Developed in partnership with Georgia Institute of Techonology's Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI2), the Executive Cybersecurity Training Programme equips senior leaders and decision-makers with the governance frameworks and strategic tools needed to lead organisational cyber resilience. The programme is designed primarily for executives in airports and aviation, and is also relevant for leaders in transport, ports, energy, and public administration.

Airports represent a uniquely complex cybersecurity environment. IT systems covering passenger management, ticketing, and retail converge with operational technology controlling runways, air bridges, baggage handling, and air traffic coordination. Third-party vendor ecosystems routinely involve hundreds of operators, and the consequences of a cyber incident extend well beyond the organisation directly affected, grounding flights and cascading across international airport networks. Ports face comparable challenges and are also addressed within the programme's scope. The programme draws on Georgia Institute of Techonology's deep expertise in airport and aviation cybersecurity, including partnerships with the U.S. Department of Defense, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and executive training delivered in over 40 countries, to provide airport and aviation executives with the tools to govern cybersecurity risk effectively.

The programme is structured around three learning sections:

1. Core Concepts: Grounding participants in the fundamentals of cyber risk at the executive level, how organisations create vulnerability, risk appetite frameworks, regulatory obligations including ICAO standards and civil aviation authority requirements, and the business case for structured cybersecurity investment. In 2024 alone, the average cost of a data breach reached USD 4.88 million, and a single software incident cost Delta Air Lines approximately USD 380 million across more than 7,000 cancelled flights.
2. Programme Initiation: Supporting leaders in translating awareness into action. Participants are introduced to internationally recognised frameworks including NIST CSF and Zero Trust, and develop the tools to assess their organisation's specific risk profile within the airport and aviation context, build a practical security roadmap, and define measurable KPIs.
3. Programme Maturity: Building the internal structures, culture, and capabilities needed for long-term resilience, covering policy development, insider threat awareness, incident response planning, crisis communications, and tabletop simulation exercises tailored to airport and aviation scenarios.

Upon completion, participants receive a joint Georgia Institute of Techonology/UNITAR Digital Certificate of Completion. The programme is available in flexible formats, from bi-weekly online sessions to intensive multi-day delivery, making it accessible to leaders across diverse regions and organisational contexts.