With nearly 35 years in the workforce, Cyber Security Operations Centre Manager Jeremy McClure comes with an abundance of invaluable experience we’re incredibly lucky to have here at Advantage.
Starting at Advantage back in September 2021, we thought it was time to sit down with Jeremy and get to know the man behind our Security Operations Centre with a Q&A.
What strength do you think is most important in a job like yours?
As a manager, I’m an ambassador between the goals of the company, the goals of the customers, and the goals of our individual team members, coordinating it all to make sure we’re all heading in the same direction together and getting results that motivate us all. It’s a process of constant improvement.
What’s one of the best parts about your job?
The most rewarding part is watching people grow and watching the business grow. It’s important to pause from time to time and look back at what has been achieved otherwise you only see what’s ahead and not so far you have come. Seeing the team come together turning what were difficult, complex things, into simple and easily repeatable things, that’s the bit I enjoy the most.
What online resources do you use to help you do your job?
My daily commute has me spending some time in the car, so podcasts are a great way to keep up with things: ‘Dark Net Diaries’, ‘Risky Business’, ‘Malicious Life’ and the ‘Get Cyber Resilient’ show. They’re entertaining, as well as informative and shape my thinking. I’m also a big fan of David Marquet an ex nuclear submarine captain. He does a weekly intent-based leadership nudge for one or two minutes on a particular topic.
What’s something you’re hoping to achieve here at Advantage?
Building on the established base and growing our capability to stop bad people from doing bad things is our main goal.
We’ve got the new building coming and that’ll give us the space to continue to grow the team. I think that fundamentally, humans are pack animals, we enjoy the company of others, shared experiences and having a physical space to learn and contribute is vital. The option to work from home is something we fully support, as is suitable for solo focused work or flexibility when required.
Getting the right people in the right places allows everyone to play to their strengths. We’ve also got a very close relationship with several industry institutes and so working together to grow the local tech community is one way to continue to develop our local talent and allow the existing team to grow with the business.
How do you keep your tech skills up to date?
We are very fortunate that there is an abundance of training and information designed to keep people current. The team environment facilitates shared learning experiences and is by far the best way to learn and understand. You are always a teacher and a student. I’m surrounded by so many super clever people. It’s a real tribute to the capability of the team.
What do you think is the biggest issue facing the cyber industry today?
I think sometimes the biggest challenge is just the overwhelming amount of information. Understanding what is going to be helpful is probably the most important thing. Having trusted partners with experience really makes a difference. It can save you from expending a lot of resources going down paths that don’t lead to the place you envisioned.
What’s an exciting tech project on the horizon you’re watching?
There are just so many cool things going on, where would you start! We live in an amazing age. Personal flying machines are my favourite and stem from a childhood passion for aviation. The idea of being able to travel to any destination of your choosing without the constraint of roads, is very appealing.
What do you get up to in your spare time?
Amateur grounds keeper. Strava tells me it’s 4 ½ km walk mowing the lawn with the push mower, so my recently completed shed and electric ride on project will begin to reward once the weather improves. Some travel will hopefully be on the horizon now that the world is starting to return to normal too.
What’s the best advice you ever received?
The best advice was to do something you love, and you’ll never work another day in your life. So, being in IT, I think a part of being with this type of company (Advantage), is incredibly rewarding. As a result, I never spend any time looking at the clock. It’s always a race to get as much done as I can before the times up at the end of the day.
We’d like to thank Jeremy for taking the time to answer our Q&A and hope you enjoyed getting to know one of our Team.
If you’d like to get in touch with us to discuss opportunities and learn more, visit https://advantage.nz/ or call us on 0800 358 8999.
