A virtual Chief Information Security Officer (vCISO) takes the cybersecurity stress off your plate. You focus on your business and clients. You get the benefits of a CISO for a fraction of the cost.
Contact a vCISO
Essendis clients work with former Big Four auditors and top-tier security engineers. They design, build and defend your whole security program.
A vCISO adds cybersecurity expertise to your leadership team right away. Clients trust your security posture. They see you can deliver advanced solutions. That helps you win more business.
We know what auditors look for and what they don’t care about. So we can negotiate requirements with them. That cuts the cost and effort of compliance. It works for urgent requests and planned work.
Don’t burn your team’s time decoding security guidance or filling out questionnaires. Our vCISO consultants free you to focus on your clients and grow your business.
A vCISO gives you the information security and audit expertise you need. You skip the overhead you don’t need.
You get part-time access to full-time talent. The hours flex as your company grows. You might need a few hours of expert help each week, or a full security team. Either way, Essendis sends people who make an impact right away. And you skip the hassle of hiring in a tight cybersecurity job market.
Hiring executive security leadership shouldn't be a leap of faith. Here's what an Essendis vCISO engagement typically delivers, from the first 30 days through the first year.
Your vCISO starts with a fast risk review. It asks what data you hold and what your contracts and regulators require. It also finds the gaps that could hurt you first.
You get a ranked security roadmap. Every open risk gets a clear owner. Your vCISO also closes quick wins: MFA coverage, access reviews and backup checks.
The roadmap becomes a working security program. Your team gets policies it will actually follow. Your leadership gets a risk register it reviews.
We handle vendor and client security questionnaires. Audit or assessment prep gets underway. Your vCISO also sets up metrics that show real progress, not guesswork.
By the end of year one, security runs as a managed function. That means annual risk assessments, tabletop exercises, and board and executive reporting. It also means audit support across frameworks.
Your security budget is then based on real risk, not fear. And when requirements change, your vCISO adjusts the program early. A new contract or a new regulation never becomes a fire drill.
What strong information security leadership looks like:
Essendis vCISO engagements are built around the hours of executive attention your program actually needs. That is typically a set number of hours per week or month. We scale up for audit season, incident response, or major initiatives, and scale back once the program runs steadily.
Four factors drive vCISO cost. First, the number and complexity of frameworks you must satisfy (CMMC, HIPAA, SOC 2, ISO 27001). Second, the size of your environment and team. Third, how much hands-on remediation engineering you need alongside leadership. Fourth, whether your vCISO serves as the named security officer in front of clients, auditors, and assessors.
For defense contractors, an Essendis vCISO pairs naturally with our CMMC compliance services and CMMC-compliant managed security operations. You get one accountable team, from strategy to assessment evidence.
Explore CMMC compliance servicesSee our CMMC-compliant MSSP servicesBrowse all cybersecurity advisory servicesA full-time CISO is the right call for some organizations. Market salary data puts a full-time hire at roughly $250,000+ per year. That is before benefits, bonus, and the recruiting cost of a fiercely competitive market. If security leadership is a full 40-hour-a-week job at your company, hire one.
For most regulated small and mid-sized businesses, it isn't. An Essendis vCISO delivers the same executive function for a fraction of that cost: strategy, board reporting, audit ownership, and incident leadership. There is also no single point of failure. Behind your named security leader stands a bench of former Big Four auditors and security engineers. If security leadership is a 10-to-20-hour-a-week job at your company, paying for 40 is the expensive way to feel safe.
For a deeper side-by-side breakdown of cost, coverage, and accountability, read our full vCISO vs. full-time CISO comparison.
Not sure which you need? That's a good first conversation to have.
Connect with an Expert
Essendis vCISOs hold the qualifications and certifications the security industry trusts. That gives you and your clients confidence in your security posture.
HIPAA/HITECH
HITRUST
ISO/IEC 27001
SOC 1 (SSAE 16/SSAE 18)
Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS)
SOC 2 (AT-101)
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)
Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS)
Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS)
EU-US Privacy Shield
Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA)
Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP)
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA)
NIST CyberSecurity Framework (CSF)
NIST SP 800-53
CMMC 2.0
Swiss-US Privacy Shield
Essendis vCISOs have helped companies meet these security standards and regulations:
Essendis security advisors work closely with our cloud engineers. Together they build the most secure IT setup for your business. We have worked across many industries and systems. Explore the other services that could take your business further.
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