“Sharing is what moves us forward”
As a global food retailer with strong local brands, Ahold Delhaize operates in a world where margins are razor-thin. Yet the cyberthreats it faces are anything but marginal. “Supermarkets are highly visible and deeply intertwined with people’s daily lives. They symbolise proximity and trust,” says Watson. “A successful attack on a player like us — for whom international supply chains and warehouse automation are so critical — could disrupt logistics and empty store shelves overnight. That makes us an attractive target.”
The complexity of this challenge doesn’t intimidate Watson. On the contrary, it’s what motivates her. “Our cybersecurity organisation must move at the speed of the business, not just fight compliance-driven fires,” she explains. “That means operating in a truly risk-based way, focusing on visibility, segmentation and basic hygiene such as patching. Creativity, in our context, doesn’t come from expensive tooling, but from smart process design.”
Looking ahead, Watson sees two major forces converging. On one hand is the hype and reality of AI, both as a defensive mechanism and as an offensive weapon. On the other is the human factor, which remains the weakest element yet the most worthy of protection. “Education, smart guardrails and processes that catch human error remain absolutely crucial,” she stresses. “Because this awareness has grown across the industry, there’s a strong, positive momentum in cybersecurity — one increasingly defined by collaboration and knowledge sharing.”
That mindset also explains why Ahold Delhaize recently joined the Belgian Cyber Security Coalition. Since the Coalition broadened its scope to include international companies with a Belgian footprint, the move made perfect sense, providing Watson with a new network rooted in real-world practice, where peers can openly discuss risks and solutions. Even after a short period, the value has been tangible. “My team members who have attended coalition sessions immediately recognised the forum as a place where operational issues like logging, privacy and incident investigation are addressed head-on,” she notes.
For Watson, who has long been active in cross-industry collaborations, the Coalition’s strength lies in its multisector and local perspective. “Many cooperation networks are confined to a single industry. The Cyber Security Coalition isn’t, and that’s its true value,” she says. “Having worked across multiple sectors in my career, I can confirm that when it comes to cybersecurity, everyone faces the same types of challenges and complexities. Sharing how we address them is what moves us forward.”
