I have to admit: A product manager told me they were “excited for the security review”. Yes, excited.

First, I thought I misheard something. But then I realized: This wasn’t about the review itself, it was about the way that we do this in our team.

My inspiration was related research by Menges et al. (2022). They surveyed employees from the US and UK and found that cyber security staff and employees often are like a divorced couple. Employees see Security as the blocker. Security sees employees as careless. Both feel unheard.

One potential solution for this? Using humor.

I’m not talking about humor that takes security lightly. This is about humor that lets us understand each perspective. This can release tension, and helps product managers to see security as a support, not as a blocker.

So for the next cyber security meeting, try this: Directly acknowledge the elephant in the room, and release tension with humor. From my experience, colleagues will appreciate it.

Have similar experiences with cross-functional teams in practice? Let’s share them, either below or via other channels. Looking forward to your comments.