
Soon after, I was tasked with hiring cybersecurity specialists. Until then, the concept of cybersecurity was relatively unfamiliar to me, and to be honest, only a few of my colleagues were acquainted with it. Numerous questions arose: Where could we find them? Which companies/industries could offer transferrable skills? How long would it take for them to understand our industry? How could we entice them with attractive career development prospects? Where could we access reliable compensation benchmarks? How could we convince them to join an industry they were unfamiliar with? Would they be able to adapt and perform? These were some of the pressing questions I had to address.
To provide more context, modern cars are becoming increasingly complex, with numerous electronic features. This necessitates a growing demand for cybersecurity professionals to safeguard these systems from cyber-attacks. As of today, according to LinkedIn, there are more than 10,000 professionals in this field. However, back in 2015, there was only a handful. By 2025, the industry is projected to require 250,000 cybersecurity professionals.
To understand the complexity of their tasks, these professionals are meant to protect a Tesla Model 3 contains more than 15 million lines of coding while a Boeing 787 Dreamliner has about 6,5 million… less than half of a car
Coming back to talent attraction, the challenge I encountered was that this particular skillset was largely unknown within the automotive industry at that time. Only a few cybersecurity specialists were employed in leading automotive companies, and it was exceedingly difficult to attract them to a Tier 1 company, it was difficult for them to see a career path in this type of company. We needed to innovate in order to find the right talent.
Through extensive research and collaborations with universities and related software companies, we discovered that some of the best cybersecurity specialists were working in the gaming industry. While facing different types of challenges, these highly-trained professionals had the expertise to tackle the complexity of software systems prevalent in the automotive industry.
We swiftly adapted our approach with support from my main stakeholder, the CTO, and the corporate HR team. We made significant improvements in the following areas:
• The hiring manager: We had long discussions about how to ensure that they are aligned with the company's goals and how to proceed. We made sure that they are enthusiastic about the company and role, genuine and authentic, and answer the candidate's questions honestly. We also emphasized the importance of building rapport with candidates, as they are the company's main ambassadors.
• Compensation structure: We offered a competitive compensation package.
• Company branding: We created a strong company brand that appealed to tech talent and professionals. This included a clear mission and vision, as well as a supportive and collaborative culture.
• R&D agreements with universities: We partnered with top universities, allowing us to access a pool of talented students and researchers and collaborate on cutting-edge research.
• Fostering a growth-mindset culture: We encouraged innovation and a risk-taking attitude. We presented project challenges to stimulate intellectual growth.
• Future maker programs: stimulating programs with rewards and recognition that created team spirit and healthy internal competition aiming to boo IP creation.
Our focus shifted towards targeting professionals and offering them the opportunity to work on cutting-edge autonomous driving technology. As a result, we were successful in attracting some of the finest cybersecurity talent worldwide, significantly enhancing the security of our vehicles. Believe it or not, I was lucky to replicate this while creating Cybersecurity for an electric motors leading company, but that's another story… 😉
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