Leadership Laboratory

Leadership Lab: Interviews with SANS Technology Institute College Graduates

A series of interviews with SANS Technology Institute College graduates

Interview with T. Brian Granier, Second Graduate of SANS Technology - September 19th, 2007
Interview with Richard Hammer, First Graduate of SANS Technology Institute - March 31st, 2007

Interview with T. Brian Granier, Second Graduate of SANS Technology

September 19th, 2007
By Stephen Northcutt


T. Brian Granier is the second graduate of the SANS Technology Institute, a post graduate information security college. Stephen Northcutt had an interview with Brian to get more of his story about the experience of earning his degree from STI.

Do you believe the program has helped you to meet, or move toward, the goals contained in your outcome statement?

[Note to Reader: In the outcome/goal statement, the student describes what the student expects to achieve by earning a Master's Degree from STI. Brian wrote a very ambitious and detailed outcome statement.]
Yes. In consideration of the fact that my mission statement was created with a scope of 5 years to lifetime goals, I can comfortably say that the STI Master's program has provided a mechanism to advance towards the stated goals. After creating my mission statement, I identified 16 sub-goals. Through direct involvement in this program, I have made significant progress towards six of the goals. For reasons indirectly associated with the program, I have also been able to make progress on three of the other goals.

This program has offered valuable opportunities to network with high profile members of the community. It has also provided a structured way to learn the many aspects of the IT security world from a technical, management and business development perspective. The speaking requirements work to build confidence and to develop the skills necessary to succeed at the higher levels of any industry.

Which Course was most valuable?

I found three of the courses specifically very valuable. SEC 503 Intrusion Detection In-Depth was extremely valuable as it teaches the nuts and bolts of analyzing network issues, which can be applied timelessly in understanding new and emerging technologies. Similarly SEC 508 System Forensics, Investigation & Response provides the equivalent view under the hood for computers. The final course I found of value was MGT 525 Project Management and Effective Communications for Security Professionals and Managers. While I have been doing project management for some time, it provided some useful insight into different tools and techniques that can be applied to help in the project management process.

What specific recommendations would you offer to make the program more valuable to you?

This is an evolving program and the continued self-analysis and improvement of the program has been evident and has been helpful. Keep it up.