NOMINATION PERIOD HAS NOW ENDED.

Thank you to all who submitted.

PCI SSC Announces Extension of its Award-winning Women in Payments Blog Series Through 2021

In response to industry feedback, PCI Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) is pleased to announce that it will extend its monthly, award-winning Women in Payments blog series through 2021. The original 12-part blog series, Closing the Gender Gap in Payment Security, which debuted earlier this year, highlights a professional, senior-level, female in the payments industry who represents PCI’s Board of Advisors and the payment card brands. In 2021, the blog series will expand to include all senior-level women who are active participants, and in good standing, in any of PCI SSC’s many programs.

The series, which earned an “Award of Distinction” in the category of ‘Web Based Production: Video Series’ at the 2020 Videographer Awards, aims to call attention to the deficit of women in cybersecurity professions. According to a recent Forbes article, published 20 May 2020, cybersecurity has a problem. Today there is a significant gap between the industry’s four million unfilled positions and the number of qualified professionals who can fill them, often dubbed the "skills gap." While progress has been made in recent years, women still only represent somewhere between 15 – 20 percent of the global cybersecurity workforce. One way to advocate is to highlight successful women who can serve as an inspiration to other women who might consider a career in the payments industry.

The nomination period has now ended. Thank you for your interest!

Nomination Criteria: 

• Nominee must be a senior-level female employed by a company that is an active participant in at least ONE of the following PCI SSC programs, and in good standing:
  • Payment card brands
  • Board of Advisors
  • Global Executive Assessor Roundtable member
  • Regional Engagement Board member  
  • Participating Organizations
  • Qualified Security Assessors (QSA) 
  • Internal Security Assessors (ISA)
• Nominee must be willing to participate in a virtual podcast interview (10-15 minutes) and provide a professional headshot. Podcast recordings will take place in November/December.
• We encourage women from all backgrounds to participate, including minority women, those with disabilities, and those who have overcome significant challenges to get to where they are today. We want to hear your story!
• PCI SSC can select 12 candidates to be part of the year-long series; therefore, we can only accept one nominee per company.

• If you are interested in participating in the Women in Payments blog series for 2021, please complete the online nomination form that will be provided on this page between 8 September through 2 October. 
• Nominees will be selected and notified between 2 - 13 November.

We thank you for your interest and participation, and we look forward to sharing your story.