Culverhouse College Of Business Works To Meet Emerging Needs In Cybersecurity

The Culverhouse College of Business at The University of Alabama is uniquely positioned in several notable areas. It’s among the best-ranked business programs in the SEC, and the best-ranked in Alabama for its traditional two-year Manderson MBA and in terms of research productivity. And in one key area, it has carved out a comprehensive program in instruction and outreach that sets it apart: business cybersecurity.

“I’ve seen how a cyber-attack can bring an organization to its knees. There’s not only the monetary cost of cleaning up a cyber-attack, but there’s also the loss of customer and partner trust to contend with as well,” said Dr. Matthew Hudnall, deputy director of the Institute of Data and Analytics in the Culverhouse College of Business. According to an IBM report, in 2023, the average cost of a successful cyberattack was almost 4.5 million dollars, a 15% increase over a three-year period. But that’s not to say that only large corporations are affected by cyber-attacks such as ransomware. In fact, one in five cyber-attacks target small to medium-sized businesses, costing just over $21,000 on average. Despite all of this, there are over 550,000 unfilled cybersecurity jobs.

Bottom line? Cybersecurity isn’t just an IT problem anymore. It’s a business strategy problem. In today’s networked landscape, firms need executives trained in both cutting-edge cybersecurity countermeasures and tested business tactics, including risk management.

Board Advised

Culverhouse — and by extension its Manderson Graduate School of Business — relies on its Cybersecurity Executive Board of Advisors to help assess current realities and predict future threats in the cybersecurity field; to weigh in on technologies to best prepare students for emerging challenges; to provide mentorship to early career business cybersecurity professionals; and to facilitate in-field connections for students and alumni.

MBA Focused

Allen Fletcher worked as a nurse before he enrolled in the Manderson Graduate School Traditional MBA, and he remembers the effects of the 2019 ransomware attack on the DCH Regional Medical Center in Tuscaloosa—not the least of which was being forced to switch to paper-based notes for several days. This frustrating and expensive attack sparked a curiosity in Fletcher and was top of mind when decided to adjust his career trajectory and enroll in the Manderson MBA.

He learned that in addition to foundational MBA courses in leadership, strategy, management, analytics, accounting, and communications, the Manderson MBA offers a choice in area of focus, including a focus in cybersecurity/management information systems. Now, fully well within his second year of the program, Fletcher is already being pursued by employers for his unique skillset of business strategy and cybersecurity. “I think it gives me a huge competitive advantage,” he said.

Major News

Cybersecurity instruction isn’t just something that takes place in Culverhouse’s graduate enterprise. Now it can start at the beginning of a student’s University of Alabama academic career.

Last year, Culverhouse announced a new bachelor’s degree program in business cybersecurity to meet industry demand.

Graduates will emerge from the program with solid grasp of business fundamentals such as operations, risk management, and compliance as well as a strong command of the technical aspects of cybersecurity, helping them bridge the gap between IT departments and management. Professor of Management Information Systems and the Hewson Professor of Cybersecurity Dr. Allen Johnston said, “Our bachelor’s in business cybersecurity promises to help students gain the knowledge and skills necessary to identify vulnerabilities, implement robust security measures, and develop incident response plans, thereby reducing the overall risk for organizations.” Furthermore, Culverhouse also offers a minor in business cybersecurity, that is open to any student at The University of Alabama.

Nontraditionally Minded

With new cyber threats rearing their head every day, it seems evident that any organization should know how to identify digital deficiencies and hire the right experts to address them.

Culverhouse’s Executive Education program offers a six-module, online, self-paced certificate in business cybersecurity. Designed for professionals at any level, the certificate program covers topics ranging from understanding the profession at large to developing a cybersecurity program, defending against attacks, and building a corporate culture of cyber security.

Finally, Culverhouse develops future cybersecurity professionals through the Marillyn A. Hewson Cyber Security Summer Camp for teenagers.

All the aforementioned programs leverage faculty expertise and industry relationships to ensure that participants — from the MBA student, high schooler, or established professional — are getting at-the-vanguard instruction in combating ever-evolving cyber threats.

Positioned To Meet A Need

In today’s business landscape, cyber-attacks are a daily threat to companies of all sizes, and cybersecurity can no longer be siloed in IT departments. In fact, as cyber-attacks evolve in complexity, more and more jobs are created in the cybersecurity field. To remain competitive, businesses need cybersecurity-trained professionals at all levels, from early career to C-suite. Culverhouse College of Business and its Manderson Graduate School of Business is positioned to address the problem by producing new cybersecurity professionals to fill open positions and by training existing professionals to meet emerging cyber threats.

Get the details at culverhouse.ua.edu.

David Bedsole is an editorial content strategist for the marketing and communications office at the Culverhouse College of Business at The University of Alabama. He identifies and develops storylines to support and promote Culverhouse initiatives like the Manderson MBA.