Why It’s critical to Consider vCISO for Your organization
Cybersecurity is becoming one of the most crucial aspects for any organization despite its line of business. It is a key topic of discussion in every boardroom. The organization has started to realize the importance of investing in information security to secure its confidential information and infrastructure. Challenges faced by most of the businesses today is the lack of cyber security leaders and it is pivotal for organizations to ensure that their team is capable to detect today’s advanced threats or open security risks and treat them immediately. The best way to bridge the gap between the required and available skill set is to hire a cyber security expert.
Hiring a senior security leader could be a big challenge for small and medium businesses due to financial implications. With Virtual CISO (vCISO) service, organizations instead of hiring CISO on their payroll outsourced the roles and responsibilities to an external provider. This vCISO owns the regular CISO responsibilities but delivers them on a subscription-based model. It could be a huge game-changer for small and medium-sized organizations, allowing them to get the same cybersecurity direction and guidance similar to a giant corporation having large investment capabilities.
Here are a few reasons which emphasize the importance of opting for vCISO services
Affordable Services
Recruitment of a full-time senior resource to take care of CISO responsibility may cost an organization good fortune, outsourcing is the cost-effective way to get if not more but similar experience and expertise. Because a vCISO provides services to multiple organizations, their service cost gets divided into multiple parts. This way, an organization can reduce their payroll costs, and will spend 40-50% less than hiring a dedicated in-house CISO.
Exposure To Different Environments
vCISO deals with a variety of clients in a variety of industries, exposing them to various prospects not available to CISOs working in confined verticals. A vCISO’s security experience gathered from each unique client environment supports the security leader’s continued growth and skill, which benefits each client the vCISO leads. Good practices being followed in one client’s environment can be replicated to other environments and some problems can be solved in the most efficient way because of their experience of other engagement.
Connects From The Industry
Very often the top management looks for a comparison with their industry peers. They want to see if they’re above/below industry average and their level of maturity. Working across multiple organizations, a vCISO would give that perspective better than a traditional CISO. Also, they have more industry contacts, which helps them to find support on any technical issue faster without much delay.
External Viewpoint
Traditional CISOs may get so engrossed into their own thoughts and approaches of organizational affairs that they may lose sight of the bigger picture. For this reason, organizations go for an external audit. vCISO, being an external entity, can provide that external validation for any new initiatives, crafting strategy/roadmap, or taking other critical decisions. They don’t become part of office agendas and politics. They deal with allocated work/business very professionally.
Effectiveness Through Core Competencies
A virtual CISO helps in bridging the security gap where it is most needed. vCISO alleviates internal IT and security teams of the burden of cybersecurity strategy and roadmap by focusing on it. This allows both internal resources and cybersecurity experts to focus on their respective primary skills resulting in increased productivity. Their leadership helps the organization groom internal skill sets within the team.
These were some of the major benefits that a business can have with hiring an expert. Now, let’s look at the common traits to look for while engaging a vCISO. Organizations must ensure that your vCISO possesses these characteristics at the least.
- Broad experience in various cybersecurity domains
- Good hold on Governance, Risk & Compliance
- Strong business acumen
- Diplomatic & speak in a language the board understands
- Leadership & talent management
- High-Pressure Problem Solvers
- Approachable
These are some of the important traits or qualities that you should at least look for while shortlisting a vCISO. The best way is to search for top cyber security solution providers and don’t forget to check the testimonials of previous clients as this could be the most decisive step in the cyber security journey of your organization.
If you are looking for one such company offering this service, then we at Cybersec knights could be one of your options. We have a brilliant team of professionals providing the most appropriate solutions to our clients.
No more waiting, go and hire the best for your company.