In the Leadership category, Vannessa Van Beek, Senior Director of Security at Avanade, took out top place. Van Beek was recognised for her people-first philosophy in fostering a security-conscious culture and her mentoring of emerging leaders.

Shireen Syed, CISO at University of Newcastle, was also highly commended in this category. Syed also serves as the Chief Security Officer under the Defence Industry Security Program and is actively involved in multiple industry and sector groups.

Meanwhile, an emerging cybersecurity leader was recognised with the Next CISO Award. Hien Tran, Cyber Security Manager, at ABN Group, was the winner of this award. Tran was nominated for this award by his mentor, Richard Heron, a previous CSO30 winner. Kiran Bangalore was also finalist in the Next CISO category, for his work in a previous role at the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission.