Terje Vatle

Name: Terje Warhuus Vatle

Age: 46 (b. 22.10.1978)

Role/Title: Chief Innovation Officer (CIO)

Where do you live (city): Oslo

Hometown: Hamar

Why did you choose Sicra?

For several years, I have heard and read a lot of positive things about Sicra, its culture, the employees, and specifically about Stig as a leader. "Stig takes care of his people" is something I heard multiple times in my network. Sicra has also become increasingly visible on LinkedIn, in Digi, and in Finansavisen.

I am a civil engineer in data from NTNU and Germany. I have worked for 17 years in data, advanced analytics, and now AI. For the past 5 years, I was the CTO of a Norwegian software company that competed globally. There, I experienced how the threat landscape has changed and how challenging it is to protect oneself in a way that balances cost/benefit.

I also experienced how cybersecurity and my field in data & AI converged, both on the attack side with generative AI, and on the defense side with the analysis of large data sets. With today's threat landscape and great interest in international security policy, I thought that in cybersecurity, I could contribute to a societal benefit. It was natural to look towards Sicra.

Sicra is incredibly well-positioned and has great ambitions in a rapidly growing market. I am convinced that this will be a very exciting journey to be part of, and I look forward to learning a lot and getting to know my new colleagues better.

What technologies do you work with?

I have worked with a range of technologies in data, analytics, and AI on platforms such as Azure and AWS, SQL Server, Xpert BI, TimeXtender, SAS, etc. I have worked a lot with analysis companies like Gartner, BARC, and Forrester to map out various competing technologies and understand how those who purchase technology think.

Throughout my career, the focus has shifted from actively using the technologies daily to looking at which technologies best solve a problem and the benefits this can provide for various organizations, both in the public and private sectors across a range of industries. Much of my daily work has been talking to business leaders, understanding their challenges, and mapping this to technology, skills, processes, and organization.

What does a typical workday look like for you – or how do you think it will look at Sicra?

With responsibility for innovation, I will first focus on service development. It's about understanding what our potential customers need, what we can offer today, what ideas we can turn into products, and how this can be positioned to those who will buy.

For example, I believe that SOC as a service can help many small and medium-sized businesses in Norway that now have to comply with new requirements like NIS2 in the new digital security law.

I have an open door for all ideas and believe in full transparency about how we qualify and develop the ideas further. Examples of ideas can be scripts, frameworks, and other things that can be reused and commercialized. I believe there is great potential here.

In addition, I think we will naturally give lectures and participate in industry conferences, perhaps especially those that are not purely IT conferences, to talk about cybersecurity in an easily understandable way and the values we can contribute with our services.

What do you consider success in what you do and why?

I see success as something we build every day. It's all the small and big victories as a team, what we can learn from, building mutual trust, and having fun along the way.

What drives you at work and in your role, what is fun?

Ambitious goals, professionally dedicated colleagues, an informal tone, being able to be serious/deliver top quality and at the same time not take oneself too seriously.

Which app (can be anything) do you use the most, and why?

YouTube to keep up with politics, especially from the USA.

What is your favorite quote?

Since I worked with data and analytics: "There are lies, damned lies, and statistics" (Mark Twain).

Do you have a favorite podcast? Or a book you would recommend?

Podcasts: Gråsoner, Pod Save America, and Det store bildet

Books: Speed of Trust by Stephen Covey

Is there anything else fun we can know about you?

I just returned from a 3-month trip to South Africa with my partner. I love skiing (alpine) and have skied down the world's highest active volcano in South America. I am also passionate about cars.

Something not many people know about you?

I have a pretty nerdy side. I loved Lego when I was little, and I just bought two castles that I will build. Otherwise, I also enjoy gaming.

What do you prefer? 

Home office or office?

A good mix is nice. I like being at the office to meet colleagues and get to know people at the coffee machine. Sometimes it can be very productive to sit at home for a day.

Biometrics or code?

Code.

Face ID or Touch ID?

Touch ID

Vipps or Cash?

Vipps

Gaming or TV?

Both

Book or podcast?

Podcast

Vacation in Norway or abroad?

Summer is best in Norway, but abroad is best in autumn and winter.