CyberWire Daily Podcast

Guest: Amanda Fennell, Chief Security Officer & Chief Information Officer, Relativity
Episode: "There's a cyber warrior in all of us"
Date: December 14, 2025
Host: N2K Networks
Series: Career Notes

Episode Overview

This episode features Amanda Fennell sharing her unconventional journey from aspiring archaeologist to leading cybersecurity executive. Amanda reflects on the pivots, lessons, and motivations that drove her from academic ambitions in archaeology to a thriving, impactful career in cyber. Her story highlights resilience, embracing uncertainty, and the belief that everyone has the potential to be a "cyber warrior."

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Early Aspirations & Realizations

• Childhood Dreams: Amanda initially aspired to be an archaeologist – “maybe an archaeologist in its own way” as a librarian – and was inspired at age 12 by news of Ramses II’s tomb discovery.
• Educational Journey: Driven to break family patterns, Amanda attended college due to financial aid opportunities, excelling academically after a disengaged high school experience.

The Reality Check of Academia

• Internship Lessons (01:03–02:52)
  • Amanda realized through archaeology internships that “what you think something is in academia is not what it is in real life.”
  • Found real-world archaeology “lonely and boring,” not the adventurous career envisioned.
  • A grad course at the Smithsonian further illustrated the scarcity of jobs in the field:

    “There are 32 of you, and there is one full-time paying job in this industry in the entire country. And I currently am in that role. So none of you are going to be spending $150,000 in student debt to get a job.”
    (~03:20, Amanda quoting her professor)

Discovering & Diving into Cyber

• Pivot to Digital Forensics (~03:40–04:30)
  • Stumbled into digital forensics, initially intimidated by technology but drawn by its investigative nature:

    “I could do the same skill set, but with technology where I am able to take a small piece of something and extrapolate what happened and how to fix it.”

  • Industry rapid growth led to “baptism by fire”—opportunities at leading organizations: Guidance Software, Booz Allen Hamilton, Symantec, work with federal agencies.
• A Defining Opportunity at Relativity (05:00)
  • Amanda received an unexpected job offer:

    “I don’t want to sell to you. I want you to work for me... I will let you build the program you’ve always wanted. Here you go.”

  • Embraced the chance to lead and innovate, learning the balance between moving fast and slowing down for thoughtful decision-making.

Leadership, Growth, & Personal Philosophy

• Adapting to Remote Work (06:15)
  • COVID-19 “put it into overdrive” for remote work:

    “I come to my desk in my home office, sit here, get through my emails, make sure there’s nothing crazy on fire, and then work on developing and strategy for making sure that we’re just innovating in the security space and doing what we can to make sure that we contribute, making things better.”

• Advice & Self-Reflection (07:00–08:30)
  • Amanda encourages curiosity, adaptability, and seizing opportunities:

    “The only thing that really got me to where I am more than anything is enjoying what I do and being good at it... But curiosity. I think that’s how I came upon a lot of different opportunities.”

  • On conflict management:

    “Nowadays [my approach] is to stop and breathe and give the other person or party opportunity to speak and listen with open ears... I prefer to do the unexpected — be thoughtful and open to the idea that I could be wrong.”

Inspiring the Next Generation

• Legacy & Aspirations (08:20–08:45)
  • Amanda hopes her impact goes beyond technology:

    “I believe strongly that every person has a little cyber warrior inside of them and can become something really great to contribute back into the security of the world.”

  • She aims for her legacy to be inspiring others to “be that cyber warrior and that they look back and think that this was a really great opportunity, that they learned more about security.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Real-World Reality vs. Academic Expectation:

  “What you think something is in academia is not what it is in real life.” — Amanda (~01:50)

• On Career Pivots:

  “So none of you are going to be spending $150,000 in student debt to get a job.” — Smithsonian Professor, as quoted by Amanda (03:20)

• On Cybersecurity as Archaeology:

  “I could do the same skill set, but with technology... take a small piece of something and extrapolate what happened and how to fix it.” — Amanda (04:10)

• On Speed & Leadership:

  “It was a slingshot. You pull back... and you take off. And I learned that there are some mistakes and stumbling along the way when you go too fast and learned how to slow down...” — Amanda (05:40)

• On the Cyber Warrior Spirit:

  “I believe strongly that every person has a little cyber warrior inside of them and can become something really great to contribute back into the security of the world.” — Amanda (08:30)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 01:03 — Amanda’s early career aspirations and the reality of archaeology
• 03:20 — Wake-up call on job prospects in academia
• 03:40–04:30 — Discovery and entry into digital forensics
• 05:00 — The opportunity and decision to join Relativity
• 05:40 — Lessons in leadership, slowing down, and culture shift
• 06:15 — Navigating remote work and security innovation
• 07:00 — Reflections on curiosity, learning, and personal growth
• 08:20–08:45 — Thoughts on legacy and the potential in all of us as cyber warriors

Final Reflection

Amanda Fennell’s story demystifies what it means to build an impactful cybersecurity career — emphasizing adaptability, the courage to pivot, and the conviction that everyone can be a “cyber warrior.” Her message is one of empowerment, humility, and commitment to inspiring others to seize their own opportunities in cyber.