Chris Zupa

Visionary
DISC Type : Ds

Director, Cyber Defense and Security Operations at Baylor Scott & White Health

Dallas, Texas, United States

Overview

Chris Zupa is a distinguished cybersecurity executive with over 21 years of experience, currently serving as the Director of Cyber Defense and Security Operations at Baylor Scott & White Health. A West Point graduate, he specializes in building global security operations centers (SOCs) from the ground up and has a proven track record of leading large, high-performing teams.

During his time at West Point, Chris was a member of the Army lacrosse team, where he was a standout face-off specialist. His dedication to teamwork and strategy on the field has translated into his successful leadership style in the corporate world.

Unique fact: Chris attended both the United States Army Airborne and Air Assault schools, demonstrating a high level of physical and mental resilience.

Personality Overview

Objective Evaluator

Early Adopter

Fast But Thoughtful

They might take some time to make their mind up but once they do, they don't change it easily.  They exhibit a rare combination of being result-oriented but patient at the same time. Reading between the lines and seeing beyond your words comes naturally to them.

Topics They Care About

Modern SOCs
He recently participated as an expert panelist at a North Texas ISSA event to discuss the evolution of Security Operations Centers, covering people, processes, and technology.
Cybersecurity Leadership
His career is defined by senior leadership roles, having built seven global SOCs and managed teams of up to 126 security professionals for Fortune 500 companies.
Healthcare Security
He currently leads cyber defense for a major healthcare system and previously managed network security for Blue Cross and Blue Shield, showing deep industry expertise.

Media Appearances

Chris Zupa - Director, Cyber Defense and Security Operations at Baylor Scott & White Health. Featured in TheOrg.com

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Work History

10-2025
Director, Cyber Defense and Security Operations at Baylor Scott & White Health
5-2024 - 6-2025
Sr. Director, Security Analytics & Automation ◆ Led 12 Sr. SIEM Engineers ◆ at McKesson
11-2020 - 6-2024
Sr. Director, Security Ops Center ◆ Led 31 Security Analysts ◆ 24x7 Security Monitoring at McKesson
10-2017 - 3-2020
Sr. Director, Network Security Operations ◆ Led 12 Engineers ◆ Managed over 600 firewalls at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma & Texas
6-2016 - 10-2017
Director of Security Operations ◆ Led 8 Security Engineers ◆ Managed MSSP at Neiman Marcus Group

Education

B.S. from United States Military Academy at West Point
Master's of Business Administration (MBA) from Satish & Yasmin Gupta College of Business

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 23 Location : Dallas, Texas, United States Job Level : Mid-senior Designation : Director, Cyber Defense and Security Operations at Baylor Scott & White Health
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Insights For Selling To Chris

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Focus on the results that your product produces, expect some strategic questions in return
  • Use phrases like 'your team deserves', 'best in class' etc.
  • Suggest clear next steps with confidence, don't be vague or hesitant

DONT's

  • Don't shy away from asking hard questions, but be extra polite
  • Don't focus too much on mutual contacts or bother about other stakeholders, focus on them
  • Avoid putting conscious effort into relationship-building

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Chris is

  • Strong proof of impact and their conviction will matter the most, but they wouldn't want to act unilaterally either
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Chris

  • They will say no if they are not convinced but you will have to prompt them.

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Chris move?

  • They will want to understand things well but can move fast once they have a clear picture.
  • Can Chris take some risk or not?

  • They have good risk tolerance but are likely to think it through once or twice.

You And Chris

Personality Compatibility


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