DevSecOps – the people aspect

When we talk about DevSecOps, the focus is often on processes and tools, but people – the team members involved in implementing and managing DevSecOps – are a crucial part of this equation. In simple terms, the “people aspect” of DevSecOps is all about how individuals within an organization understand, adopt, and execute the principles and practices of DevSecOps.

The following are the main elements of the people aspect of DevSecOps:

• Collaboration: In DevSecOps, development, security, and operations teams need to work together closely. This might be a shift from traditional ways of working, where these groups often worked in silos. Regular communication and collaboration become key.
• Shared responsibility: In the DevSecOps world, everyone shares responsibility for security – it’s not just the job of the security team. Developers, operations personnel, and others all have roles to play in maintaining security.
• Education and training: People need to know about the importance of security and how to incorporate it into their daily work. This involves ongoing training about security threats, safe coding practices, using security tools, and more.
• Culture shift: Adopting DevSecOps often involves a cultural shift within an organization. It requires moving toward a culture that values transparency, shared responsibility, continuous learning, and a proactive approach to security.
• Empowerment: Team members should feel empowered to make decisions related to security, and should feel comfortable reporting potential issues. This requires an environment of trust and openness, where people aren’t blamed for mistakes but are encouraged to learn from them.
• Skills and expertise: As security practices become more integrated into the development process, team members might need to develop new skills and expertise. This might involve learning about new tools, technologies, or methodologies.

The people aspect of DevSecOps is all about creating an environment where everyone in the team understands the importance of security, is capable of contributing to it, and is committed to maintaining it as a collective responsibility. It’s about fostering a culture of collaboration, learning, and shared accountability for security. We will discuss this in more detail in the upcoming chapters.