Kristen Hayduk Maynes

My Greatest Accomplishment

My greatest accomplishment is also my greatest privilege, which was to serve as an active-duty non-commissioned officer in the U.S. Army. It was during my time in the Army that I truly discovered the type of leader and woman I was meant to be. The military instilled in me a discipline and communication style that helps keep me fulfilled and successful today. Most important, the military taught me loyalty, empathy and selfless service. As a communications leader for a remains recovery mission in Southeast Asia, I stood on the very same battlefields that soldiers decades before me fought and died on. I learned from those missions the significance of leaving no soldier behind and how valuable strong and trustworthy teams are to personal and professional success. Those values go beyond the battlefield and are my “true north.”

How Drexel Helped

The military also helped me uncover my passion for cybersecurity, which brought me to the accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers. Through my Drexel co-op, I worked with PwC’s security team… and I never left. Throughout the years, I’ve met hundreds of colleagues and clients who have helped shaped the way I approach the evolving and complex cybersecurity landscape in order to help my clients find the right balance to managing risk. Each day is more exciting than the one before as the stakes in cybersecurity keep changing. PwC is on the cutting edge of those changes and I actively assist with evolving our methodologies and approach to deliver unmatched quality and client experience. Drexel opened that door and provided me the right building blocks for success…and I’m incredibly grateful for it!

Where I’ll be in Five Years

As a woman in the military and in a specialized technology field, I’m usually the only woman in the room. I’ve had some tremendous mentors who helped blaze a path, but I have also had some rocky roads along the way. In five years, I’d like to see a measurable improvement in the diversity amongst cybersecurity professionals. I also plan to be on the path to partnership at one of the greatest professional services firm in the world, PwC.