So here we are, almost at the end of March and the end of Q1 of 2026. The first three months of this year have been, by any measure, among the most intense and emotionally demanding of my life since I lost my much loved and wanted only son Frankie in 2013. They have brought profound grief, relentless work demands, genuine excitement about what lies ahead for me and a quiet, deepening gratitude for the people, the moments, and the connections that matter to me most.

This is my honest account of this quarter: the losses, the lessons, the work, the recognition, and the small but significant things that have somehow kept me going.

Grief, Loss, and Learning to Listen

Simon

The year began under the heaviest of clouds for me. My dear friend Simon “Big” Rodway passed away suddenly on 29 December 2025, and the grief I have carried through these first three months has been unlike anything I have experienced since losing my much loved and wanted only son Frankie on 29 November 2013.

Simon was not just a friend to me; he was a lifeline, a protector, a gentleman in the truest sense of the word. He drove me home safely after CSIDES last year in October when Storm Amy hit, he showed up at my #InfosecLunchHour Christmas special event in a Santa suit, he was at my house with me on Christmas Eve for a cup of tea, and he was the last person I spoke to on Christmas morning. Five days later, he was gone.

The shock of losing Simon has stayed with me throughout the quarter. Some mornings I still reach for my phone to message him, looking forward to seeing and reading the links he would send me about cyber and AI that he thought I might find interesting. Then it hits me like a ton of bricks that I can’t message him anymore.  My grief at his loss has been complicated, layered, and at times completely overwhelming, particularly when set against the relentless pace of work and the other losses that have followed.

But something extraordinary has happened alongside the grief. Simon has been visiting me in my dreams. Not vague, hazy impressions, but vivid, specific conversations. He has been talking to me, and I have been listening. It prompted me to enrol in a talking to the spirit world course so that I could learn to channel these experiences more intentionally and more clearly. And it has worked. Simon was remarkably specific: he told me to get myself some white roses from him for Easter and to light a white candle on his birthday in April. I intend to do exactly that. It has brought me a comfort I did not expect, and a sense that the bond we shared has not been broken by his passing. It has simply changed form.

Sensei Mac and Other Losses

As if the loss of Simon were not enough, the first quarter of 2026 also brought the sad passing of my karate instructor, Sensei “Mac” Gilmour, who I had known since I was a teenager. Mac was a formidable and deeply respected figure in the martial arts world, and his influence on me extended well beyond the dojo. He taught me discipline, resilience, and the importance of never giving up, lessons that have served me in every corner of my professional and personal life. To lose him so soon after Simon has been a massive blow.

There have been other deaths and funerals too. I feel as though I have had my fill of them this year, and we are only three months in. Each one has taken something from me, and each one has reminded me, with painful clarity, that life is short and that the people we love are not here forever. I have carried that weight through every working day, every meeting, every deliverable, and it has been hard. Grief does not wait for a gap in your calendar.

Poppy

In January, my beautiful Poppy gave me a real scare. She had a nasty flare up of her pancreatitis and was very poorly again for a period of time. When your dog is twelve and a half years old and has the number of health ailments that Poppy does, every illness feels like it could be the one that takes her from you. I was beside myself with worry.

But Poppy, being Poppy, fought her way through it. She is doing very well again now, and I am more grateful than I can say for every single day I have with her. At her age and stage of life, every morning that she greets me is a gift. She is a constant source of comfort, joy, and unconditional love, and she has been my anchor through the grief and the chaos of this quarter. Every day with her is precious, and I do not take a single one of them for granted.

A Fresh Start and a Retro Room

One of the most significant changes at home this quarter has been my husband leaving his job in January. It was not a decision he took lightly, but it was absolutely the right one. The environment he had been working in was, to put it bluntly, extremely toxic. It was an organisation stuck in the 1970s where confrontational leadership was the norm, where staff were publicly shouted at and humiliated, where communication was poor, decisions were reversed without warning, and professional expertise was routinely excluded from the very discussions it should have informed. The staff turnover there was staggering, and morale was on the floor. It was the kind of workplace that drains the life out of good, capable people like my husband, and watching him having to endure that was painful.

Walking away from such an awful and toxic environment took great courage, but the relief was almost immediate for him, and I was so proud of him for taking a stand and refusing to be bullied and abused in the workplace. And what has followed has been genuinely lovely to witness. With another room upstairs now freed up, my husband has turned it into a second dedicated retro room, a proper haven for our shared love of retro computing and vintage technology. If you have ever visited our Retro Rooms (plural now!) website, www.retrotechhub.co.uk, you will know that retro tech is something we are both passionate about. Having not just one but two rooms in the house to showcase our collection, tinker with old machines, and celebrate the history of computing has brought us both a real sense of joy and purpose into our home at a time when we both needed it.

It is a small thing in the grand scheme of everything else that has happened this quarter, but it matters. Sometimes the best decisions are the ones that remove you from something harmful and give you the space to rediscover what makes you happy. I am glad my husband made that choice, and I am glad we now have a second room in the house that is entirely dedicated to the things that spark curiosity and nostalgia in equal measure.

Work: Relentless, Rewarding, Unsustainable

Work has been, to put it plainly, insanely busy. Since last Christmas I have barely had any time off, and the pace has been unrelenting.

My engagement as Security Awareness Consultant at The Magnum Ice Cream Company (TMICC) has been at full pace throughout this quarter. Building a comprehensive security awareness programme from the ground up for a newly independent global FMCG organisation with approximately 20,000 employees across more than 80 countries, following its demerger from Unilever, is as complex and demanding as it sounds. The deliverables have been extensive: a long-term security awareness strategy, a Security Champions Programme Plan, phishing simulation analysis, smishing and WhatsApp awareness campaigns and a great deal of stakeholder engagement with the CISO and the wider team.

