(ISC)2 — the world’s largest non-profit membership association of certified cyber security professionals — has announced the appointment of Mary-Jo de Leeuw as director of cyber security advocacy for the EMEA region.

The role

In this role, de Leeuw will work to encourage corporations, governments, academic institutions and others to collaborate on strong cyber security policies, legislation and education throughout EMEA in order to drive recruitment and professional development for the next generation of cyber security leaders and help promote a safe and secure cyber world.

de Leeuw was recently ranked as one of the UK’s 50 most influential women in cyber security.

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“As our recent research shows, our industry has a long way to go to narrow the cyber security workforce gap,” said (ISC)2 CEO David Shearer, CISSP. “That’s where Mary-Jo’s experience will be so helpful to our membership. Her background is not only as a strategic consultant herself but as a community builder and connector of women in business around the world. We need more women driving the conversation and Mary-Jo has a proven track record of creating interest and excitement around cyber security.”

Based in The Hague, The Netherlands, de Leeuw will report to (ISC)2 Managing Director for EMEA, Deshini Newman.

“As we continue our vision to make a difference in the region, it’s vital to have strong leaders like Mary-Jo join our mission to inspire a safe and secure cyber world,” said Newman. “I am absolutely delighted that Mary-Jo is joining the EMEA team, Mary-Jo’s enormous commitment and contributions to empowering women in technology will aid the diversity agenda. Her insights globally will be a great asset for (ISC)2 in the EMEA region as we serve our growing membership.”

Promoting the cyber security industry

“Ever since my first Commodore 64 I’ve been fascinated by bits and bytes and the implications of cyber security on how we connect,” said de Leeuw. “I can’t think of a better avenue for devoting my energy than to promoting the cyber security industry with (ISC)2 and creating opportunities for those who are interested in joining the profession.”

de Leeuw joins (ISC)2 after serving as an Associate Partner for Cybersecurity and Innovation at Revnext, a Dutch consulting firm that advises executive management of governments, listed companies and NGOs in the areas of high-technology innovation, strategic development and performance improvement. In her role she advised such entities as the Dutch Cyber Collective, the Dutch Forensics Incident Response (NFIR) and the Dutch Cyber Chain.

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Prior to Revnext, de Leeuw spent 15 years as Managing Director of Bee-u.nl, another strategic consulting firm, working on IT security issues with organisations such as The Hague Security Delta, the National Cyber Security Centre, DUNEA Dutch Water Industry and ING Bank.

de Leeuw is Founder and President of the Platform Internet of Toys, an international community that consults on the security implications for connected toys to make them more secure. She was also Co-Founder and Vice President of the Women in Cyber Security Foundation, a discipline-specific community for women in cyber security, and has served on the boards of the ALL Women Economic Forum, Women Leaders@Digital Europe, CyberTRUST and Coding Girls.

de Leeuw joins (ISC)2’s globally-renowned team of cyber security advocates, which also includes John McCumber, director, cybersecurity advocacy for North America, and Tony Vizza, director, cybersecurity advocacy for Asia-Pacific.