Valarian Couch

Director - Information Security Operations @Planned Parenthood Federation of America

New York, NY, US

Restructured the team, fostering trust and enhancing the security posture by 85% through gap analysis, team reorganization, technology integration, process improvement, enhanced monitoring, and successful collaboration. Instituted team engagements and individualized meetings to understand needs better, elevate performance, and boost morale. Shifted the culture from reactive to proactive risk identification and mitigation. Strengthened collaboration between Information Security Operations and departments such as Shared Services, IT Operations, Architecture, Engineering, and DevOps to implement controls and safeguard critical systems. Achieved SLAs with managed security service providers within five months.Engaged key stakeholders, including senior leadership, IT, and security teams, to ensure alignment on objectives and gain support for the initiative. Facilitated workshops and discussions to gather input and address concerns. Fostered a culture of collaboration within the security team and across other departments. Established clear communication channels to ensure timely sharing of information and coordinated responses to incidents.Developed and implemented a strategic plan to modernize tools for monitoring, incident response, vulnerability management, endpoint security, and data and email protection. Led reconfiguring security operations tools and processes to align with industry best practices. Invested in state-of-the-art security tools and technologies, including advanced threat detection and response systems. Standardized and documented security processes to ensure consistency and reliability.Authored and submitted twenty-six new information security policies and procedures, enhancing compliance with regulatory requirements and governance standards. Reviewed and updated security policies to reflect current threats and regulatory requirements and ensured compliance with industry standards and best practices through regular audits and assessments.

Colorado Technical University

Bachelor of Science - BS, Management Information Systems, General

John L. Leflore

High School Diploma, Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services

Colorado Technical University

Master of Science - MS, Computer Science

Colorado Technical University

Doctor of Computer Science in Cybersecurity and Information Assurance