CISO Tradecraft®

Everyone talks about Zero Trust — but very few organizations actually know how to implement it successfully.
In this episode of CISO Tradecraft, host G. Mark Hardy is joined by George Finney, a practicing CISO who literally wrote the book on Zero Trust and has implemented it in one of the most challenging environments imaginable: higher education.
Together, they break down:
Why Zero Trust is a strategy, not a product
Why most Zero Trust initiatives fail due to people and politics, not technology
How attackers exploit trust and lateral movement
How to implement Zero Trust without destroying culture or productivity
What changes when AI enters the trust model
Why AI is effectively “100% trust” — and how to reduce the blast radius
How CISOs should explain Zero Trust and AI risk to the board
George also shares practical analogies (including his now-famous restaurant model for AI) that make Zero Trust and AI security understandable for executives, IT teams, and non-technical leaders alike.
If you’re serious about:
Preventing breaches instead of just responding to them
Limiting lateral movement
Securing AI-driven systems
Turning Zero Trust from buzzword into business strategy
👉 This episode is a must-watch.

George's Books:
Rise of the Machine: https://www.amazon.com/Rise-Machines-Project-Trust-Story/dp/1394303718
Project Zero Trust: https://www.amazon.com/Project-Zero-Trust-Strategy-Aligning/dp/1119884845/

You’re working longer hours than ever… yet somehow getting less done. Sound familiar?
In this episode of CISO Tradecraft, we break down why busy has become the enemy of effectiveness and why “Busy is the New Stupid.” This isn’t about working harder or faster. It’s about understanding how your time gets attacked, how distractions persist, and how even high-performing leaders fall into productivity traps.
We introduce a practical framework inspired by MITRE ATT&CK to show: How meetings, emails, and interruptions gain initial access to your day Why multitasking and constant context-switching kill execution How “always-on” culture and people-pleasing create persistence What effective CISOs do to defend their time and focus on impact, not noise
If you’re a CISO, security leader, or executive who feels constantly busy but strategically behind, this episode will challenge how you think about productivity—and give you a better way forward.
👉 Grab the Busy Is the New Stupid template for free https://www.cisotradecraft.com/bitns
👉 Share what’s missing and help us evolve the framework
👉 Follow CISO Tradecraft for more insights on leadership, strategy, and security
Because being busy isn’t the goal. Being effective is.

CISOs are expected to anticipate the next major security failure, yet the cybersecurity market is moving too fast, too fragmented, and too noisily for any leader to clearly see what’s coming next.
AI is accelerating vendor sprawl, threat models are shifting mid-year, and every product claims to be “critical.” CISOs aren’t missing threats because they’re uninformed; they’re overwhelmed. By the time a risk is obvious, it’s already budgeted, deployed, and exploited. Boards ask “How did we not see this?” while CISOs are left defending decisions made with incomplete signals and outdated market maps.
In this episode of CISO Tradecraft, G Mark Hardy and industry analyst Richard Stiennon break down how CISOs can regain strategic foresight. Drawing on Richard’s experience at Gartner, IT Harvest, and the Security Yearbook, they share practical ways to cut through market noise, understand where AI is truly changing security, and identify emerging risks before they become incidents giving CISOs a clearer view of what matters next.

In this episode of CISO Tradecraft, hosts G Mark Hardy and Ross Young discuss the extensive redesign at CISO Tradecraft and introduce a series of free cybersecurity tools and templates available on their website. The tools, created with the help of AI, range from a Cybersecurity Budget Template and Gen AI Risk Assessment to a Personal Values Exercise and Process Improvement exercise. They also cover topics such as AI coding, CMMC Compliance, Cloud Security Alliance’s AI Control Matrix, and the Cyber Six Pack for improving vulnerability management. Additionally, they share insights on tools rationalization exercises, such as the cybersecurity murder board, and the importance of aligning tasks with personal values. Tune in for detailed walkthroughs of these innovative resources designed to enhance your cybersecurity strategies without breaking the bank.

Templates can be found here:
https://www.cisotradecraft.com/freetemplates

Most cybersecurity programs are built on rigid “best practices” that assume people will behave rationally, consistently, and exactly as policy dictates; even under stress, time pressure, and uncertainty. In reality, humans don’t work that way. Cognitive bias, fatigue, incentives, and real-world constraints cause well-intentioned employees, analysts, and leaders to make decisions that quietly undermine security. The result? Incident response stalls, SOCs drown in noise, and organizations continue to repeat the same failures, even while believing they’re “doing everything right.” In this episode of CISO Tradecraft, host G. Mark Hardy and Dr. Dustin Sachs demonstrate how applying behavioral science and human decision-making can radically improve cybersecurity outcomes. By designing security around how people actually think and operate, not how policies assume they do, leaders can build adaptable, resilient programs that work in the real world.

Check out Dustin's new book: https://www.amazon.com/Behavioral-Insights-Cybersecurity-Security-Leadership/dp/1032998539

Dustin Sachs's Linkedin Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dustinsachs/