Security Operations Center (SOC) Staffing

Building and operating a security operations center (SOC) requires massive investment and difficult decisions, and one of the critical gating factors of success is skill availability. While technical experts and software vendors have done great work building solutions, a SOC is nothing without the right people. We interviewed more than 30 MSSP professionals to determine the best traits to look for in a SOC analyst. We considered several factors in our interviews, including experience, training, personality, character, temperament, and hard technical skills. We also considered the personal and professional growth of these individuals, including career development, mentoring, and job satisfaction. Across all of the people and companies we spoke with, clear patterns emerged. This research describes these patterns and serves as a guide for hiring a SOC analyst or engaging a managed security firm and judging the quality of its people.