Mark Sasson 🔎

Small business owner (Cybersecurity recruitment). Rookie farmer/rancher.

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

@randomrecruiter I'm seeing cyber pick up quite a bit, BUT hiring managers are being extremely picky. Working on personal skills and EQ, along with your professional value prop is critical in this environment.

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

@randomrecruiter Yes! Proactivity is critical. Sending an application is fine, but without any follow-up along the lines of your suggestion you're not separating yourself from the competition. Map opportunities that really make sense, and sell yourself! It sucks to say, but you're the product.

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

Just a thought...mayyybe not everything needs to be "smart" and "connected". Crazy, I know.

https://t.co/EnpwNpSlHZ

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

How's everyone feel about being interviewed by an AI bot versus a human?

Saw a company called Lizzy AI just raised a Seed round. Here's a snippet of what they do:

"LizzyAI an AI-native interviewing platform provider that helps companies evaluate candidates through dynamic, structured, and human-like conversations. Its core feature is an adaptive, conversational AI that conducts role-specific interviews in real time."

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

Hey @LinkedIn @LinkedInHelp - you sell a business premium plan that unequivocally states "Unlimited People Browsing".

My team I pay for these plans and have been getting automatically kicked out for *unlimited people browsing*. Below is a screenshot of the response from support which clearly conflicts with the "Unlimited People Browsing" feature we pay for.

To be abundantly clear, the browsing we are doing is manual!

So, since it's impossible to get help from someone that isn't restricted to reading off a script, this post is my last resort.

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

Cybersecurity vendors raised $1.3 BILLION over 41 rounds in November. >$1B raised three months running. Some comparative data below.

🔹 The $1.3 Billion raised in November 2025 represents an 82% increase in funding raised when compared to November 2024.

🔹 41 funding rounds were tracked in November ’25 compared to 22 in November, ’24.

🔹 Early-stage funding (Seed, Series-A) represents 63% of all November 2025 funding rounds recorded.

🔹 One round of funding >$100 Million was recorded accounting for 33% of all November funding dollars.

🔹 YTD vendors raised $12 Billion, a 30% increase over the same period in 2024.

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

@randomrecruiter Copy that! Financial independence is the holy grail for me. Just seems every time I start getting ahead, cost of living drastically increases! Guess that's why they call it the rat race.

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

@randomrecruiter I've had a few hiring managers this year tell me everything they wanted in a candidate. Then, after voicing it out, they said something along the lines of "I guess I'm looking for a unicorn". It's not that unicorns are hard to find...they simply don't exist!

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

@LinkedIn is it a policy to drive down use on the platform? Serious question.

My team and I utilize the platform, *manually*, to view profiles and conduct outreach to professionals.

We're experienced users - recruiters - we move fast. That doesn't make us a bot!

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

Do people really think bypassing a recruiter - after receiving outreach on an opportunity by said recruiter - is a good look?

Spoiler Alert: It's not.

Hiring managers engage recruiters for a reason. There is a process. That process helps them with their hiring efforts.

Don't be that person.

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

Why's this guy so upset? He's pointing out that people are exchanging currency for goods and services. That's a good thing, it keeps the economy rolling.

If they're earning income legally, and paying taxes, who cares where they work and when they conduct their transactions?

[Brandon Avedikian @bavedikian]

Go to Costco on a weekday at 2pm.

You’ll see a bunch of young people in workout clothes casually shopping.

You might think, “What are these people doing? Do they not have jobs?”

They do have jobs.

They work from home.

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been commenting on increased cybersecurity funding which is leading to an uptick in hiring demand.

An educated guess on why, is that AI innovation is driving the need for updated solutions creating a new opportunity for competition.

If that’s indeed true, what happens when we feel the negative consequences of the FOMO effect? Where investors “irrationally” pour money into innovation?

Jamie Dimon alluded to this a while back, and now Sundar Pichai chimed in on the subject, specifically saying: “…while the growth of AI investment had been an ‘extraordinary moment’, there was some ‘irrationality’ in the current AI boom.”

What are everyone’s thoughts?

Cybersecurity leaders and investors: Is this something being considered right now?

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

Keep pushing! I say this as someone who graduated in 2007 and entered the workforce during the global financial crisis. It took me YEARS to figure it out. In 2011 I took a full commission job (recruitment) with a $2k per month draw against commissions. Almost 15 years later, I am still in the profession, doing reasonably well. I was relentless, took risks, and it paid off.

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

Cybersecurity leaders, do you feel like hiring’s gotten tougher lately?

It’s not just you.

I just logged a $75M *SEED* round for a new cyber vendor backed by serious VCs 😐

Big picture: cyber funding YTD is already 20% higher than all of 2024 📈

That means more funded vendors. More GTM pressure.  More hiring competition.

2026 isn’t going to get easier.

What’s your plan to stand out when competing for talent?

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

@AshwinSR0911 This is a very good question. My opinion: it comes down to a willingness to invest time. Meaning, taking a step back in your career for a lower level position to gain experience, or taking unpaid intern roles. Real-world experience is critical to breaking in.

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

When does deliberate decision making turn into paralysis by analysis?

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

Cybersecurity hiring is shifting again. Hiring Managers, take note.

Demand signals for GTM talent are climbing, and recruiting is about to get harder!

Since 2023, it’s been an employer-driven market, meaning demand for talent was relatively weak, and hiring companies held the leverage. That coincided with a steep (and justified) drop in VC funding across the cybersecurity vendor landscape.

While we’re nowhere near the record investment levels of 2021–2022, things are looking up:

🔹 YTD cybersecurity investment has already surpassed all of FY2024.
🔹 Top-tier GTM professionals are now being courted by multiple vendors.
🔹 We’re seeing a clear uptick in demand for recruitment support.

This doesn’t mean you need to settle.

It does mean you’ll need to plan to compete because all indicators point to a shift back towards a candidate-driven market.

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

Cybersecurity vendors raised $439 MILLION over 14 rounds in August. Some comparative data below.

◾ The $439 Million raised in August 2025 represents a 51% decrease in funding raised when compared to August 2024.

◾ 14 funding rounds were tracked in August ’25 compared to 14 in August, ’24.

◾ Early-stage funding (Seed, Series-A) represents 60% of all August 2025 funding rounds recorded.

◾ One $230M round of funding was recorded accounting for 52% of all August funding dollars.

◾ YTD vendors raised $8 Billion, a 10% increase over the same period in 2024.

[Mark Sasson 🔎 @IT_HeadHuntr]

Two headlines, two different publications, one week apart 🤪

➡️ "Cybersecurity Budget Growth Hits Five-Year Low..." (Aug 13)

➡️ "Global Cybersecurity Spending to Hit $213 Billion in 2025—What’s Fueling the Surge" (Aug 21)

What are you all seeing?