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The T-Shaped Analyst

Posted on June 8, 2015April 18, 2017 by RealCyberCrime

Do we hire generalists or specialists? Both have their advantages, but I’ve married both of them to create the “T-Shaped Analyst.”

Above I’ve adapted an image I found to illustrate the “T-shaped analyst.” The T-shaped analyst is someone who is both a generalist (possess a broad set of valuable skills—the top of the T) and an expert (best on the team for a narrow discipline, or at least intensely passionate about a particular topic—the vertical leg of the T). When building a Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT) we look for people who are capable of learning multiple things and being “sound” in some essentials like: Windows commands, Unix commands, networking, and basic security principles. Once these general skills are developed, we allow our analysts to find areas of passion for themselves, and then build themselves a niche where they are the best in that particular skill-set.

Use Cases
  • Need deep dive memory forensics? We have a guy for that.
  • Need a python script developed? We have someone for that.
  • Need some JavaScript deobfuscated? Let’s give it to analyst z, he enjoys doing that stuff.

When you have a team of T-shaped analysts with a common set of general skills and a diverse set of narrow skills, you are setting your team up for success.

Image Credit: I’ve adapted the image from T-Shaped People

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