Meet Manager Susanne
During her studies in Mathematics and Computer Science at the University of Edinburgh, Susanne Koster discovered her passion for cybersecurity. “What drew me to cybersecurity is that it’s extremely relevant, every single day,” she explains. “If the news reported a newly found vulnerability somewhere, we would discuss it in detail.” From that moment on, she began to specialise further in the sector, and since September 2025, she has been a Manager at Eraneos.
After graduating, Susanne went to work in London as part of a cyberteam focused on penetration testing, consulting, and digital forensic investigations. “In digital forensic investigations, besides the analysis, I was also responsible for maintaining the chain of custody, ensuring that the findings could be used in court,” she explains. This work gave her a strong technical foundation, though it also had its limitations. “It was interesting and challenging, but because investigations often lasted years, I sometimes felt that I wasn’t making an immediate impact,” she adds. It was for this reason that she wanted to help clients more directly during crisis situations. She joined Deloitte in Amsterdam to support organisations during cyberattacks whilst also proactively preparing them. After that, she worked at S-RM, an international consultancy specialising in incident response and crisis management.
“It’s special to have been able to support organisations during their most critical situations,” she shares. “You become involved at a time when everything is at stake: the reputation, the continuity, and sometimes even the very survival of the company.” These intensive crisis projects gave her deep insight into how organizations function under extreme pressure, and which underlying decisions help to resolve the crisis or exacerbate it.
What Susanne increasingly observed, however, was that the same fundamental mistakes kept recurring at different organisations. “It was disappointing to see how often the same things went wrong,” she observes. “With incident response, unfortunately, you’re always too late; the crisis has already occurred.” This made her think about a different approach. “My interest shifted increasingly towards preventive measures and structural improvements. It was that desire to proactively strengthen organizations and prevent incidents which led me to Eraneos,” she concludes. “Looking back, every step taught me something different: first the technical knowledge, then consultancy and working with clients, and finally crisis management. It is that combination of experience which I can now apply at Eraneos.”
A proactive approach
What Susanne consistently observed during incidents was that many problems can be prevented if companies are properly prepared in advance. “That’s exactly what Eraneos focuses on: supporting companies by concentrating on the most important issues, rather than attempting to address everything.”
She commenced working on a project immediately after her onboarding. “For one of my clients, I am overseeing the implementation of monitoring solutions and optimising the surrounding processes to improve cyber resilience,” she explains. “I find the monitoring process particularly interesting, because it’s more technical and I can contribute significantly due to my background. I’m able to communicate effectively with cyber specialists, IT professionals, and management, which assists in explaining the importance of certain decisions.”
Establishing such systems also requires considerable trust from both sides: the organisation needs to trust that the external party will carry everything out properly, whilst the external party must understand how the company operates internally. “My role is to facilitate that collaboration and to strengthen the trust between both parties.”
Minimizing and taking risks
Susanne currently works extensively with government clients and has previously been active in that sector as well, so the government represents familiar territory for her. “It’s interesting to observe how the internal processes operate when there isn’t a crisis; it explains a great deal about why crises sometimes occur,” she observes. “What stands out is that the approach across different sectors is largely similar, although the awareness of cyber risks varies considerably between technical and non-technical organisations.” She notes that both sectors have their distinct appeal: “The private sector often offers greater dynamism and challenge, because there is more scope for ambitious and innovative projects.”
Eraneos’ Cybersecurity team
Her initial impression of Eraneos is that it is an organisation comprised of individuals who possess extensive knowledge and experience, and who are genuinely committed to achieving optimal results for their clients. “Minimal energy is wasted on internal politics. Instead, the central question is: what is best for the client and how can we respond to that efficiently?” According to her, this client-oriented mindset is reinforced by the diverse backgrounds within the team. “Everyone brings unique expertise—whether that’s technical, operational and crisis management like me, or more legal and governance-oriented. That variety of perspectives ensures we complement each other and continue learning from one another, which ultimately results in a robust team.”
“There is a positive atmosphere, in which everyone’s knowledge and background is truly valued.”
One aspect Susanne really likes is that considerable attention is paid to where one’s knowledge and experience can be utilised most effectively. “That makes the work dynamic, with a clear focus on delivering added value. It’s not a matter of ‘whoever is available undertakes the task,’ but rather, there is always careful consideration of who is most suitable for each assignment. This ensures a fair and transparent approach, both for the client and for oneself.”
Were Susanne to describe her colleagues in three words, she would say: enthusiastic, curious, and above all, proactive. “Everyone I speak with immediately engages with your ideas and begins brainstorming as soon as you present a concept. That makes it worthwhile to have coffee together at the office, you always gain new insights from those conversations,” she emphasises. Additionally, the team regularly organises engaging activities, such as VR gaming. “We also have team meetings on Fridays and, fortnightly, a longer session where colleagues present an assignment or share interesting insights. This provides ample opportunities for knowledge exchange and maintains team cohesion.”
And in her spare time?
Outside of work, Susanne mainly spends her time on sports and creative activities. “I enjoy painting portraits and experimenting with different techniques,” she shares. “Usually, I focus on one technique for a while to gain more experience with it. It’s not about perfection, but about learning and discovering.”
Climbing has been a regular hobby for years. “It’s great to see how mainstream it has become,” she says enthusiastically. “Nowadays, you can find bouldering facilities everywhere, whereas this used to be quite different. I’ve been climbing since I was six, and although I’m not as good as I used to be, the passion is still there.”