CISOs Dramatically Increase Boardroom Influence but Still Lack Soft Skills

Splunk’s CISO Report 2025 indicates that 82% of CISOs now report directly to the CEO and most participate frequently in board meetings, yet gaps remain over soft-skill expectations (business acumen, communication, emotional intelligence) and perceptions of budget adequacy (29% of CISOs vs. 41% of board members believe budgets are sufficient). Nearly one in five CISOs (18%) were unable to support a business initiative due to budget cuts, with 64% saying this led to a cyber-attack; Splunk advocates educating boards and framing security as a business enabler, while a 2024 Trend Micro study underscores ongoing credibility pressures on CISOs to downplay risk.