chief trust officer

What is a chief trust officer?

A chief trust officer (CTrO) in the IT industry is an executive job title given to the person responsible for building confidence around the use of customer information. This person can help the organization fulfill its promises to customers, employees and stakeholders regarding security, privacy and ethical intent behind decisions. The chief trust officer typically reports to the chief executive officer and oversees an organization's cybersecurity, risk management and compliance efforts.

Why do organizations need a chief trust officer?

Trust, particularly that of the customer, is particularly important in a digital age when cyber threats and data breaches are rampant and safeguarding data privacy and ensuring the ethical use of artificial intelligence are imperative. Having an advocate for consumer trust in the company C-suite is a wise move on many levels, not the least of which is to provide reassurance.

The CTrO also advises the rest of the C-suite-level leadership when it comes to decisions that are trust-centric in nature. The chief trust officer is a powerful resource who creates enterprise-wide initiatives to bolster trust internally as well as strengthen communication between management and the workforce, which bolsters employee satisfaction and retention.

The role complements that of the chief compliance officer, whose job entails managing compliance issues and handling internal policies and procedures, and the chief privacy officer, whose tasks include fully understanding the legal requirements for a company and maintaining the privacy of customer information.

Many high-profile organizations have chief trust officers in place, including Airbnb, IBM, Microsoft, Salesforce, SAP and WeWork.

What are the responsibilities of a chief trust officer?

The responsibilities of the chief trust officer include the following:

• Taking the proper measures to make sure customer information can be trusted.
• Making customers aware of the appropriate levels of protection for their information.
• Ensuring the integrity of an organization by identifying and mitigating any compliance risks.
• Building and maintaining trust across the organization and with stakeholders.

This role shares the same title with an executive leadership role in the financial services industry. While there are differences between the two roles in terms of specific duties, with the latter being mainly responsible for trust administration and policies, there's some overlap. This includes meeting client service standards, building relationships between partners and business executives with clients, and ensuring compliance with regulations regarding customer accounts.

Just like their counterparts in the finance industry, chief trust officers in the IT realm need strong communication and relationship skills to build trust within and outside their organizations.

It's important to note that the role, while largely IT-oriented and traditionally one placed under IT on the company org chart, is no longer necessarily an IT role. As more and more business-side employees become as data-centric as their IT counterparts, the function of preserving data value in the enterprise has grown in scope, particularly in companies where data isn't just as internal asset but a product.

Many chief trust officers spend most of their time being an advocate for the customer, interacting with them and listening to their needs, as well as making sure customers have the support they need to best avail themselves of the company's services. But they also oversee the building of trust inside the company and with external partners.

The right candidate: Skills required for the chief trust officer role

The ideal candidate to fill the chief trust officer role is someone who has considerable experience in a customer-driven industry, such as finance. This individual should also have a strong understanding of information security and security operations, as well as privacy and compliance issues, so that they can properly advise the company on how to minimize these risks.

A strong understanding of data security and cybersecurity are certainly important -- the ideal previous role might be chief information security officer (CISO) -- but a strong candidate has practical experience in that aspect of data handling, at either a management or hands-on level. For that matter, it's helpful if that security background extends to the cloud and data-sharing relationships with partner companies.

According to Salary.com, as of May 28, 2024, the average salary for a CTrO is $277,000, which falls in the range of $238,700 to $309,200. The salary for this position varies based on location, education, number of years of experience in their field and certifications.

Learn what steps CISOs can take to bolster trust with customers, employees and partners.