One of the world鈥檚 leading and most respected voices on cybersecurity and crisis leadership has signed exclusively with the UK鈥檚 best speakers agency.聽Sarah Armstrong-Smith is a leading light within the cybersecurity industry, where she is best known as previously working as the Chief Security Advisor at Microsoft.
Sarah has also occupied numerous other high-profile roles throughout an illustrious career, including being the Group Head of Business Resilience and Crisis Management at The London Stock Exchange Group, and the Head of Continuity and Resilience聽 at Fujitsu.
In 2020, Sarah was selected to become the Chief Security Advisor in Microsoft鈥檚 Europe sector, a role which allowed her to work with the largest enterprises across Europe, to develop digital transformation and cloud adoption.
Sarah鈥檚 professionalism has been recognised widely. She鈥檚 previously been named in the Top 30 Female Cybersecurity Leaders by SC Media, and she has also been recognised by ComputerWeekly as one of UK鈥檚 Most Influential Tech Leaders.
Now, in an exciting new collaboration with she will share her specialist knowledge and experiences at events in the UK and internationally.
Commenting on this role Sarah said: 鈥淚鈥檓 looking forward to bringing real-world insights and hard-earned lessons that goes beyond theory, to help audiences understand what is truly at stake, with compelling stories and practical insights.
鈥淢y goal is to ignite a sense of urgency and possibility in every audience, inspiring them to see cybersecurity not just as a technical challenge, but as a shared business responsibility and opportunity for innovation and growth.鈥�
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Asked what people can expect from talks she added: 鈥淒ynamic, engaging and tailored presentations which will demystify cybersecurity and empower audiences. I hope they listen and then take steps towards building effective resilience, providing a catalyst for proactive change.鈥�
Sarah says one of the most frustrating phrases she sees used in her field, and which she will challenge, are those who talk about 鈥渨ake up calls鈥� when describing cyberattacks.
She added: 鈥淥ne of the key questions I will be asking in my talks is how many wake-up calls will it take to finally break the cycle? It鈥檚 vital to remember that lasting change only happens when we challenge misconceptions, take deliberate and decisive action and commit to deliver top-down change.鈥�
Sarah鈥檚 work in the field of cybersecurity and crisis leadership is unrivalled. She鈥檚 helped to lead responses on multiple major incidents, including the Millennium Bug, and Global Pandemic.
These high profile roles have earned her a reputation for learning on the job throughout the most difficult scenarios.
In 2022, she released her debut book 鈥楨ffective Crisis Management鈥�. Using real-world examples of what may go wrong, the book grasps the factors at play in directing a successful crisis response. In 2024 she published Amazon No.1 best seller 鈥楿nderstand the Cyber Attacker Mindset鈥�, which explores the psychology of cyberwarfare and how organisations can defend against cyberattacks.
Her commitment to the industry has earned her the recognition of being named a 鈥楧istinguished Speaker鈥� by Microsoft, whilst also becoming one of the Most Influential and Inspiring Women in UK Tech and Cyber Security. Most recently, in 2025, Sarah became a member of the UK Government Cyber Advisory Board. Bringing depth and experience across multiple fields to improve policy making, accountability and resilience to cyber events.
Jack Hayes, director of Champions Speakers, said: 鈥淚鈥檓 delighted to welcome Sarah to Champions Speakers. Sarah is already rightly regarded as one of the most authoritative voices in the world on cybersecurity, and in 2025 was voted the official No.1 Cyber Security Speaker in the UK, so her keynotes will be hugely influential and help to drive change and educate businesses. In 2025, having the very best advice to deal with cybersecurity is vital and no one is better placed in the world than Sarah to provide it.鈥�
Sarah will also be represented by The Cyber Security Agency, the UK鈥檚 first and only business dedicated to world leading experts and thought leaders in Cyber Security, privacy and data sovereignty.
