How to Evaluate Your Security Awareness Program’s Effectiveness

Phishing accounted for 36% of attacks in 2024. However, many organizations struggle to measure the impact of their Security Awareness Program, leaving employees vulnerable to these phishing threats. Learn to define clear objectives, track key metrics and leverage dashboards to evaluate your security culture.

2025-02-15

How to Measure and Improve Your Security Awareness Program

To effectively measure the success of your Security Behaviour and Culture Program (SBCP), Security Risk Managers (SRM) leaders must establish clear objectives, evaluate performance against these objectives, and demonstrate value to A global poll by Talker Research of 20,000 employees found that 45% had their personal data compromised in hacking attempts or scams. With 2,200 cyberattacks occurring daily, organizations can’t afford to overlook the effectiveness of their Security Behavior and Culture Program (SBCP). However, many struggle to assess its real impact beyond compliance.

To measure success, security and risk management leaders must use well-defined metrics and a structured evaluation process that aligns with business goals.

This blog explores 5 key steps to evaluate and improve your SBCP:

Define Objectives as Markers for Success
Measure Current Performance and Identify Gaps
Implement Metrics for Value Demonstration
Establish Protection-Level Agreements (PLAs)
Build a Security Behavior and Culture Dashboard

By following these steps, organizations can move beyond surface-level assessments and ensure their security awareness initiatives drive real behavioral change.

1. Define Objectives as Markers for Success

Setting clear objectives is essential for measuring your Security Behavior and Culture Program (SBCP) effectively. These objectives should align with your organization’s risk landscape and business priorities to ensure a meaningful impact.

Risk Reduction – Does the program help decrease human-related cybersecurity incidents?
Compliance – Are employees following security policies and industry standards?
Engagement – How actively do employees participate in training and awareness activities?

Example: A company sets a goal to reduce phishing click rates by 30% within a year. This provides a clear, measurable target to track program success and drive improvements.

2. Measure Current Performance and Identify Gaps

To improve your Security Behavior and Culture Program (SBCP), start by assessing its current effectiveness. Identify strengths and pinpoint areas that need improvement using measurable data.

Consider using the following metrics:

Phishing Simulation Results: Percentage of employees who report simulated phishing emails.
Incident Response Metrics: Time taken for employees to report suspicious activities.
Training Completion Rates: Percentage of employees completing mandatory training.
Repeat Offender Rates: Percentage of employees failing phishing simulations multiple times.

By conducting a gap analysis, you can compare these results against your program’s objectives, helping you prioritize improvements and allocate resources effectively.

3. Implement Metrics for Value Demonstration

To assess the impact of your Security Behavior and Culture Program (SBCP), you need clear, measurable metrics. These help demonstrate improvements in compliance, phishing susceptibility, and behavior change to stakeholders. Key metrics include:

Category	Metric	Question Addressed	Example Illustration
Compliance	Awareness Training Coverage.	What percentage of employees completed training in 12 months?.	90% training coverage achieved, with 80% improvement in knowledge
	Nonmandatory Training Participation	Are employees voluntarily engaging in additional training?	Participation increased to 40%, with a 400% improvement in knowledge.
Phishing Susceptibility Basics	Phishing Simulation Coverage	- Are employees exposed to phishing simulations?	90% simulation coverage measured.
	Phishing Simulation Click Rate	Are employees recognizing phishing attempts?.	Reduced click rate from 25% to 5%.
	Phishing Simulation Reporting Rate	Are employees reporting phishing attempts?	Improved reporting rate from 10% to 40%.
	Repeat Offender Rate	Are repeat phishing offenders decreasing?	Reduced repeat offenders from 12% to 8%.
Behavior Change	Real Incident Reporting Efficiency	Are employees reporting real phishing emails effectively?	Increased reporting from 5% to 20%
	SBCP-Targeted Incident Reduction	Are incidents related to SBCP-targeted behaviors decreasing?	Reduced incidents from 36% to 5%, demonstrating an 85% reduction..

Table 1: Key Metrics for Evaluating SBCP Effectiveness

Align these metrics with business priorities to demonstrate the program’s role in mitigating risks and supporting organizational goals.

4. Establish Protection-Level Agreements (PLAs)

Protection-Level Agreements (PLAs) define clear expectations for security behavior and set measurable performance targets. These agreements help employees meet key security standards, such as phishing reporting rates and training completion percentages.

Key Components of PLAs:

User Segmentation – Customize PLAs based on job roles and risk levels.
Baseline Metrics – Use initial assessments to set realistic performance targets.
Outcome-Driven Metrics – Track improvements over time to ensure compliance and risk reduction.

Example: Employees in high-risk roles must achieve a 90% phishing simulation success rate within six months to meet security expectations.

For a deeper exploration of how PLAs strengthen security awareness training, check out this Keepnet guide on Protection-Level Agreements.

5. Build a Security Behaviour and Culture Dashboard

A centralized dashboard helps track and analyze key metrics, providing real-time insights into your Security Behavior and Culture Program (SBCP). It enables organizations to monitor progress, identify trends, and measure overall program effectiveness.

Key Features of an Effective Dashboard:

Segmented Performance Metrics – Track security awareness performance by user roles, departments, or regions.
Visualized Outcomes – Display improvements in phishing susceptibility, reporting rates, and training completion.
Incident Response Integration – Link security behavior trends to real incident data for deeper analysis.

Example: A dashboard reveals a 40% reduction in repeat phishing simulation failures, demonstrating improved employee awareness and responsiveness.

To see effective examples of Security Behavior and Culture dashboards, discover Keepnet blog on Security Behavior & Culture Program Template.

Strengthening Your Security Culture with Outcome-Driven Metrics

Measuring the effectiveness of your Security Behavior and Culture Program (SBCP) is essential for reducing human-driven cybersecurity risks. By setting clear objectives, tracking key metrics, implementing Protection-Level Agreements (PLAs), and using real-time dashboards, organizations can strengthen their SBCP and build a resilient security culture.

Outcome-driven metrics not only prove the program’s value but also help drive continuous improvement to combat evolving cyber threats.

To take your security awareness program to the next level, explore Keepnet’s Security Awareness Training .