Cybersecurity
How to Create a Culture of Security—Without Killing Productivity
How to Create a Culture of Security—Without Killing Productivity by Todd Moss
We all want our teams to move fast, get things done, and not spend half their day clicking through endless pop-ups or getting locked out of systems. I’ve never met a founder, ops lead, or nonprofit director who said, “Let’s add more friction to everyone’s day.”
But I’ve also seen what happens when security is treated like an afterthought. A well-meaning employee clicks a phishing link. A project manager shares a sensitive file on the wrong platform. A contractor still has system access three months after their last job.
Nobody wants to be the person who let something slip. But without a culture that actually supports good decisions, even smart people get stuck doing risky things. Not because they don’t care—but because they don’t know better, or the secure way is just too painful.
So let’s clear something up: creating a culture of security isn’t about locking things down or turning your team into junior IT analysts. It’s about building systems and habits that make smart decisions the default—not the exception. And done right, it won’t slow your team down. It’ll help them move better.
What Is a “Culture of Security,” Really?
If “cybersecurity” conjures images of firewalls and scary hackers in hoodies, “culture of security” might sound like something out of a compliance training video. But it’s much more grounded—and a lot more human.
At its core, a culture of security means your team understands the role they play in keeping the company safe—and they act like it.
They don’t need to be security experts. They just need to:
Know the risks that apply to them
Understand what “secure behavior” looks like in their day-to-day
Feel empowered (not punished) to ask questions or report issues
Trust that security is there to support their work—not get in the way
It’s the difference between someone saying, “Oh, I didn’t think that mattered,” versus “Hey, I noticed something weird—should we check on it?”
You know it’s working when security becomes just… normal. Like buckling a seatbelt. Or locking the office before you leave.
Why Culture Beats Policy Every Time
You can write the best IT policy in the world—but if nobody reads it, trusts it, or follows it, it’s just words on a page.
Most security breakdowns don’t happen because of missing tech. They happen because of behavior:
Someone shares a password via email “just this once”
A senior leader skips MFA setup because it’s “too annoying”
An intern uses personal email to transfer client files
You can’t patch that with software alone.
Culture is what drives behavior when no one’s watching. It’s what kicks in when a new tool breaks, or a client sends an urgent-but-sketchy-looking attachment. Without the right culture, people either guess—or freeze.
Looking at them talking about cybersecurity ...I think.
Where Security Culture Fails (And Why It Feels Like a Pain)
Let’s be honest—most teams don’t love talking about security. And a lot of that comes from how it’s traditionally introduced.
Here are the most common ways it backfires:
1. Top-down, No Context
When security policies are rolled out like commandments from IT—without explaining why—they’re usually ignored or worked around. People do what they need to do to get their job done. And if security gets in the way, security loses.
2. Overcomplicated Tools
If the MFA app is buggy, the password manager takes forever to load, or the file-sharing rules require a PhD to follow, people will go rogue. Not because they’re lazy—because they’re human.
3. Punishment over Progress
If someone gets scolded every time they make a mistake, they’ll stop reporting them. And that silence? That’s the real risk.
4. Security Theater
Mandatory yearly training. Pop-ups that nobody reads. Password change rules that make no sense. If your policies feel like box-checking exercises, your team will treat them like chores—not shared responsibilities.
What a Strong Security Culture Looks Like (In Real Life)
Let’s flip the script.
Here’s what we see in teams that are doing it well:
People ask questions before doing risky things, not after
Leaders follow the same rules as everyone else, setting the tone from the top
New hires get onboarded with clear, usable security habits
Reporting a suspicious email is treated like a win, not a failure
The secure option is usually the most convenient one
None of this happens by accident. It’s built—deliberately, and over time.
Okay, So How Do You Actually Build It?
We’ve worked with startups, nonprofits, and SMBs across San Francisco and Denver. Here’s what we guide our clients to do—not overnight, but over time.
1. Start With Leadership Modeling
If your executive team is sharing passwords, skipping security tools, or joking about “not needing all that stuff”—everyone notices.
On the flip side, if they’re the first to adopt changes, use secure channels, and talk openly about risk management, that behavior spreads.
This isn’t just about policy—it’s about posture. Your team mirrors what they see.
2. Make the Secure Way the Easy Way
If security adds clicks, slows people down, or breaks their flow, it’s not going to stick.
Invest in:
Single sign-on (SSO) to reduce password fatigue
Reliable, fast VPNs for remote teams
Auto-patching and centralized updates
Password managers that don’t make people cry
Security isn’t about control—it’s about removing chaos. If people trust the systems, they’ll use them.
3. Train With Relevance, Not Fear
Your team doesn’t need a 2-hour lecture on phishing tactics. They need:
Examples of what real phishing emails look like
3-minute videos they can watch without rolling their eyes
A clear idea of what to do when something feels off
We help our clients move toward micro-learning: short, contextual lessons tied to specific behaviors. It’s not about certification—it’s about awareness.
4. Reward Reporting, Even False Alarms
If someone flags something that turns out to be nothing, thank them.
If they click something bad but report it right away, thank them.
Punishing mistakes only creates silence. But recognizing effort—even when it’s imperfect—creates momentum. That’s where trust starts.
5. Make Security Part of the Rhythm
Security isn’t a “one and done.” We recommend:
Reviewing security posture during quarterly leadership check-ins
Building in retrospectives after incidents or near-misses
Keeping a simple, nonjudgmental reporting path for issues
You don’t need to obsess over it. You just need to see it as part of your operational health—like finance, HR, or sales.
6. Fix the Culture Around “Just This Once”
Most breaches start with “just this once.” Just this one client file on personal email. Just this one exception to MFA.
Create a culture where every exception gets a second look—not because you’re paranoid, but because you’re building habits.
People will make exceptions. Your job is to help them recognize when they are—so it’s a conscious risk, not an invisible one.
Real Talk: What This Looks Like in Our Work
We had a client—a nonprofit with a distributed team—who came to us after a scare. An employee had almost shared login credentials with a convincing scammer. No one got hacked, but it was close.
Instead of panic, we helped them build calm, reasonable systems:
A one-click report button for emails
Clear guidance in onboarding about common scams
Leadership buy-in for sending reminders after major events
Three months later, one of their volunteers did report a real phishing attempt—and shut it down before it reached anyone else.
That’s what success looks like. Quiet confidence. People knowing what to do. And systems that help them act fast.
Final Word: Security Without the Fear
Creating a culture of security isn’t about locking everything down or turning your team into security hawks. It’s about building alignment.
Your tech, your people, and your workflows should all point in the same direction—toward resilience, trust, and clarity.
You don’t have to make it perfect. You just have to start.
And if you’re already someone who thinks like this—who takes care of others, looks ahead, and wants systems that work quietly in the background—you’re closer than you think.
About 24hourtek
24HourTek, Inc is a forward-thinking managed service provider that offers ongoing IT support and strategic guidance to businesses. We meet with our clients at least once a month to review strategy, security posture, and provide guidance on future-proofing your IT.
We’re the team you call when you want your systems to just work—quietly, securely, and with care.
If You’re Thinking About Security Culture…
…you’re probably already doing better than most.
Whether you’re scaling up, protecting a distributed team, or just want a gut-check on what you’ve built—we’re here. We’ll help you think it through, without the scare tactics or tech-speak.