Chapter 41. Apply Agile SDLC Methodology to Your Career
Keirsten Brager
Back in the day, employees could plan to work for one or two companies over their entire careers. The paths were linear and typically well-defined, providing a clear path to achieve performance-based or tenure-related promotions. Those days are over, so you must plan accordingly.
Instead of expecting your career to follow a linear or a sequential path, I propose we start normalizing the application of the Agile methodology to our careers.
Using this framework, careers are planned in two- to four-year sprints with clearly defined goals and iterations along the way. Flexibility is built into the design, and the small sprints include a focus on gaining specific skill sets, networking opportunities, and closing the pay equity gap.
There are plenty of studies and social media conversations to illustrate how staying at one company stunts income growth. If companies will not pay and promote equitably, then employees should be comfortable applying the Agile SDLC methodology to promote themselves regularly.
Secure Your Own Identity and Assets
New people and those interested in the field: one of the best ways to learn about securing endpoints and identities is to start by protecting your own.
Secure your home network.
Disable unnecessary ports and services.
Harden your personal devices: most product companies have online guides.
Review and update privacy settings on accounts and devices.
Use multifactor authentication where possible.
Learning by doing will keep your family safe and prepare you for the certifications and interviews you are going to have. It will also give you topics to publish content about, which could help attract the opportunities you’re trying to secure.
Look for Unconventional Paths
Most people decide to set their targets on employment at the biggest and most popular companies. If you are just starting out, why choose the path of most resistance?
Meanwhile, your local utility companies need people to help them protect essential services: electricity, water, and gas. Governments at the federal, state, and local levels are also hiring.
While these entities may not offer the high salaries or popularity of the largest tech companies, they do important work that we all depend on for our very survival.
Utilities and governments also do business with many of the large tech companies, so those internal relationships could also be leveraged to gain access to the next phase of your career sprint.
Although the “shortage of talent” conversation has become clickbait at this point, there is absolutely a shortage of industrial control systems/operational technology (ICS/OT) security talent. Many utility and manufacturing companies are just starting to establish OT security teams and dedicating the required funding. If you’ve never considered this path before, now is a good time to start looking beyond the limited number of popular security teams on your social media feeds.
Career transition folks: stop underestimating your value.
Your sales experience is transferable to product-specific roles.
Your customer service experience translates well in governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) jobs.
Your administrative skills are great for IT project management.
Your analytical and writing skills are great for policy analyst roles.
Do not make your career more difficult than it must be following the crowd. Chart your own unconventional path and reap the rewards of the seeds you planted.