Christine Izuakor, 27, is a Senior
Security Analyst at United Airlines. In this role, she is responsible
for managing numerous security functions from network vulnerability
management to negotiating legal aspects of data security for contracts
across the enterprise
What schools did you attend?
I earned a Ph.D. in Security Engineering
from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, becoming the
youngest and first African American woman to do so at the university. My
research focused on critical infrastructure security and has been
published in several international journals, including the International
Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection. My original
contributions to the security industry have also been presented in
international conferences from Washington, DC to Rome, Italy. I also
completed a master’s degree in Information Systems Security from
University of Houston in 2012 and I am also a Certified Information
Systems Security Professional.
What is your work history?
I started out as a 16-year-old cashier
at Six Flags Astroworld in 2005. In 2007, I became a market researcher
at Creative Consumer Research. From 2007-2010, I worked in retail, first
as a cashier at Citi Trends Clothing and then Head Cashier at Home
Depot. My last job before entering into my professional career was as a
party coordinator at WonderWild in 2010. That year, I left Wonder Wild
to start my IT security internship at Continental Airlines, where I
remained for one year. I was eventually offered a full-time job with the
merged and new United Airlines as an IT Audit Analyst on the
Governance, Risk, and Compliance team. In 2016, I was promoted to my
current role as a Senior IT Security Analyst.
I am also active in the diversity and
inclusion community. I am a co-founder and the Vice President of
GenTrend, United Airlines’ Millennial business resource group and serve
as the Head Editor of the Illinois Diversity Council Editorial Board.
This is in addition to being a member of the National Diversity Council
Newsletter Committee, and volunteer as a cyber-security mentor with Year
Up.
Tell us about your work with Gen Trend?
Gen Trend is a business resource group
within United Airlines. The organisation’s mission is to attract,
engage, and retain the next generation of aviation employees and
customers. The work started with a core research team that I led back in
2012 to better understand the evolution of the work force and trends
across generations, with specific attention to Millennials. It has since
evolved, with the significant contributions of the other co-founders,
United leaders, and the board, into the great organisation it is today. I
currently serve as the vice president of the organisation. In this
role, I, in collaboration with the President, effectively led a
collaborative team effort to translate ideas and priorities from
numerous stakeholders into a 2017 strategy that aligned with the values
and mission of the business resource group and company. Alongside seven
phenomenal leaders that make up our board, we are currently executing
on that strategy and can’t wait to see how we will influence the future
of the company.
Who are your role models and how have they inspired your career?
I draw inspiration from different people
and platforms, so I don’t really have specific role models. I look for
people who have made it to where I am trying to go, study their
journeys, and use their lessons to create my own path. I also follow
different inspirational pages and powerful multi-faceted women profiles
on Instagram for inspiration. A few people I draw quite a bit of
inspiration from include Michelle Obama, Sharon Grant, my family, Onika
Maraj, and a young woman I recently met through Year Up, Symone
Latham-Dior.
What challenges did you encounter while studying for a PhD?
I think two of the biggest challenges
for me were:Some experienced professors in academia said that I was too
early in my career to pursue a PhD, but I used this doubt as motivation
and reminded myself that there were way more people encouraging and
supporting me than discouraging. I also had to remind myself that as
human beings we tend to project our experiences and limitations on
others. Instead of saying, “When I was your age, I don’t think I could
have done this,” they said, “You are too young. You can’t do it.”I had
to teach myself to distinguish the two (genuine feedback vs.
projection). Continuing to push on after each failure is a challenge,
but I have learned over time to continue building resilience. For
example, I applied for three different PhD programmes. I was denied from
the first one and accepted at the second two. If I had given up, I
wouldn’t be here. I submitted papers for publications and conferences
that were denied. I took the feedback, worked hard to improve the work,
and tried again many times until I succeeded. This is prevalent
throughout my entire journey. You get knocked down a lot, and you have
to learn to bounce back quickly.
What are the key skills and qualities one must possess to earn a PhD?
Resilience, passion for your topic, true
dedication to finishing your programme, and great time management
skills are critical to success. Throughout the journey, there will be
sacrifices, possibly tears and breaking points that test your dedication
to continuing with research, and times when you begin to question your
own intelligence. But, there will also be amazing discoveries, joyous
moments, and a sense of relief and accomplishment when you officially
get greeted as Dr. for the first time. It feels awesome!
What do you think are the most important characteristics and abilities for any person’s success?
Same as above: resilience, passion, dedication, and time management
What is your ultimate career goal?
Most people look at me like I am a crazy
dreamer when I talk about my goals in general. Right now, a few of my
main career goals are to become a Chief Information Security Officer and
a business owner (I am also an entrepreneur at heart).
Where do you see yourself in the next five years?
In five years, like any other year, I
see myself continuously dedicated to reaching my full potential while
inspiring others to reach theirs as well along the way. One of my
biggest goals is to inspire as many people as I can during my lifetime.
The career goals, life goals, etc. evolve over time and I am sure if
today, I painted a picture of who I “want to be” in five years, it will
look nothing like where I really end up. God always has a great way of
surprising me. I trust in his plans for me, and know that wherever I am
in five years, it will be epic!
What are your hobbies? What else interests you?
I love to travel. I have a goal to visit
30 countries before I turn 30. So far, I have been to 22 countries.
From exploring the rich Asian cultures of Japan and China, to the pure
and scenic country sides of Switzerland and Ireland, and back to the
relaxing beaches of Mexico and Dominican Republic, I learn so much about
myself and this world through travel. I was actually 35,000 ft in the
air on a flight to Hong Kong when I typed this response. A few future
places on my list include Iceland, Australia, Brazil, Greece, and South
Africa.
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