Mike Salem
Vice President, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) and Group Head of IT @Ihs Towers
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WORK HISTORY
Vice President, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) and Group Head of IT @Ihs Towers
US
Key Highlights:* Built the first enterprise cybersecurity org and SOC across critical infrastructure; set policy, hired globally, and modernized the vendor stack.* Authored and executed the enterprise cybersecurity strategy aligned to NIST CSF and ISO 27001, embedding Zero Trust, cloud security (Azure/AWS), threat intelligence, and hunt operations across a highly regulated global environment.* Reduced MTTR by 70% by instituting and testing a multi-scenario enterprise incident response program (CIRP) and strengthened enterprise cyber resilience through regular executive tabletop exercises.* Launched a company-wide cybersecurity awareness program and proactive risk/compliance, achieving ≥95% RTO/RPO, 99%+ training completion, and zero >7-day vulns.* Consolidated EDR, email security, CASB, and SIEM into an AI-powered security platform, trimming OPEX by about $300K/yr and improving alert fidelity, added UEBA to cut false positives.* Led IT transformation and served on the innovation committee, embedding security-by-design across the SDLC and major programs.* Built and supervised a 120+ person global IT / AI / Security / Operations organization withfollow-the-sun L1–L3 coverage and career paths. Reduced attrition 35%, cut time-to-hire 40%, and increased analyst productivity 25%, creating succession depth across regions. Culture of innovation and collaboration.* Established and matured third-party risk management (TPRM) and continuous monitoring capabilities across the global supplier ecosystem.* Reported cyber risk, resilience posture, and investment priorities to Board and Executive Committee; drove enterprise risk management, privacy, and regulatory audit readiness across global operations.
EDUCATION
University of Oklahoma
Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA), Management Information Systems
The George Washington University - School of Engineering & Applied Science
Master of Engineering, Cybersecurity Policy and Compliance
Harvard University
Cybersecurity: Managing Risk in the Information Age
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Designing and Building AI Products and Services
INSEAD (France)
Leadership Program
ABOUT MIKE SALEM
Global CIO/CISO and cybersecurity executive for critical infrastructure and highly regulated environments, including Fortune 100 organizations. Board-facing operator who builds, transforms, and scales secure, resilient, data-driven enterprises across multi-country footprints. I lead SOC modernization and incident readiness, embed NIST CSF and ISO 27001 controls, drive Zero Trust and cloud security architectures, and operationalize responsible AI where it strengthens risk management, reliability, and cost discipline.I build and manage large global teams, develop senior leaders, and own multimillion-dollar budgets with disciplined cost control. I partner cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, Legal, Compliance, and HR to deliver secure architectures, data protection and DLP, DevSecOps, and enterprise BCP/DR. I regularly report cyber risk, resilience posture, and investment priorities to executive leadership and the Board.↠ Key areas of specialization:CISO | CIO | SOC Leadership | Cyber Resilience | Incident Response | Third-Party Risk (TPRM)| Threat Hunting | SIEM/SOAR | EDR/XDR | Zero Trust | Identity/IAM | Cloud Security | Data Protection & DLP | Privacy (GDPR)| GRC (NIST CSF, ISO 27001)| Regulatory Compliance | Risk Quantification | BCP/DR (RTO/RPO)| DevSecOps | Secure SDLC | Vendor Risk | Budgeting & Board Reporting | Product Strategy | GTM Enablement | Global IT Strategy | Digital Transformation | Cybersecurity Architecture | Risk Management | Artificial Intelligence | Program Management | Infrastructure Modernization | Innovation Strategy | Emerging Technology
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