Woman in Tech Spotlight

Overview: 

The ISACA NY Metropolitan Chapter developed the Women in Technology (WIT) Spotlight Program to celebrate women in the IT/Infosec/Audit careers, who are experienced leaders, or a rising star in the making. As gender diversity in the technology workplace still lags far behind other industries, our Chapter will continue to advocate and support outstanding women who push the industry forward. We will highlight these movers and shakers on a quarterly basis.

 WIT of the Quarter - Jill Pavlus
In celebration of Women's History Month the ISACA New York Metropolitan Chapter is excited to present our newest Woman in Tech of the Quarter, Jill Pavlus. #womenintech #oneintech #sheleadstech



Q4 2021 WIT Spotlight - Louise Dandonneau




Louise Dandonneau, VP Cyber Security Services at Scotiabank is a leader in Cyber Security with over 20 years of experience in Financial Services technology. Specializing in cyber and technology incident response, process implementation and innovation, she has successfully applied her knowledge to advance response and metrics capabilities.

Louise is passionate about sharing the importance of Cyber Security and Cyber Incident Response plan readiness to business units who traditionally do not participate in Cyber such as Human Resources and call centers.

Q1 2021 WIT Spotlight - Tia Hopkins


Tia Hopkins is the VP of Global Solutions Architecture at eSentire. She holds two master's degrees in security, a bachelor's in information technology, and several industry certifications such as CISSP. She was recognized by SC Media as a 2019 Reboot Leadership Award recipient in the Outstanding Educator category, as well as The Software Report’s Top 25 Women Leaders in Cybersecurity and Cyber Defense Magazine’s Top 100 Women in Cybersecurity; both in 2020. Tia is also an adjunct professor of Cybersecurity at Yeshiva University and is currently pursuing her PhD in organizational leadership. She recently founded Empow(H)er Cybersecurity, a nonprofit organization aimed at empowering women of color to be successful in the cybersecurity field.

Words of Wisdom:
Celebrate every win. – I remind myself of this every day. The tendency is to achieve a milestone and continue charging towards the goal. The reality, however, is that no matter how big or small, every win is part of your story; you earned it, and you should pat yourself on the back for it.


Q4 2020 WIT Spotlight - Jessica Robinson



Jessica Robinson is CEO of PurePoint International helping CEOs and C-level leaders bridge the gap among data security, cyber risk and privacy. PurePoint International provides cybersecurity consulting and training for financial services, insurance and other middle market global companies with $100M-$500M in revenue. Jessica’s vision to create a different kind of security company has earned the company and award for International Affairs and Women’s Security from Jaycees Philippines-New York Chapter for their work with Consciously Secure Living.

Jessica has been featured in The Root, BBC, Bustle, CNN, Mother Jones, #sharethemicincyber social media campaign and interviewed by numerous talk shows, radio shows and podcasts and is a Women's Media Center SheSource Expert. Member of various security and IT related industry associations.

Jessica has spoken at the Women in Tech East Coast, Cyber Summit USA-NYC, Women of Silicon Valley, TriBeCa Film Festival Anti-Summit, Lesbians Who Tech + Allies, Women’s Economic Forum, The Hague, United Nations, U.S. Capitol, Microsoft, ISACA - NYC and numerous other organizations, and has published articles with various publications including Security Director Magazine.

Jessica received her BS in law and security at Western Illinois University and a Master’s in Public and International Affairs with a focus in Security and Intelligence Studies, with an East Asian Studies Certificate, from the University of Pittsburgh. Jessica is also on the board of the authentication technology company Netlok and non-profit organization called World Pulse.

Words of Wisdom:
As much as I have wanted to plan out my life, in many cases, I have ended up living in cities I never thought I would live in, or in roles I never thought I would have. Being flexible is important. I learned letting my passions lead me has helped me to create a life, and career, that I love. It still surprises me today that I have a business.

As I was recently reminded at our Consciously Secure Leader Conference, as a security leader, we can try to plan for everything, but, oftentimes, the plan can be the first casualty in an incident. Being adaptable, having a strong culture, and being resilient can help to prepare for those moments.
Be kind and generous.

Q3 2020 WIT Spotlight - Michelle Schaap

Michelle counsels clients on incident and breach response – often serving as quarterback to the incident response team, working closely with her client’s senior executives, forensics, law enforcement and other critical members of the team. 

She is a Certified Information Privacy Professional, awarded from the International Association of Privacy Professionals, with a concentration on U.S. private-sector law (CIPP/US). 

Words of Wisdom: 

Fear is a natural reaction to new situations; so long as you do not allow it paralyze you, and instead turn it into a motivation coupled with curiosity, you will find paths forward.  Remember:  you do not have to have all the answers today…. but ideally you are willing to seek out the answers and learn continually.  

And in the tech world, being proactive and prepared is critical;  incidents will happen, but the businesses that have planned and put measures in place to respond quickly are the ones that will be able to do a lessons learned exercise as they move forward.