
Episode #38
The Evolution of Modern GRC ft. James Huang, Head of GRC @ Gong
In this episode of Security & GRC Decoded , Raj Krishnamurthy sits down with James Huang , Head of GRC at Gong , to explore how Governance, Risk, and Compliance has evolved from a traditional audit function into a strategic engineering discipline. Drawing on experience building GRC programs at Ernst & Young, Cisco, Salesforce, and Gong, James explains why modern GRC leaders must think beyond compliance checklists and focus instead on understanding risk, partnering with engineering, and building scalable security programs. The conversation covers common control frameworks, continuous controls monitoring, third-party risk, AI's impact on GRC, Mythos, automation, and why future GRC professionals need to become business translators rather than framework experts. Key Takeaways: Modern GRC should focus on understanding and reducing risk—not simply satisfying compliance frameworks. A Common Controls Framework only succeeds when engineering and business teams understand the risks behind each control. Continuous controls monitoring should improve security posture, not just make audits easier. AI is transforming GRC by increasing both operational efficiency and third-party risk complexity. Successful GRC leaders act as translators between business, engineering, security, and compliance teams. What You’ll Learn: Why compliance frameworks should always be interpreted through the lens of risk How to build scalable Common Control Frameworks across complex organizations What continuous controls monitoring should actually accomplish How AI is changing vendor risk management and security governance Why the future of GRC belongs to technically-minded business partners This podcast is brought to you by ComplianceCow — the smarter way to manage compliance. Automate evidence collection, eliminate screenshots, and scale your program with confidence. Learn more: https://www.compliancecow.com Watch more episodes: https://www.compliancecow.com/podcast Connect With Our Guests : James Huang | Head of GRC | Gong Connect on LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-k-huang/ Rate, review, and share if you enjoyed the show! Subscribe to Security & GRC Decoded wherever you get your podcasts: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5pigcMwOrYIA6d9OOOsxqr?si=416b82ab5c474683 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/security-grc-decoded/id1795144450

