I help organizations create modern learning strategies for their people, partners, and customers | AE @ Docebo | 🎙Host of Stories of Selling Human

Sometimes in your life it feels like you lose everything.  

Like the year I was laid off.  Interviews pushed from COVID 19,  But then the real bomb hit,

My Dad got diagnosed Leukemia.

Just 5 months later, unfortunately my Dad passed away.  Despite losing so much, I'll never lose what my Dad taught me about life.  Things like selflessness, a relentless work ethic, and a thirst for knowledge.

His best lesson was how to create genuine connections with everyone in your life.  I've taken that approach to sales my whole life.  I’m still the 8 yr old kid who loved meeting people so much that he went door to door selling Ham and Cheese out of a catalog.

I got genuine connections out of it and the Sony Boombox I won wasn’t half bad either!

Highlights from 15 years in professional sales:

🔥 I launched a new team where I successfully recruited financial producers for a firm owned by Fran Tarkenton, Hall of Fame QB.

🔥I was named the top sales rep in an office of over 50 media sales people.  Judged not just by sales attainment but also by activity.

🔥At Monster, I sold the biggest partnership contract in the history of our team. $300k ARR, 3 year deal. 

What am I most proud of professionally?

A 15 minute meeting.  I drove 3 hours to Chicago to meet a client I’ve never met in person.  For 15 mins to say hi and drive back.  It wasn’t to close a deal.  It was just a Tuesday. 

Those “Just Tuesday” moments are why I love this gig.

I’ve had success in my career because I genuinely seek to understand people. 

An understanding strategy IS my sales strategy.

My relentlessness isn’t driven by my product or a sales number. I'm motivated by digging deeper to discover the “un-discovered” problem.   Sales is something that happens for and with your buyer not to them.  You're a guide on a discovery together with the intention to help and add value.  ALWAYS.

The best feeling in sales isn’t ringing a bell, (even though that’s always fun). 

The real joy is in being told three simple words.

“I trust you.” 

That’s what really lights me up and what I'm going for.

Finally, my approach in sales is guided by attuning yourself to what someone’s entire world is like, actively listening without any agenda, being genuine, and putting them first.

I call these things, “Selling Human”.  I practice it daily.  I think we can all do it.

I choose to study it.

If you want to learn it with me, listen to my podcast:  Sell By Being Human 
(wherever you get your podcasts)

AND for more,

Follow #sellbybeinghuman

Alex Smith

🛡️ TRANSFORMATIONAL CISO | ENTERPRISE SECURITY EXECUTIVE | 27-YEAR CYBERSECURITY VETERAN

Proven C-Suite Security Leader driving enterprise-wide digital transformation and risk mitigation across Fortune 100 organizations including FedEx, International Paper, Highmark Health, Deloitte, and Ernst & Young. Currently serving as VP Global Information Security at SRM Corp, architecting robust cybersecurity strategies for financial services clients ranging from community banks to global financial leaders.

🎯 EXECUTIVE IMPACT: 

• $50M+ Security Program Leadership across global enterprises • 27 Years of progressive cybersecurity and risk management experience
• Multi-Industry Expertise: Financial Services, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Telecommunications, Aerospace & Defense • Fortune 100 Security Transformations with measurable ROI and risk reduction • Board-Level Reporting and C-Suite advisory experience.

🔐 CORE COMPETENCIES: 

Strategic Leadership: Enterprise Security Strategy | Risk Management | Regulatory Compliance | Digital Transformation | M&A Security Due Diligence
Technical Mastery: Microsoft Purview | Zero Trust Architecture | Cloud Security (Azure/AWS/GCP) | AI Governance | Post-Quantum Cryptography | Data Protection & Privacy
Governance & Compliance: SOX | PCI-DSS | HIPAA | GDPR | CMMC | SOC2 | GLBA | Third-Party Risk Management | Vendor Risk Assessment
Enterprise Programs: Data Loss Prevention | Identity & Access Management | Incident Response | Security Operations Centers | Vulnerability Management | Encryption & PKI
Leadership Excellence: Cross-Functional Team Leadership | Executive Communication | Budget Management | Stakeholder Engagement | Change Management

🏆 SIGNATURE ACHIEVEMENTS: 
✅ Led enterprise-wide data protection transformations protecting billions in assets across global Fortune 100 organizations
✅ Architected cloud security frameworks for financial services clients ensuring regulatory compliance and operational excellence
✅ Managed multi-million dollar security budgets with consistent delivery of projects on-time and under-budget
✅ Built and scaled high-performance security teams across multiple Fortune 100 enterprises
✅ Established SOC operations delivering 24/7 threat detection and incident response capabilities
✅ Drove regulatory compliance initiatives achieving 100% audit success rates across SOC2 Type1/2, SOX, PCI, HIPAA, GDPR, LGPD, CCPA, NYDFS, CMMC, NIST, ISO/IEC, GLBA, NCUA & HITRUST requirements

DRIVING SRM's CYBERSECURITY EXCELLENCE!

