Page 158 - Cyber Defense eMagazine April 2023

An ROAI approach considers the effects of a firm's auditing efficiency to mitigate contract amendments
and business disruptions. Cybersecurity auditing firms offering 5% or less for the number of amendments
they can propose to a contract after an agreement is made typically deliver high-quality audits without
any of the added costs or headaches. This is because, as uncovered with ROAI, they have the
confidence, resources and expertise to customize to customer needs within a certain price range.

Ditching the “bolt-on” cybersecurity assessment

General administrative efficiencies go hand in hand with auditing efficiencies for IT teams. No
cybersecurity operation is the same. Thus, auditing programs must possess the flexibility and scalability
to adequately integrate into and meet the needs of each business's unique digital infrastructure.

Low-cost audit firms often lack the agility and resources to adapt to quickly evolving business needs or
meet the varying requirements of different regulatory bodies. These firms often use predetermined
auditing templates that negate customization to provide a tailored experience for a CISO's team. These
templated auditing programs can also be another way for low-cost cybersecurity firms to charge
additional fees for adjustments needed to remediate auditing needs or for implementing processes to
solve for inaccurate or imprecise audit results.

When choosing a cybersecurity auditing partner, CISOs must weigh a firm's agility and ability to provide
fast, efficient and personalized auditing programs to adapt to their business's evolving needs.
Additionally, auditing firms that offer highly flexible and scalable assessment programs can often cover
auditing requirements for any regulatory agency. This enables companies to implement a cohesive
cybersecurity auditing program, partnering with a single assessment firm—reducing the time wasted and
complexities of finding and working with multiple firms.

By assessing cybersecurity needs beyond cost, CISOs will discover the administrative value they can
find in their cybersecurity assessment, leading to less time spent preparing for an audit; less time spent
educating your auditors; less time spent responding to duplicate requests; and less time re-writing
reports. This, in turn, streamlines cybersecurity assessment processes, which reduces workloads,
eliminates business disruptions and leads to unforeseen cost savings later downstream.

For companies that want to uplevel their cybersecurity compliance programs, the cost cannot be the sole
consideration. By making cost a small component of your company's larger security narrative and using
ROAI measurements, CISOs can take a more strategic approach to risk assessment. Choosing a
cybersecurity compliance program based on expertise, flexibility and scale ensures IT teams are not only
getting the efficiencies and agility necessary to keep up with ever-evolving compliance needs but are
also gaining a knowledgeable and trusting auditing partner to help navigate their cybersecurity journey.

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