Penetration testing is not just about finding vulnerabilities — it is also about continuous growth and making your contributions visible. Clear performance objectives help you stay aligned, focused, and demonstrate the value of your work.
SMART objectives are clear, measurable goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
| S | Specific and Stretching – as precise as possible, like “improve phishing simulation success rate by 10%” |
| M | Measurable – measure progress, either quantitative or qualitative |
| A | Achievable and Agreed – objectives should all be realistically achievable |
| R | Relevant – objectives should support the organisation’s overall goals |
| T | Time-Bound – set target dates for when objectives are to be completed, like “by the end of the year” |
Here are some performance objectives for penetration testers with ideas on how to achieve them.
Penetration Testing
Objective: Conduct comprehensive penetration testing to identify security weaknesses and provide actionable remediation guidance.
- Test 15 company web applications
- Perform 6 network penetration tests
- Complete 10 penetration test reports
- Conduct 1 social engineering assessment
Objective: Develop and document the penetration testing process.
Objective: Develop and document the penetration testing methodology.
Objective: Enhance the company’s security awareness program
- Conduct bi-weekly phishing simulation exercises
Objective: Increase penetration testing coverage by 25%.
Objective: Reduce false positive rate in reports by 30%.
Red Teaming
Objective: Execute realistic red team operations to simulate advanced threat scenarios and assess the organization’s detection and response capabilities.
- Perform 3 red team exercises
- Test security controls already in place to uncover weaknesses and document the findings.
- Set up a lab for the team to practice offensive operations.
- Test the perimeter and report the findings.
Purple Teaming
Objective: Collaborate with defenders to improve detection and response through joint purple team scenarios.
- Simulate 5 adversary techniques/sub-techniques from MITRE ATT&CK to assess and validate the effectiveness of security monitoring and alerting systems.
- Identify detection and response gaps clearly, and provide actionable remediation recommendations.
- Document and resolve 10 security incidents.
Vulnerability Management
Objective: Improve the vulnerability management process.
- Implement automated vulnerability scanning tools.
- Develop and document the vulnerability management process.
Secure Coding
Objective: Develop and implement a secure coding review process.
Knowledge Sharing
Objective: Share offensive security knowledge and expertise with the team.
- Write blog articles
- Lunch & learn or workshops
- Give talks at cybersecurity conferences
- Develop and share your tools on GitHub
- Train 100% of the development team on secure coding practices.
- Mentoring
- Documentation
- Ensure knowledge transfer through regular workshops or pair-pentesting sessions.
- Create standardized attack playbooks with tools, steps, and success criteria.
- Participate in tabletop exercises
Continuous Learning
Objective: Pursue ongoing development of offensive security skills.
- Attend courses, workshops, webinars
- Practice on online platforms
- Attend Capture the Flag (CTF) events
- Go to industry events, like cybersecurity conferences
- Research
Objective: Achieve industry-recognized certification in penetration testing, like OSCP or Burp Suite Certified Practitioner.