Iowa’s cybersecurity leadership reflects a blend of enterprise security, financial-sector rigor, higher education defense, and long-term community building. The women in this feature show how the state’s cyber influence is shaped not only by formal CISO titles, but also by leaders driving board-level risk conversations, modernizing security operations, mentoring the next generation, and strengthening the professional networks that help Iowa’s cyber community grow. Together, they represent a leadership bench grounded in operational depth, governance discipline, and a practical understanding of how security must support the mission of the organization.
Meg Anderson — President, MSA InfoSec
Meg Anderson brings one of the deepest cybersecurity leadership backgrounds in Iowa. After a long career at Principal Financial Group, where she helped transform and mature the company’s information security program over many years and ultimately served as Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer, she now leads MSA InfoSec, the firm she founded to continue advising, mentoring, and serving the cybersecurity field. Her current work reflects a natural extension of a career built on strengthening cyber resiliency through people, leadership, and practical security strategy.
Beyond her executive tenure, Anderson has also had a wider impact on the industry through board and advisory roles, including service with FS-ISAC, UnityPoint Health’s information security committee, the Technology Association of Iowa’s CISO Roundtable, and IANS. That combination of enterprise CISO experience, boardroom credibility, and continued industry engagement makes her one of the most influential cybersecurity leaders connected to Iowa today.
Lisa Vonstein — Director of IT, CISO, Data Innovations
Lisa Vonstein has built a career at the intersection of information security, business continuity, privacy, and enterprise IT leadership. As Director of IT and CISO at Data Innovations, she leads across cybersecurity, cloud support, SaaS, CRM, ERP, help desk, and systems administration, giving her role a broad operational scope that goes well beyond traditional security oversight. Her work stands out for its emphasis on aligning security and technology roadmaps with organizational growth, resilience, and long-term business value.
Before Data Innovations, Vonstein held information security leadership roles at Mom’s Meals, Bankers Trust, and Life Care Services, with especially strong roots in Iowa through her time in Des Moines. Her background across banking, healthcare, and enterprise technology environments gives her a practical understanding of regulated operations and risk management. That cross-sector depth makes her a strong example of the kind of security leader Iowa continues to produce.
Nikki Cardenas — Director, Security Operations, University of Iowa
Nikki Cardenas represents a rising generation of cybersecurity leadership in Iowa’s higher education sector. At the University of Iowa, she has progressed steadily from senior IT security analyst to security architect and now Director of Security Operations, reflecting both technical credibility and growing leadership responsibility. Her path shows the value of developing deep institutional knowledge while taking on broader operational accountability over time.
Her experience spans both healthcare and financial services-adjacent environments, including earlier roles at Hills Bank and Trust Company and the University of Iowa Health Care. That mix is especially relevant in a university setting where security operations often intersect with research, healthcare, student systems, and broader enterprise infrastructure. Cardenas stands out as a leader helping shape the day-to-day defensive posture of one of Iowa’s major institutions.
Megan Wheelock — Director, Cybersecurity Risk Management, Governance, & Compliance / BISO, John Deere
Megan Wheelock has emerged as a key cybersecurity and risk leader within one of Iowa’s most important global companies. At John Deere, she has held multiple roles spanning information security, governance, risk, and compliance, and now serves in senior leadership positions focused on cybersecurity risk management as well as business information security for John Deere Financial. Her work includes global strategy, regulatory engagement, third-party risk, cyber governance, and board-level communication.
What makes Wheelock especially notable is the breadth of responsibility she has taken on in a relatively short period, moving from analyst work into leadership over digital risk, enterprise cyber governance, mergers and acquisitions, and data governance. Her background in audit at Nationwide and EY also gives her a strong foundation in controls, reporting, and risk oversight. She reflects a modern kind of cybersecurity executive: one equally comfortable in business governance, regulatory discussions, and security program leadership.
Stacy Baker — Board Member – President, ISSA / Assistant Director – Engineering Cyber Defense Operations, Principal Financial Group
Stacy Baker combines long-tenured enterprise security experience with active leadership in Iowa’s professional cybersecurity community. At Principal Financial Group, she leads engineering cyber defense operations with responsibility for vulnerability assessment services, including static and dynamic analysis, network vulnerability management, patch management, red teaming, breach and attack simulation, and purple teaming. That gives her a direct hand in the technical work required to test and strengthen enterprise defenses.
At the same time, Baker has taken on visible community leadership through ISSA Des Moines, where she has served as both vice president and president. That dual role matters. It means she is contributing not just to one company’s security posture, but also to the broader development of Iowa’s cybersecurity ecosystem. Her profile reflects the kind of leadership that helps a local cyber community become more connected, more capable, and more durable over time.
How Iowa’s cybersecurity leadership is being shaped in boardrooms, campuses, and enterprise defense teams
What stands out about Iowa’s cybersecurity leadership is its range. These women are leading inside Fortune 500 financial services, major university environments, healthcare and banking-adjacent organizations, and the professional communities that connect practitioners across the state. Some are shaping cyber strategy from the boardroom and advisory level, while others are building stronger operational defenses inside complex institutions every day.
That breadth is part of what makes Iowa notable. Its cybersecurity influence is being built through experienced executives, technically grounded operators, and community-minded leaders who keep strengthening the state’s bench. The result is a cyber leadership landscape that feels both practical and durable, anchored in real operational work and reinforced by people committed to making the field stronger for those coming next.
Explore more profiles of the amazing women shaping cybersecurity across numerous industries in our Women’s Month collection.