Uma Anand

A Cybersecurity Director with 18+ years of experience in Information Security and Risk. I lead a global organization of 80+ engineers and 10 managers, overseeing enterprise-wide strategy for a leading SaaS UEM platform. I specialize in aligning complex regulatory frameworks with business goals to foster a culture of secure innovation.

What makes you a Risky Woman?

I am a Risky Woman because I choose impact over approval. I challenge how security is valued, bring hacker intuition into boardrooms, and risk discomfort to show women can lead where technology, money, and trust collide

Name your top 3 achievements

1. Community Impact & Mentorship: Delivered cybersecurity workshops for students (K-12) and advocated for women in tech through “SheLeadsTech” and podcasts, earning recognition in “90 Days to become CISO.”
2. Global Security Scale: Built an 80+ person security and QA organization from the ground up, implementing strategies that reduced security incidents by 40% and pre-release vulnerabilities by 30%.
3. Revenue-Driven Security: Strategically pivoted an internal security cost-center into a revenue-generating VAPT Business Unit, proving that security expertise can be a direct driver of corporate growth.

What is the biggest risk you’ve taken in your career?

Pivoting from a traditional technical leadership path to a P&L-accountable role. I bet my 18-year reputation on launching a standalone VAPT Business Unit, taking full accountability for its commercial success while simultaneously safeguarding a global SaaS platform—transforming the perception of security from a barrier to a business enabler.

What’s something most people don’t know about you?

Beyond the C-suite, I’ve taught cybersecurity to primary students, translating complex threats into stories to ensure the next generation is born digitally defended.

What is the best quality for successful leaders in Risk?

Inspirational Resilience. Risk leaders must be “Emphatic Navigators”—the ability to stay calm during a crisis while inspiring a culture of collective ownership. Success isn’t just about managing threats, it’s about mentoring others to see security as an act of integrity that empowers the business to innovate fearlessly.