Public Sector IT Branch Struggles to Recruit Certified Cyber Professionals Amid Rising Threats
The Challenge
As digital transformation accelerated across Canada’s public sector, the Information Technology Branch of a mid-sized provincial ministry found itself facing a serious workforce challenge. Over the past two years, a combination of hybrid work expansion, outdated security infrastructure, and rising cyber incidents had exposed significant weaknesses in the ministry’s digital ecosystem. Despite repeated calls for greater investment in cybersecurity, the most pressing issue was not technology, it was people.
The ministry’s Chief Information Officer (CIO) had long recognized that most of the existing IT staff, while highly capable in traditional systems management, lacked the professional cybersecurity certifications now demanded by both regulators and insurers. As federal and provincial compliance standards tightened under PIPEDA and Treasury Board Secretariat guidance, the organization struggled to maintain even baseline readiness.
Efforts to recruit certified professionals were hindered by fierce competition from the private sector, which offered higher salaries, flexible contracts, and structured certification programs. Internal workforce planning revealed a concerning statistic: nearly 60 percent of security personnel held no formal cybersecurity certification, such as CISSP, CISM, or CompTIA Security+. Many relied solely on years of informal, experience-based learning.
An internal audit later uncovered several policy misconfigurations and outdated risk assessment frameworks, exposing gaps in compliance and operational discipline. Although policies existed on paper, enforcement and understanding varied widely.
Morale began to decline as overextended staff attempted to manage increasing cyber risks with limited expertise. A phishing simulation revealed that 45 percent of employees clicked on a test link, confirming the need for stronger training and awareness programs. Under pressure from senior leadership and regulators to demonstrate compliance readiness, the CIO faced growing concern that the ministry could no longer credibly claim adherence to recognized security standards.
Media reports citing “cyber skill shortages in the public sector” soon followed, further undermining public confidence. Regulators began informally requesting assurance updates, and internal risk committees questioned whether the ministry was capable of protecting sensitive citizen data under PIPEDA obligations.
By the time an external assessment was commissioned, the ministry was dealing not only with technical debt but also with the strategic consequences of an unqualified workforce. What began as a recruitment challenge had evolved into a systemic risk affecting compliance, operational resilience, and public trust.
The root problem was clear: without a coordinated approach to attracting, certifying, and retaining skilled cyber professionals, the ministry’s modernization initiatives were at risk of stalling before achieving meaningful impact.
Our Solution
Service Area: Professional Staffing and Certifications
To address these challenges, we designed a Cyber Workforce and Certification Uplift Program spanning 12 to 18 months. The program was customized for the public sector’s unique HR and compliance environment and focused on four key objectives: capacity building, certification, governance alignment, and measurable performance improvement.
The engagement began with a comprehensive workforce risk assessment and certification gap analysis aligned to CSE ITSG-33 and NIST CSF standards. Each IT role, from SOC analysts to privacy officers, was mapped to corresponding certification requirements and responsibilities. Updated job descriptions and classification standards incorporated both mandatory and preferred certifications, ensuring alignment with Treasury Board and provincial employment frameworks.
To strengthen recruitment and retention, the program established partnerships with post-secondary institutions, co-op programs, and vendors-of-record to build sustainable talent pipelines. The initiative also introduced a funded certification roadmap that included study support, exam reimbursement, and ongoing recertification tracking through the HR information system.
Complementing the staffing measures, an enterprise-wide awareness program was launched. Phishing simulations, secure-by-design workshops, and targeted cyber hygiene training were rolled out to improve baseline security culture. Quarterly dashboards reported progress to the departmental security and privacy governance committees, maintaining transparency and accountability.
All activities were designed to align with PIPEDA, relevant provincial privacy legislation, Treasury Board policies, and Communications Security Establishment guidance.
The Value
The program delivered measurable improvements in workforce capability, risk posture, and compliance maturity:
– Enhanced Compliance Readiness: Control maturity increased by more than 30 percent across access management, monitoring, and incident response within two reporting cycles.
– Workforce Certification: Within 12 months, 70 percent of staff in security-designated roles obtained at least one recognized certification.
– Reduced Phishing Susceptibility: Phishing simulation click rates dropped from 45 percent to below 10 percent after two program cycles.
– Operational Efficiency: The average time to fill cyber vacancies decreased by 35 percent, supported by new recruitment and co-op partnerships.
– Audit and Regulatory Confidence: Regular dashboard reporting met internal audit and regulatory expectations, strengthening assurance over citizen data protection.
Collectively, these outcomes improved the ministry’s cyber resilience, reduced exposure to non-compliance penalties, and reinforced public trust in its digital services.
