Breaking Barriers in Cybersecurity - Emily Long, CEO Edera - Episode 53

Join us for an inspiring conversation with Emily Long, CEO and Co-Founder of Edera, as she shares her unconventional journey from finance and accounting at KPMG to leading a cutting-edge cybersecurity startup.

Emily takes us through her remarkable career path, beating the odds as a female founder (less than 2% of women teams get VC funding), and her mission to revolutionise proactive security in the age of AI.

Topics:

- The mentor who told her "you're only not technical because you believe you're not technical"

- Why female-founded cybersecurity companies face a 98% rejection rate for funding

- Building lasting relationships with the same team across four companies

- Why hiring for grit and aptitude beats hiring for credentials

- The dangerous noise problem plaguing cybersecurity

- How AI security is repeating the mistakes of open source

- Leadership lessons on checking your ego and embracing being wrong

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome

00:56 Emily Long's Journey into Cybersecurity

02:19 Key Influences and Mentors

06:42 Proudest Achievements and Founding Adera

08:53 Building Lasting Professional Relationships

12:12 Talent and Diversity in Cybersecurity

21:42 Challenges and Future of Cybersecurity

28:43 Quick Fire Round and Final Advice

About our guest:

Emily Long is CEO and Co-Founder of Edera, bringing over a decade of experience from KPMG and scaling high-growth tech companies. With a background spanning finance, HR, and now cybersecurity, Emily is passionate about blending technical and human skills. She's now in her fourth company with many of the same people, demonstrating her commitment to building lasting professional relationships and diverse teams.

Website: www.edera.com

The Cybersecurity Matters Podcast is brought to you by neuco, a global recruitment agency that specialises in sourcing brilliant people for groundbreaking companies.