Software fulfills many critical roles in business today — from generating revenue to increasing operational efficiency. Software engineering teams face growing development queues and pressure to deliver. Unfortunately, when some developers lack the skillset to build secure code every project has the potential to increase the company’s risk. This presents managers with a quandary: “How can I deliver the security training that developers’ need without impacting productivity?”
The answer is simple: role-based training. Role-based training is specifically tailored to each employee’s role or job function. Let’s take a look at the top 5 benefits of role-based training for organizations whose developers are responsible for delivering secure code.
Benefit #1: Managers save time and money
Traditional training solutions are not only expensive but also voluminous and require extensive research to determine what material is applicable and to whom. It’s not unusual for managers to invest in training solutions and then randomly assign courses to employees based on a best guess of what’s relevant.
Role-based training saves managers time, and money, by taking the guesswork out of selecting the appropriate training materials. Pre-designed learning tracks for specific development platforms make it easy to select the right training for the right roles.
Benefit #2: Developers save time and money
Role-based training ensures that training time is focused and worthwhile. Instead of learning about the overall business process of building secure applications (as they would via traditional training), developers learn the skills and know-how they need to fulfill their role in the business process. Because it’s language-specific, this type of training makes the most efficient use of your developers’ time. They learn the nuances of security related to the language or platform they’re working on — nothing more and nothing less.
Benefit #3: Improved adoption of training
On any given day developers face a number of competing priorities, so it can be difficult to get developers to commit to training. Role-based training delivers content that is relevant and therefore engaging. Developers quickly recognize the value of the training to their role and are willing to complete it. Higher levels of engagement mean that developers gain confidence in their abilities and better retain the material.
Benefit #4: Increase competitiveness
Each new data breach increases public awareness of privacy and security risks. As awareness continues to grow, customers are likely to expect more from the companies with whom they share their personal data. The same can be said for shareholders and business partners. The accreditation developers earn by completing role-based training can serve as validation of your company’s dedication to data privacy and security.
Benefit #5: Real results
Secure development training does require an initial investment, but this investment will increase productivity by enabling teams to build more secure software and decreasing time and money spent on testing, triage, refactoring, and incident response.
Role-based training in particular achieves a higher return on investment by pairing the right skills with the right personnel, minimizing time spent and maximizing impact.
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About Security Compass
Security Compass, a leading provider of cybersecurity solutions, enables organizations to shift left and build secure applications by design, integrated directly with existing DevSecOps tools and workflows. Its flagship product, SD Elements, allows organizations to balance the need to accelerate software time-to-market while managing risk by automating significant portions of proactive manual processes for security and compliance. SD Elements is the world’s first Balanced Development Automation platform. Security Compass is the trusted solution provider to leading financial and technology organizations, the U.S. Department of Defense, government agencies, and renowned global brands across multiple industries. The company is headquartered in Toronto, with offices in the U.S. and India. For more information, please visit https://www.securitycompass.com/