Vikram D.

The "Reprompt" Threat: Is Your AI Agent an Information Security Liability?

As financial services race to integrate Agentic AI, we are unlocking incredible efficiencies—from real-time fraud detection to hyper-personalized banking. But this rapid innovation has opened a new, sophisticated front in cybersecurity.

The industry is now facing a critical vulnerability: "Reprompt" attacks.

What is a Reprompt Attack?
Unlike basic prompt injections, a "Reprompt" attack is a sophisticated, multi-stage exploit. It leverages a semantic gap in Large Language Models (LLMs), where the AI cannot distinguish between trusted system instructions and malicious user inputs.

What’s at Stake for Financial and Credit Union/Community Banking Leaders?
>>Data Leakage: Compromised agents can bypass approval layers, exposing confidential customer PII and proprietary financial records.

>>Operational Disruption: Because agents often have autonomous access to enterprise tools, a successful attack can lead to manipulated transactions or halted operations.

>>Regulatory Fallout: With the EU AI Act, GDPR, and GLBA in full force, a "Reprompt" gap isn't just a tech issue—it’s a multi-million-dollar compliance risk. 

>>Market Manipulation: Malicious actors can use hijacked agents to generate fake transaction histories or spread misinformation to influence market conditions.

Here is how we think about "Building a Proactive AI Defense":
We cannot pause innovation, but we must secure it. A multi-layered strategy is paramount:

1. Pre-deployment Scanning: Vet AI models and repositories rigorously.
2. Runtime Protections: Implement real-time behavioral monitoring to catch anomalies.
3. Strict Access Controls: Apply the principle of least privilege—only give agents the data they need to function.
4. Human-in-the-Loop (HITL): Require human verification for high-impact or sensitive actions.
5. Nth Party (where N=1, 2, 3, 4, 5...): Vendor Due Diligence: Partner only with secure providers who prioritize "Security by Design." and have conducted proper "AI Security Testing".

The future of finance is inextricably linked with AI. By mastering the security of these agents today, we protect our institutions and our clients for tomorrow. My next article will be about —- you can guess! 🔥😀

#AIsecurity #Cybersecurity #FinancialServices #PromptInjection #Reprompt #FinTech #RiskManagement #LLMs #DataProtection #AIGovernance #ERM #PrivacybyDesignandDefault #AISecurityTesting

How can Data Privacy become your Strategic Asset of enabling high value business outcomes?

In 2026, data privacy has evolved from a regulatory "cost of doing business" to a fundamental driver of customer trust and operational resilience. For financial institutions, the stakes have never been higher, with regulatory penalties for data governance failures exceeding $3.6 billion annually.

Key Insights for Leadership:

The ROPA Advantage: I find that leveraging the Record of Processing Activities (ROPA) as a living blueprint to identify hidden risks across legacy systems and complex data flows. This data mapping and discovery exercise must be conducted across high value asset workstreams and functions across an enterprise (no matter the size) to include HR, Finance, Legal, Privacy, Ethics & Compliance, Information Security, IT, Marketing, Sales, Supply Chain, Operations, Business Groups that interface with day-to-day customers/clients, Environment Health, Safety and Sustainability.

DPIA Integration: Utilizing ROPA to streamline Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs), transforming a mandatory hurdle into a high-speed diagnostic tool for new AI and fintech deployments. DPIAs tell you exactly what the impact maybe for data exposure and then enable teams to plan for appropriate data security controls to protect sensitive and personal data.

Mitigating Third-Party Risk: Addressing the vulnerabilities of a sprawling vendor ecosystem—a critical lesson learned from recent high-profile industry breaches.

The Governance Shift: Adopting modern compliance frameworks like SOC2, ISO, NIST CSF 2.0 to align technical fortifications (Zero Trust, MFA) with overarching business strategy.

