Quantifying Cyber Risk: A CISO’s Path to Boardroom Credibility

In This Episode

Silvano Silva details how Nevro is using high-frequency spinal stimulation to offer life-changing relief for chronic pain sufferers—especially those with type 2 diabetes. He explains how the implantable device communicates via Bluetooth with a mobile app and cloud infrastructure, creating a highly personalized AI-driven therapy model. As Nevro's CISO, Silvano's responsibility is not just technical—it's also deeply strategic, as he ensures patient safety, data integrity, and organizational security.

Silvano redefines the CISO’s job as less about "protection" and more about "translation"—turning risk into business language that boards and executives can act on. He shares his process for assigning dollar values to risk scenarios and prioritizing security investments based on return on risk reduction. His focus on using financial framing to drive executive buy-in offers a blueprint for any security leader seeking strategic relevance.

He also opens up about his career journey, from engineering and networking to high-growth SaaS and cleantech startups. Silvano reflects on the power of intellectual curiosity, his pattern of alternating between startups and established enterprises, and how each phase helped develop both his leadership and technical range. His story is a testament to growth through reinvention and a constant pursuit of impact.