PwC Sets the Global Standard in Information Security Thought Leadership
PwC Sets the Global Standard in Information Security Thought Leadership
FIELD OF FLOWERS
FIELD OF FLOWERS
PwC Sets the Global Standard in Information Security Thought Leadership
FIELD OF FLOWERS
01 CHALLENGE
For 12 years, leaders across industries looked to one annual survey as a trusted source on emerging trends in how enterprises addressed information and cyber security risk. Conducted by one of the world's largest professional services firms, it was the leading information security survey in the world — drawing responses from more than 7,000 CEOs, CFOs, COOs, and technology and security directors across 130 countries. The survey generated an enormous data field: in raw form, several hundred thousand data points filtered by factors from country and industry to revenue, headcount, and event type. For eight of these years, Stephen served as the principal data analyst and thought leadership creator for the annual set of 25+ deliverables that translated thousands of points of data into actionable guidance for leaders across 18 industries.
For 12 years, leaders across industries looked to one annual survey as a trusted source on emerging trends in how enterprises addressed information and cyber security risk. Conducted by one of the world's largest professional services firms, it was the leading information security survey in the world — drawing responses from more than 7,000 CEOs, CFOs, COOs, and technology and security directors across 130 countries. The survey generated an enormous data field: in raw form, several hundred thousand data points filtered by factors from country and industry to revenue, headcount, and event type. For eight of these years, Stephen served as the principal data analyst and thought leadership creator for the annual set of 25+ deliverables that translated thousands of points of data into actionable guidance for leaders across 18 industries.
02 ADVISORY
Each year, when data collection closed, Stephen served not as a cybersecurity expert but as an outside eye making sense of a field that insiders were too close to see clearly. He analyzed the full dataset — identifying themes and trends the firm's leading information security experts and 20+ industry specialists had surfaced, then corroborating, challenging, or extending them with the data itself. The goal wasn't to summarize what the experts already knew. It was to find what the data revealed no one had yet seen — evidence coloring last year’s predictions, the pre-market signals of an emerging trend, an evolution in the risk landscape, a shift in how organizations were responding to threats.
Each year, when data collection closed, Stephen served not as a cybersecurity expert but as an outside eye making sense of a field that insiders were too close to see clearly. He analyzed the full dataset — identifying themes and trends the firm's leading information security experts and 20+ industry specialists had surfaced, then corroborating, challenging, or extending them with the data itself. The goal wasn't to summarize what the experts already knew. It was to find what the data revealed no one had yet seen — evidence coloring last year’s predictions, the pre-market signals of an emerging trend, an evolution in the risk landscape, a shift in how organizations were responding to threats.
03 OUTCOME
At a moment when cybersecurity was emerging as a defining boardroom issue, the firm was fielding an annual yield of original analysis with a flagship white paper with key messaging recommendations, 18 industry-specific data analyses and client-facing presentations — calibrated for different audiences and contexts. The annual campaign generated significant media coverage and anchored a multi-city U.S. tour. Across the firm's global consulting practice, these insights seeded hundreds of client conversations and engagements addressing the most critical and pressing security questions leaders were facing.