IT & TECH
Career Planning in Cybersecurity When Learning Matters More Than Certainty
This is the story of Emilia Ricciuti, an Information & Cybersecurity Consultant in Sweden — someone who has always been headhunted, often said no, and still found one conversation that felt genuinely different.
Getting job offers was never the problem
“I’m very specific in my CV and on LinkedIn about what I can do, to avoid inbox noise with offers that are completely off.”
That sentence captures a reality many experienced IT and cybersecurity professionals recognise. When your competence is in demand, the challenge is rarely visibility — it’s relevance. You’re contacted often, but rarely in ways that align with where you want to go next. That’s where Worko as a career planner differs from headhunters.
“Worko understood what I actually work with, and how my skills could develop further.”
A career shaped by learning and personal development
“I’m a half-restless soul,” Emilia says. “I can’t stay in something that feels monotonous. I need variation and the feeling that I’m learning.”
That restlessness has shaped her entire career. Over time, Emilia has built broad competence across administration, communication, project work, and IT — before moving deeper into information and cybersecurity. She has never landed a role through a traditional job application.
“I’ve been recommended or headhunted my whole life,” she says.
While her experience with headhunters hasn’t been negative, it’s been highly selective. Because of her title and background, she’s contacted frequently — by all kinds of companies, sometimes even by international recruiters.
“I’m contacted all the time — at least once a month,” she says. “Usually on LinkedIn, with long messages saying I’d be a perfect fit for one specific role. I’m a curious person by nature, but if the timing is off or something doesn’t feel right, I usually say no.”
With years of experience behind her, Emilia has reached a point where she can be very deliberate about her career moves.
“I’m at a stage now where I can choose where I want to go next, and I don’t want to be boxed into a role that doesn’t leave room to grow. There has to be a sense that this the right thing to do. It’s hard to define exactly what that means — it’s more of a gut feeling.”
For Emilia, the challenge was never a lack of opportunities — it was more about alignment and wanting to feel that spark of possibility.
Open to the right conversation — without job hunting
When Worko first contacted Emilia, she wasn’t actively looking for a new role. She trusted that opportunities would appear naturally — as they always had.
“I’ve never had to chase roles,” she says. “Things usually sort themselves out.”
But what made this contact different from those headhunters wasn’t access to opportunities — she already had that — but the way the conversation was initiated and held.
“That first contact was short and to the point,” she recalls. “Just asking if we could have a conversation. And when we did, it was calm, professional, and not pushy at all.”
She pauses, then adds with a smile:
“It might sound strange, but it felt like fate. I always said no on LinkedIn — but something about this felt different.”
Being understood when your competence is broad
Emilia is used to being clear about what she can — and cannot — do.
“I’m very specific in my CV and on LinkedIn, so I don’t get offers to become a Java developer or scrum master.”
Still, broad competence can be hard to summarise quickly. That’s where this process stood out.
“There were a lot of questions,” she says. “But they were about me — how I work, how I think, what I want and need as a person.”
It didn’t feel like box-ticking or fast matching.
“It wasn’t about fitting me into a role description. It felt like someone genuinely wanted to understand how everything connected with me — and where I could go next.”
So by the time an opportunity entered the picture, much of the reflection needed for a job change had already taken place.
Working with information and cybersecurity today
Today, Emilia works with information and IT security in a public-sector context, supporting clients with requirement catalogues used in procurement processes. She’s currently transitioning into a new assignment — which has meant deep immersion in regulations.
“It’s very regulation-heavy work. Six documents, around 140 pages each,” she laughs. “Very technical.”
She enjoys the challenge.
“When something feels difficult at first, that’s motivating. It means there’s something to learn.”
She also values how her competence is treated.
“My managers don’t niche me into one thing. They see potential. Sometimes I’m senior in an assignment, sometimes more junior — and that combination is fantastic.”
What matters most when choosing the next step
When asked what she needs to thrive, Emilia answers without hesitation.
“Transparency, clarity, structure, honesty — and good leadership. I need freedom under responsibility. Macro-management rather than micromanagement.”
Feedback matters too.
“You want to be seen. To hear when you’ve done something well — not only when something goes wrong.”
And when she met her then potential new manager, the decision felt clear.
“We clicked straight away. That mattered more than having every skill perfectly in place.”
Thinking long-term — without rushing
For Emilia, this move wasn’t just about a new role. It changed how she views the future. The organisation’s international presence also adds flexibility.
“This isn’t just a job. I see opportunities to grow — both sideways and upwards. And if my children move abroad, I could move too and still work here. That’s a comforting thought.”
Smiling, she adds:
“I’m 49 years old. Maybe this is where I’ll retire from.”
Would Emilia recommend career planning with Worko?
“Yes,” she says. “Without hesitation. In fact, I already have.”
Not because she was persuaded — but because she felt understood.
“It felt professional, but also very human. I was listened to, and I was allowed to be myself.”
Curious about your next step — without forcing it?
Emilia’s story is about what happens when understanding comes before pushing change. Career planning doesn’t have to start with job hunting, applications or headhunters — sometimes it starts with a conversation that helps you see what actually fits, before you even know what you’re looking for.
“That’s the difference,” she says. “It wasn’t about convincing me. It was about understanding me.”
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