People and Processes

Anyone can build a secure coding program, but achieving lasting success is a more complex endeavor. The challenge lies not just in choosing a platform or launching the program, but also in effectively integrating it within an organization that often has diverse teams with competing interests. 

Whether the program’s driving force is AppSec, L&D, DevOps, or Engineering itself, both the people and processes play a part in creating a successful program. 

This is where the 10 Enablers of Success come in. This 12-part blog series will unveil our proven operational blueprint for any organization to build, sustain, and scale a highly effective secure coding program.

Drawing on more than ten years of experience with leading organizations, Secure Code Warrior’s Customer Success team–with key contributor Jim Loughran–has identified these 10 factors as crucial elements to drive adoption, usage, and developer "stickiness" and therefore value over time.

The 10 Enablers of Success

Over the next ten blog posts, we will dive deeply into each of these enablers. Successfully implementing these steps helps a program through critical maturity stages, transforming developers into the "first line of defense" for your organization.

The Enablers include the following:

1. Defined & Measurable Success Criteria: Establish program objectives that are directly linked to business outcomes to increase relevance and trace return on investment.
2. Senior Leadership Sponsorship: Ensure C-Suite/Executive buy-in to help drive a smooth program rollout and secure interdepartmental support.
3. Developer Communications Plan: Maintain an ongoing, exciting, and informative communication stream to keep developers engaged throughout the program.
4. Low Barrier to User Access: Enable quick and easy developer access to relevant platforms, utilizing tools like SSO.
5. Certification Programs: Implement multi-level programs to manage developer progression and provide meaningful achievements through continuous learning.
6. Regular Reporting to Leadership: Provide consistent, relevant updates to share progress, celebrate wins, and showcase impact for continued executive buy-in.
7. Developer Recognition: Share wins, tournament results, and call out successes loudly to celebrate and encourage developer achievement.
8. Branding Your Program: Embed a recognizable brand, name, or acronym (like ASC for Application Security Champion) within the developer community for continued program socialization.
9. Developer Ecosystem Integration: Use APIs and integrations to enrich data and embed secure code training into existing development workflows (e.g., JIRA or LMS integrations).
10. Training Linked  to Career Progression: Partner with HR/People teams to embed training (like certifications) into developer performance goals, reviews, or annual bonuses.

The Path to Program Maturity

Regardless of where you are in the building of your secure coding program, the implementation of these enablers directly correlates with the maturity level of your program. Program Maturity can be measured based on how many enablers are in play. 

Having 1-3 enablers implemented indicates an organization is still defining its secure coding program. It is likely that the program is still in its infancy or even still being rolled out. There are opportunities for maturing as the program grows.

Having 4-6 enablers implemented means a program is in its adopting stage. The program is continually being integrated into the organization’s security culture and is maturing or optimizing “on the way” to full adoption.

Finally, having 7-10 enablers implemented means a program is scaling.
At this stage, security is deeply ingrained into the organization’s culture and training is linked not only to developers’ ecosystem of tools, but also to their sense of accomplishment and career progression.

Whatever stage you are at, follow along as we continue to explore each of the enablers in depth, starting with Enabler 1: Defined & Measurable Success Criteria. 

‍Have additional questions?

Customers can reach out to account team members or to support@securecodewarrior.com. Prospective customers can speak to someone on our sales team by contacting us here.