Why Security Leaders Must Think Like Tech CEOs with Emilio Escobar

As every company evolves into a technology company, the role of security leadership is undergoing a dramatic transformation. Few understand this evolution better than Emilio Escobar, Chief Information Security Officer at Datadog. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, Emilio joins host Sean Cleary to share what it really takes to lead security at hyperscale.

What You’ll Learn:

How to identify and hire the right security talent
Why successful security leadership requires listening first and acting second in the first 6-9 months
The evolution of the CISO role from technical specialist to strategic business partner
How to build bottom-up security strategies that empower teams in hypergrowth environments
Why focusing on classes of problems rather than individual issues leads to better security outcomes

Emilio Escobar is the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) at Datadog, where he leads the company's global security and SRE initiatives. With a background in software engineering and security consulting, including roles at Hulu, PlayStation, and the NSA, Emilio brings a unique perspective to enterprise security leadership. His expertise spans building and scaling security programs in high-growth environments, combining technical depth with strategic business alignment.

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Episode Resources:

Emilio Escobar on LinkedIn
Datadog Website
Sean Cleary on LinkedIn
Riviera Partners Website
Riviera Partners on LinkedIn