White PapersThree years ago, Joyce Brocaglia of Alta Associates, a New Jersey-based executive search firm, started the Executive Women’s Forum (EWF) as an annual event drawing together female leaders in the information security field. Rhonda MacLean, former senior VP and director of corporate information security at Bank of America was one of the first executives to lend support to the EWF.
Today, under Brocaglia’s leadership, EWF is one of the top events of its kind, and MacLean has gone on to become not just an annual attendee, but also a guest panelist and member of their advisory committee. In advance of this 3rd annual EWF, writer Tom Field sat down with Brocaglia and MacLean to discuss the EWF mission and accomplishments. Tom Field: How did the Executive Women’s Forum begin, and what were its objectives?
Joyce Brocaglia: As the CEO of Alta Associates, a search firm specializing in information security and controls for the last 20 years, I’ve been able to develop deep relationships and gain a unique perspective on the evolution of information security. A few years ago I began recognizing the noticeable increase in the number of women I was dealing with who held influential positions in their areas of information security, risk management and privacy. I thought, ‘What if I could get some of these women together to share their experiences and talk to each other?’ I called women like Rhonda, Becky Bace, Maryann Davidson—some of the pillars of the information security community—and said ‘What would you think if I put a forum together?’ They all thought it was a great idea, so I went into it with the ‘If I build it, they will come’ approach. Three years later we have accomplished our goal of establishing a trusted venue where the most senior women in our industry gather to share experiences unique to them as security professionals and as women leaders. They create lifelines and build trust-based relationships that last long after the event itself is over.
