The Black Duck Way: Strong culture drives leadership
Jul 15, 2025 / 3 min read
At Black Duck, we believe that a strong culture is the foundation of leadership. Our mission and values, collectively known as The Black Duck Way, guide us in fostering an environment where collaboration and innovation thrive – leading to the best results for our customers. This blog post aims to help you get to know Black Duck and what we stand for.
Our heritage: Making open source safe and trusted
Our commitment to the success of our customers is deeply rooted in helping them achieve uncompromised trust in software. This trust is not just a promise, it's a reality we attain every day. Black Duck has a rich heritage of being the recognized leader in application security testing (AST). We powered the movement to make open source safe and trusted for adoption at scale and we grew Black Duck into the most comprehensive and respected provider of AST solutions in the world.
Our position: Leading the Gartner Magic Quadrant
Being named a Leader in the Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for seven years is a testament to the effectiveness of our strong culture. Black Duck’s commitment to our values has created an environment where employees feel connected and part of something important. This has enabled us to attract and retain top talent, drive innovation, and deliver high-quality solutions that meet the needs of leading companies across various industries. Today, we are poised to build on our strengths with innovations that will further solidify our commitment to excellence—ensuring that our dedication to our customers remains at the forefront of everything we do.
Our global customer base: Impacting key industries
Black Duck serves a diverse and prominent global customer base, including 49 of the Fortune 100 companies, 6 of the top 10 financial services companies, all of the top 10 technology companies, and 6 of the top 10 healthcare companies.
These achievements are a direct reflection of our culture and the values that drive us. A leading global technology services company commented on how our culture was a differentiator, saying the Black Duck team demonstrated an outstanding level of professionalism and dedication. They highlighted how the team's attention to details, responsiveness, expertise, knowledge, and thorough guidance led to a successful onboarding experience.
By placing the customer at the heart of what we do every day, we make it easy for them to do business with us, communicate clearly and constantly, and celebrate wins as a team. This focus on collaboration and accountability fosters long-term relationships and helps generate increasing value over time. Our culture is a competitive differentiator.
Our culture: Shaping our mission
Black Duck is shaped by a strong commitment to our cultural values and mission. Our mission is centered around helping customers achieve trust in software, and this is reflected in our focus on being customer-first, collaborating as a global team, and delivering excellence in our results. Culture is not just a set of values written on a piece of paper; it's a pattern of behavior that is reinforced over time. It helps employees feel connected to Black Duck and part of something important. We are here to show the world our amazing technology and to protect the biggest companies in the world with leading-edge software security.
Our values: Driving our actions
We actively manage and adapt our culture to ensure that it remains a driving force for our success. Our values are woven into our HR systems and daily practices, from hiring and training to evaluating and promoting. We ensure that our values guide behaviors that lead to excellence and success, help employees feel connected to each other and the company, and foster an environment of respect, collaboration, and accountability.
- We are bold: We challenge convention, take smart risks, and push boundaries to create meaningful impact.
- We put customers first: We listen deeply, act with empathy, and obsess over delivering value that truly matters.
- We scale up: We think big, move fast, and build with purpose—always ready for what’s next.
- We lead with integrity: We do what’s right, not what’s easy—guided by honesty, transparency, and respect.
Join us on our journey
We are relentless in our pursuit of excellence and are dedicated to making a difference in the world. If you share our values and are passionate about technology and security, we invite you to join us on our journey. Together, we can shape the future of technology and create a world where software is trusted and secure.
Thank you for taking the time to learn about The Black Duck Way.
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