The Bottom Line:
Financial institutions that prioritize privacy by design, DPIA, ROPA and align these frameworks to appropriate set of compliance controls, don't just avoid fines—they secure a competitive advantage in a digital-first economy. 

This article outlines a practical roadmap for leadership to move beyond reactive compliance and build a proactive, privacy-first culture.

In the financial sector, data privacy is not just a mandate; it is the bedrock of operational resilience. As banks and credit unions navigate a comple

Open article: Data Privacy: The Unshakeable Foundation of Trust in Finance by Vikram D. • 2 min read

Data Privacy: The Unshakeable Foundation of Trust in Finance

Today is Data Privacy Day, which reminds me of all the industrial and tech consulting work I have accomplished for many top global brands who I deeply respect and admire for the impact they have made every day on their customers and stakeholders. From being involved in building out GDPR compliance in 2017 to rolling out Data Protection and Privacy Impact Assessment Practices across Aerospace and Defense, Financial Services, Healthcare, Wealth/Asset Management, Telecommunications, Sports Management, Manufacturing, Distribution, Freight and Supply Chain critical infrastructure, I have had the great happiness on contributing to these amazing industries critical "resiliency" - which is ensuring they are constantly delivering awesome products, services and technologies to enable and better improve their customers lives and ecosystems. 

Data Privacy along with Data Protection are two sides of the same coin. You cannot just discover critical and sensitive data and not just do anything about it. Once discovered, you have the critical initiative on ensuring consumers privacy is protected along your end-to-end key critical business process that use consumer/PII/SPI data. The technical controls must follow the data inside and outside your corporate 4-walls and continue to follow the trail all the way into 3rd, 4th, 5th parties and their interconnections as well. You cannot outsource data privacy accountability just because you have numerous third parties to work on your behalf. The ultimate brand reputation lies in your "hands".

The shift toward cloud adoption and distributed workforces has expanded the attack surface. We can no longer rely on static defenses. This Data Privacy Day, let us continue to commit to a culture of continuous risk assessment and initiative-taking cybersecurity. Safeguarding PII is not a one-time project; it is an ongoing journey of vigilance and adaptation. #DataPrivacyDay #Cybersecurity #FinancialServices #PII #DataProtection #InfoSec #RiskManagement #AIsecurity

January 28th marks Data Privacy Day, a global initiative that serves as a critical pulse check for the financial services industry. In an era where da

Open article: Data Privacy Day: Why Financial Services Must Move Beyond Compliance
 by Vikram D. • 5 min read

Data Privacy Day: Why Financial Services Must Move Beyond Compliance

Bridging the Human Gap in Financial Security:

As financial institutions fortify their digital perimeters with AI-driven defenses, cyber-adversaries have pivoted to a more vulnerable target: the human element. This summary outlines the strategic imperative for leadership to address Social Engineering—a threat that has evolved from simple phishing to multi-million-dollar deepfake heists.

The Strategic Challenge: 

The "Human Firewall" is currently the most exploited vulnerability in the financial sector. With Business Email Compromise (BEC) causing over $2.7 billion in annual losses, the risk is no longer just an IT concern; it is a fundamental threat to the balance sheet and institutional longevity.

High-Value Implications for Leadership:
> Brand & Trust: Reputational erosion that can take decades to repair.
> Fiscal Integrity: Direct capital loss and unrecoverable "silent" wire fraud.
> System Integrity: Bypassing MFA and encryption via identity manipulation and deepfakes.
> Culture & Risk: The need to transform "politeness" into a culture of professional skepticism.

The C-Suite Action Plan: 
To move from reactive mitigation to proactive resilience, leadership must champion four key shifts:

1. From Compliance to Competency: Replace "check-the-box" training with high-fidelity behavioral simulations.
2. Operational Redundancy: Mandate "Two-Channel" verification for all high-value movements of capital or data.
3. External Advocacy: Extend education to business clients to secure the entire transactional ecosystem.
4. Cultural Permission: Foster an environment where verifying a superior’s request is recognized as high-performance due diligence, not insubordination.

The Bottom Line: In 2026, technical superiority is insufficient. Institutional safety depends on the psychological readiness of every employee.

In an era of billion-dollar encryption and cutting-edge AI defenses, the most sophisticated back door into the financial sector isn't a line of code—i

Open article: The Vulnerability in the Code: Why the "Human Firewall" is Finance’s Weakest Link by Vikram D. • 2 min read

The Vulnerability in the Code: Why the "Human Firewall" is Finance’s Weakest Link

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