Alongside TMICC and in my spare time, I have been actively judging for multiple prestigious awards programmes, including the SC Awards Europe, the Cyber OSPAs and the Cyber Security Awards. Judging is something I take very seriously, and I produce detailed, scored feedback for every entry I assess. It is an honour to be trusted with the responsibility, but it is also a significant time commitment in my spare time on top of everything else.

I also delivered two talks for this year’s “One Tech World” summit in March, one on the human factors of cyber security and the other on managing imposter syndrome. I also spoke at the 2026 Cyber Marathon event and gave a talk on AI and unconscious bias in cyber security. Both were events I am proud to have contributed to, but preparing for and delivering keynotes whilst managing a full workload and navigating grief has tested me.

The truth is that the pace I’ve had so far this year has been unsustainable. Trying to wade through my grief for Simon and the funerals I have attended, whilst maintaining the standard of work I expect of myself, has been genuinely difficult. Something must change, and it will. From April 2026, I am committing to building in proper rest and recovery. I owe it to myself, to Poppy, and to the quality of the work I care so deeply about.

The AICSA and Neuro Unity: Building for April

Despite the grief and the relentless work schedule, one thread has run through this quarter that has genuinely excited me: the formal launch of the AI and Cyber Security Association (AICSA) and Neuro Unity.

The AI and Cyber Security Association (AICSA) is the world’s first global trade association dedicated to the convergence of artificial intelligence and cyber security and bringing it to life has been a labour of love. This quarter has involved building out the website at www.aisec.org.uk, reconnecting with my Advisory Group, developing partner page copy, creating the members portal at www.aisecunity.org.uk powered by Komz, and aligning the formal launch with the publication of my book, Artificial Intelligence in Cybersecurity, published by Kogan Page on 3 April 2026.

Neuro Unity, which I’m working on with my friend and colleague Moria Robertson, is equally close to my heart. As a neurodivergent person myself, I know what it feels like to navigate a world that was not designed with you in mind. Neuro Unity exists to champion neuroinclusion, provide digital accessibility audits, run peer support groups, and campaign for neurodivergence to receive the same legal protections as race or religion. Launching it formally in April feels like the right moment, and I am proud of what we have built.

Awards: Nominations and Shortlistings

One of the unexpected bright spots of this quarter has been the volume of awards recognition I have received. It has been genuinely humbling, and a welcome reminder that the work I do is seen and valued by others.

Computing Security Excellence Awards 2026

I was shortlisted as a finalist in two categories: the Cyber Security Veteran Award and Cyber Security Advocate/Educator of the Year. The ceremony took place on 26 March 2026 at One Moorgate Place in London, marking the tenth edition of the awards. While I wasn’t expecting to win either category (spoiler alert – I didn’t win), to be recognised alongside so many brilliant professionals in our industry was a genuine honour

The Women’s Awards 2026 (West Midlands)

I found out I have been nominated in three categories: Outstanding Female Disability Awareness Champion, in recognition of my work founding Neuro Unity and my advocacy for neurodivergent people and those with invisible disabilities; Outstanding Female Entrepreneur, for my work as Chief Executive and Founder of Unity Group Solutions and Chief Executive and Founder of the AI and Cyber Security Association and Outstanding Woman in STEM, for my contributions to cyber security and artificial intelligence and my commitment to making technology more inclusive.

National Diversity Awards 2026

I found out I have been nominated in two categories in the 2026 National Diversity Awards – the Positive Role Model for Gender award, recognising my sustained work supporting women in cyber security and technology and my co-founding of International Imposter Syndrome Awareness Day, and the Positive Role Model for Disability award, recognising the work that I do to support neurodivergent people through Neuro Unity. Having won the Positive Role Model for Gender award in 2020, being nominated again in two categories is a tremendous honour.

You can vote for me here until 13 May – https://www.nationaldiversityawards.co.uk/awards-2026/nominations/lisa-ventura-mbe-fciis/?award=481755.

SheCanCode PowerUp Awards

I was nominated for the SheCanCode Power Up Awards 2026 in the Diversity Advocate of the Year category for my advocacy work for neurodivergent people through Neuro Unity.

Looking Ahead

As I write this on 31 March 2026, I am exhausted. I am still grieving for my dear friend Simon. I am carrying losses that have reshaped my understanding of what matters. But I am also energised, purposeful, and deeply excited about what April will bring.

I do have some very exciting things to look forward to. The AI and Cyber Security Association and Neuro Unity both launch formally next month. I will be doing a panel discussion at a Teiss Talk event on 9 April focused on the security of Gen AI tools. I will be going to the National Cyber Security Show on 28 and 29 April and attending The Cyber OSPA’s Awards Ceremony on the night of 29 April, for which I can’t wait.

But most importantly, the white roses will be bought, the candle will be lit on Simon’s birthday in April, and hopefully he will see it and know that he is remembered down here from up there and missed by me beyond words.

The pace of work and life I had in the last three months must change, I know that. My grief for Simon must be given space and not squeezed in around the edges of my packed work calendar. From next month, I am making that commitment to myself: proper rest, proper recovery, and the grace to acknowledge that I am human, not a machine. And it starts as of Good Friday when I will be taking some much-needed time to myself over the Easter break.

The first three months of 2026 have been challenging, but they have also been a reminder that resilience without rest is just endurance. And endurance, on its own, is not enough.

Here is to the next quarter of 2026. Here is to slowing down, looking up, and letting the light back in.