Roland Daccache, Senior Manager, Sales Engineering, Middle East and Africa at CrowdStrike, discusses the dual priorities shaping the future of cybersecurity: the technology trends redefining solutions and the evolving expectations of enterprise security leaders. Part one of the interview explores the product innovations and AI-driven advancements transforming cybersecurity solutions, offering a glimpse into how technologies like Agentic AI are redefining threat detection and response. Part two shifts focus to the role of today’s CISOs and IT security decision makers, highlighting their current challenges, expectations from vendors and partners, and the essential skill sets they must develop to protect increasingly complex digital environment.
Trends in cybersecurity solutions
What are the product innovations taking place across cybersecurity solutions that will be visible in 2025 and ahead?
The future of cybersecurity is AI that doesn’t just assist, it acts. Agentic AI can understand intent, make decisions and respond in real time. At CrowdStrike, we’re already making that real with Charlotte AI, which now triages security detections with high accuracy and eliminates tens of hours of manual work per week on average to scale SOC operations and accelerate response times to the most critical threats. That means faster investigations, less manual work for analysts and a major shift from reacting to threats to staying ahead of them.
How is AI and Generative AI being embedded today in cybersecurity solutions?
AI and Generative AI are being embedded across cybersecurity to boost speed, accuracy and scale. At CrowdStrike, we’re using AI not just to surface insights, but to drive real outcomes, automating threat detection, triage and response. Charlotte AI goes a step further with generative and agentic capabilities, turning natural language into precise actions, guiding investigations and handling routine tasks. AI is fully integrated across the CrowdStrike Falcon platform, so defenders get consistent, context-aware support wherever they work. The goal is to make sure analysts aren’t buried in alerts—AI handles the noise so humans can stay focused, sharp and in control.
What are the latest enterprise skill sets required to manage and implement modern day cybersecurity solutions?
Modern cybersecurity calls for a mix of technical depth and strategic thinking. Teams need skills in cloud architecture, identity management, automation and AI-driven tools, plus the ability to manage hybrid environments at scale. Just as important are soft skills like communication and translating risk for the business. As AI becomes central, knowing how to guide and validate its outputs is key. The edge goes to defenders who can blend human judgment with machine speed to stay ahead of threats.
What are the ongoing limitations of modern day cybersecurity solutions?
Today’s cybersecurity solutions still struggle with noise, complexity and blind spots. Alert fatigue is real, teams are overwhelmed and slow to respond. Many tools operate in silos, lacking context and integration, which makes it harder to act with speed and precision. Even AI has limits without the right data or understanding of intent. As environments expand across cloud, endpoint and identity, gaps persist. The issue isn’t tool quantity but fragmentation. What defenders need is a unified platform that brings everything together, so they can move faster, work smarter and stay ahead of today’s threats.
Future ready CISOs
What are the primary pain points of enterprise CISOs and IT security decision makers today?
CISOs and security leaders face nonstop pressure—more threats, more tools and not enough people. Alert fatigue is constant, and managing risk across cloud, endpoint, identity and data is only getting harder. On top of that, they’re expected to show clear results to the board while figuring out how to safely adopt AI. It’s a tough balance: do more, with less and do it faster. What they really need are solutions that cut through the noise, ease the workload and deliver real outcomes—not just more alerts to chase.
What are the expectations of CISOs and IT security decision makers from cybersecurity vendors?
CISOs and security leaders expect more than just tools—they want trusted partners. That means vendors who understand their business, not just their tech stack, and who help reduce complexity, not add to it. They’re looking for platforms that deliver real outcomes: faster detection, smarter response and measurable risk reduction. Transparency, speed of innovation and strong customer support matter, too. As threats evolve and budgets stay tight, leaders want solutions that are easy to use, integrate well and deliver value quickly.
What are the expectations of CISOs and IT security decision makers from cybersecurity channel partners?
CISOs increasingly look to channel partners as strategic advisors, not just resellers. They’re expected to support execution, drive platform adoption and offer technical guidance that aligns with business goals. In our experience, the most effective partners act as an extension of the security team, helping improve visibility and accelerate response. Regional expertise and value-added services make a real difference. What stands out most is consistency, partners who provide reliable, outcome-oriented support over time, not just at the point of sale.
What is the skill sets that CISOs, and IT security decision makers need to develop to secure modern day enterprises?
To secure today’s enterprise, CISOs and security leaders need a mix of technical, strategic and leadership skills. They must understand cloud security, identity, data protection, and how to operationalise AI-driven tools. Soft skills are just as important, they need to be able to translate risk to the board, align security with business goals, and lead through constant change. As threats evolve, so must their ability to assess vendor claims, validate AI outputs, and build resilient, high-performing teams. The future belongs to leaders who can see around corners, adapt quickly and guide their teams through constant change with clarity and confidence.
