Where emerging talent meets real-world security leadership
From practitioners to practitioners. Training. Mentorship. Real-world immersion for the next generation of security professionals.
Our Story
Why We Created YSPA
In 2019, a group of security professionals in Germany saw a gap: emerging security talent had no platform to connect, learn, or grow.
Newcomers to the industry — often from military, intelligence, or nonprofit backgrounds — were entering a world with little structure for mentorship or peer support.
What began as small informal meetups (#secwave) soon grew into something bigger: a volunteer-led collective to recreate the sense of guidance and camaraderie many of us once wished we had.
📍November 2022: The first official YSPA event was launched — hosted by a seasoned leadership consultancy and backed by industry insiders.
Since then 2023 and 2024 saw larger events hosted by Fortune 500 firms.
Attendance surged, yet the format stayed intimate — small cohorts, big conversations.
In 2025, our first international edition in Copenhagen booked out in under 48 hours.
Today, YSPA is a growing collective built on peer-to-peer support, real-world mentoring, and practical insight.
We welcome anyone — no matter the age or background — who’s stepping into or shaping a career in global security.
November
2022
What we offer at YSPA
YSPA is a security collective shaping the future of next-generation leaders. We deliver our mission through three core pillars:
🧠 The Academy is an immersive physical learning event, led by top security executives and hosted by global companies – designed to create a community, sense of belonging, knowledge exchange and boost your confidence in the Global Security field.
🚀 The Accelerator will become an 8 weeks virtual - led micro-learning experience, combined with mentoring and real-world challenges, designed to empower young professionals and career changers to develop practical, forward-looking solutions.
💡 The Incubator is imagined as a launchpad for early-stage ideas in security — from tools and services to fresh approaches — helping you go from concept to impact.
* All pillars of YSPA are targeting emerging or transitioning security professionals with at least 1-7 years of experience in the security industry.
1
Is the YSPA for you?
Emerging Security Professional
You’re starting out in corporate security and looking for clarity, confidence, and community to grow your skills and career.
🔸 Ideal for early-career talent (1–7 years experience)
2
Career Changer & Transitioner
You’re pivoting from the military, NGOs, government, or other industries into the corporate security world — and want support to make the leap.
🔸 Guidance. Network. Real-world perspective.
3
Visionary CSO Shaping the Future of Profession
You believe in lifting others while leading. You want to mentor, learn from fresh perspectives, and help shape the next generation.
🔸 For experienced leaders ready to give back.
Why we founded YSPA?
Founder Lana Djurkin-König:
“YSPA came from a personal place and my the desire to create what we once needed ourselves. It’s a launchpad for emerging security professionals to grow through real conversations, shared experience, and mutual respect. This is a security collective - from practitioners for practitioners - that aims to give back, to guide, and to help future-proof global security by shaping the next generation of thoughtful, connected leaders.”
Hosting YSPA at BASF was a reminder of how powerful it is to create a space where young professionals feel safe to ask questions, challenge ideas, CONNECT and grow. We need more of this in our industry — cross-generational, candid, and rooted in real experience.
Julia Vincke, CSO BASF & host YSPA 2023
"Supporting YSPA is about unlocking potential and bridging generational knowledge. I find great satisfaction in mentoring young security professionals and sharing insights that transform their raw talent into strategic capability, and at the same time being able to learn from their views, ideas and experiences. I'm deeply grateful to YSPA for providing this vital platform that connects experienced professionals with emerging talent. By investing in their development, we're not just nurturing individual careers, but cultivating a more dynamic, innovative security ecosystem."
Marco Mille, CSO Siemens & YSPA host 2024
"YSPA changed my life — not just through what I learned, but through the people I met. It gave me a network, a voice, and the confidence to grow in this industry!"
YSPA Alumna
“YSPA perfectly embodies our mission to fuse academic insight with real-world impact. Through our partnership, students and emerging talent gain direct access to industry leaders, live challenges, and a global security network—accelerating the development of tomorrow’s security executives.”
Prof. Dr. Marc Knoppe, Program Director, Executive MBA in Strategy, Global Risk & Security Management, TH Ingolstadt
YSPA Moments
Snapshots of learning, leading, and lifting each other up.
These are the moments that shape the future of security leadership - one connection, one breakthrough, one step at a time.
