Application Services, Artificial Intelligence, Cyber, Zero Trust 3 MIN Read
Developing a Next-Generation Cybersecurity Workforce
April 29th, 2022
OUR CAPABILITIES
Learn more about GDIT’s cybersecurity work.
Highly effective cybersecurity teams are those with the right skills mix to deliver on the customer mission. They leverage all of the latest cybersecurity tools, AI/ML, and efficient application development processes, up and down the cyber stack.
That’s table stakes.
Delivering enterprise solutions to drive the mission forward
But truly exceptional cyber teams build comprehensive and effective solutions that are part of an ecosystem of applications and services, all using the same data. These teams and their work reflect the reality that the days of “an app for this” are over. Instead, it’s about delivering integrated solutions that a customer can choose from, with all the services connected on the backend, so that they can stay focused on the mission rather than on “the IT of the mission.”
GDIT cyber teams deliver this commercial-like, ecosystem experience. As one example, we run the largest managed services IT program in the intelligence community, and we’ve done so for more than 20 years. Under the program, GDIT delivers capabilities with components working together to provide a consolidated view from multiple products that are integrated into the security monitoring and ITSM management and control sub-systems.
As a mission solutions partner, we provide integrated solutions that deliver the best return on investment and the lowest total cost of ownership while also meeting mission objectives and requirements. We understand our customers, their environments and their goals and we ensure the systems we engineer can communicate with one another. We remove stovepipes, bring down costs and accelerate mission delivery.
“[W]e provide integrated solutions that deliver the best return on investment and the lowest total cost of ownership while also meeting mission objectives and requirements.”
Bringing the right expertise to the mission
To do this, GDIT has invested millions of dollars aimed at building a workforce that is ready to both develop and use adaptable, effective solutions that advance customer missions. We’ve developed a comprehensive internal training program as well as a talent pipeline partnership with select colleges and universities. Through these relationships, we can identify talented sophomores and juniors and prepare them for careers with GDIT. We ensure they have the prerequisite knowledge to work on programs and guide their final years of study.
We’ve also developed a training model that allows our people to rotate off of programs and into training programs periodically. Going a step further, we also allocate a portion of team members’ time on a program toward training so that they have the opportunity to stay sharp and, ultimately, deliver better service to customers.
To date, 3,215 cyber team members have completed 9,573 hours of training on topics like algorithmic programming to facilitate discovery and automated responses (with human oversight and approvals), and more. These trainings, facilitated by our Cybersecurity Center of Excellence, contribute to a culture where people are encouraged to become continual learners.
This industry changes so quickly. A mere 18 months is a generation. And in cybersecurity in particular, adversaries are adapting their approaches all the time. We bring in new products and capabilities and are rapidly developing and deploying new ones. This all requires a workforce that is ready and able to use and support these tools.
Our training and recruitment partnerships allow us to continually evolve our tech culture and our people, building a next-generation cybersecurity workforce that matches the ever-evolving cybersecurity landscape that we help our customers navigate.
By Henry J. Powell, IX
Chief Technology Officer, Vice President & Distinguished Technologist - Intelligence and Homeland Security Division
Chief Technology Officer, Vice President & Distinguished Technologist - Intelligence and Homeland Security Division
