The Cyber Doctor’s 7-Day Series
Prescriptions for a Safer Digital Future
Welcome to Day 5 of 7 in this journey through my career in cybersecurity.
Today’s story is more personal. It’s about risk—not the kind we map on dashboards, but the kind we take as humans. The kind that comes with starting something from scratch, betting on your convictions, and building not just solutions—but trust, business by business, country by country.
Day 5: Building Cybersecurity Without a Safety Net
Lessons from Founding Ventures Across 30+ Countries
After spending years securing infrastructure and leading cyber programs for governments, airlines, and enterprises—I took a leap of faith.
I launched Skillusions, CyResMan, and later Zen360 Consult—cybersecurity ventures that grew to serve clients across the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and Asia.
No brand equity.
No corporate safety net.
Just vision, credibility, and relentless execution.
Why I Took the Leap
People often ask why I left high-ranking roles to become a founder. The answer is simple: impact at scale.
I wanted to help organizations—not just the Fortune 500s, but the ambitious mid-markets, the digital-first banks, the national oil companies—solve real cyber risk, not just check regulatory boxes.
But it was also about freedom—the freedom to innovate, to challenge broken consulting models, and to build a practice rooted in relationships, not billable hours.
The First Clients Were the Hardest
I remember walking into a boardroom in Bahrain, pitching a cybersecurity transformation to a room full of executives who’d never heard of me.
One of them asked, “You’re not with Deloitte or PwC—why should we trust you with national infrastructure?”
My answer was honest:
“Because I’ve done it. For governments. For aviation. For regulators. I’m not here to sell a brand. I’m here to earn yours.”
That client signed. So did the next.
Soon we were working with national petroleum companies, fintech, aviation giants, universities, and regulators.
What We Built
- Cyber governance models tailored to each sector and jurisdiction
- Third-party risk programs that reduced vendor attack surfaces by over 60%
- Privacy programs aligned with GDPR, ISO 27701, and local laws
- Incident response frameworks that stood the test of real-world breaches
- Executive awareness programs that turned cyber into a board-level priority
But what I’m most proud of?
We weren’t just consultants. We were trusted partners.
We built systems, yes—but we also built confidence in leaders who had no margin for error.
The Grit Behind the Growth
The journey wasn’t glamorous.
- Red-eye flights and 14-hour client workshops
- Writing policy frameworks in hotel lobbies
- Losing deals to larger firms, then winning them back through referrals
- Hiring carefully. Training endlessly. Managing risk for clients while managing payroll for ourselves
Entrepreneurship in cybersecurity is not just about scaling.
It’s about staying—staying ethical, staying curious, and staying the course when others pivot to easier ground.
What I’ve Learned
- Reputation travels faster than proposals. Do good work. Always.
- Cybersecurity is built on relationships. People don’t trust tools—they trust you.
- Entrepreneurs in this space don’t just protect companies. They shape entire ecosystems.
Tomorrow, in Day 6 of this series, I’ll take you behind the scenes of my work with national cybersecurity programs like CERT-In (India), Ghana’s GNPC, and Malawi CERT. These projects weren’t just technical—they were about defending digital sovereignty itself.
Until then, thank you for reading.
And thank you for believing that cybersecurity isn’t just a job—it’s a calling. And sometimes, a leap worth taking.
Warm regards,
Dr. Lalit Gupta
The Cyber Doctor
www.cyberdoctorlalitgupta.com
he***@*******************ta.com
