Giving early-career employees meaningful exposure to AI-related work is therefore essential. Threat modelling, AI governance reviews, vendor assessments and forensics exercises are all emerging areas new talent can contribute to immediately. In an AI-driven environment—where threats are changing, tooling is changing, and even the definition of “user” is changing—that mindset matters.
If we remove junior roles, we remove the very people who will be most prepared to navigate the next era of security. We remove the future mid-level defenders, the future senior analysts, and the future leaders. And the work that needs to be done doesn’t go away. We will just end up with fewer people who can do it.
This is why I believe organisations need to treat early-career hiring as a strategic priority right now, because once the junior talent pipeline collapses, it is already too late. They need to give early-career employees exposure to AI-related work in areas that create opportunities for new talent to learn, develop breadth and build confidence quickly. In doing so, they should explore how AI can accelerate development, not replace it, and establish a culture where requests to learn something new are met with a “yes, and here’s how.” mindset. That mindset builds trust, collaboration and a healthier environment for new talent to grow.
AI will transform security. But it won’t remove the need for people who understand context, risk, systems and behavior. If we hollow out the bottom of the organisation today, we don’t just delay future growth—we create teams that will struggle to scale, adapt, and defend the business when pressure increases.
AI may change the work—but it doesn’t change the simple truth that security is, and will always be, a people-first discipline.
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