Current-State Assessment
A clear baseline before you decide what to fix, fund, or build. Interviews, document review, and control walkthroughs against the framework your customers actually ask about.
Assessment detail →Fractional CISO · Assessment · AdvisoryEnterprise obligations.
Enterprise obligations.
No enterprise headcount.
Apogee Defense gives leadership teams a clear read on security risk — what's exposed, what actually matters, and what to do in what order. No tool sales, no fear pitch, no 200-page report nobody opens.
Assessment coverageSAMPLE — 6 OF 8 DOMAINS
IDENTITY & ACCESSMFA · PRIVILEGE · JOINER-LEAVER
DATA PROTECTIONCLASSIFICATION · ENCRYPTION
THIRD-PARTY RISKVENDOR · SUPPLY CHAIN
DETECTION & RESPONSELOGGING · IR PLAN · TABLETOP
COMPLIANCE POSTURE800-171 · DFARS · CMMC
AI GOVERNANCEDATA FLOW · HUMAN REVIEW
ILLUSTRATIVE — YOUR SCORES COME FROM THE ASSESSMENTREAD-ONLY
CISSPCISMCCSIO
NIST 800-171·DFARS 252.204-7012·CMMC 2.0| also SOC 2 · HIPAA · ISO 27001
The problem
Cybersecurity decisions need a clear starting point.
Security gets harder when leadership has too many signals and no order of priority. Customer questionnaires. Compliance deadlines. Insurance renewals. Tool sprawl. Internal gaps. AI adoption. Board questions.
Most companies don't need more noise. They need a defensible view of what matters, what can wait, and what happens next — before they commit another dollar.
CUSTOMER QUESTIONNAIRESCMMC 2.0 / 800-171INSURANCE RENEWALBOARD & AUDITM&A DILIGENCEAI GOVERNANCE
Services
Choose your starting point.
Most engagements begin with an assessment. Where it goes next depends on what we find and how much leadership capacity you already have.
Fractional CISO
Senior security leadership without a full-time hire. Owns the roadmap, sits in the customer and board conversations, and keeps the program moving between audits.
Coverage model →Cybersecurity Advisory
Focused help on a specific pressure: a compliance gap, a stalled deal, a risk governance build-out, or a security program that needs restructuring.
Advisory scope →Engagement flow
You'll know the shape of this before you commit.
Four steps, fixed scope. You can stop after step three with a complete roadmap and no ongoing obligation.
01 / SCOPE
Scoping call
Thirty minutes on what's driving the timing, who's involved, and whether we're the right fit. No deck.
30 MIN02 / ASSESS
Assessment
Leadership interviews, document and configuration review, and a walkthrough of the controls tied to your obligations.
3–6 WEEKS03 / REPORT
Findings & roadmap
A prioritized, sequenced plan with effort and cost indicators — plus a summary your board or largest customer can read.
1 WEEK04 / LEAD
Leadership, if needed
Fractional CISO or advisory retainer to execute the roadmap. Only if the assessment says you need it.
ONGOINGEmerging capabilities
AI adoption is a security decision.
Leadership teams are being asked about sensitive-data workflows, model governance, and automation risk — usually by a customer, an auditor, or an insurer, and usually with a deadline attached.
Secure AI Systems
Where your data goes, who reviews the output, and what you can defend in an audit. Practical governance for teams already using AI, not a policy template.
Secure AI advisory →RFP & RFI Automation
Proposal and questionnaire workflows with human review on every response. Built to reduce repetitive work, not to bluff auditors.
Workflow detail →Who we work with
Built for the moment security stops being informal.
Small and mid-market organizations carrying enterprise-level obligations without enterprise headcount.
Founders & CEOs
"A customer sent a security questionnaire and the deal is now stalled on my desk."
You need the deal unblocked and a credible answer to what happens next — without hiring a security team you can't yet justify.
CIOs & CTOs
"I already own security on top of everything else, and it's the part with no margin for error."
You need senior peer review and someone to carry the compliance and governance load so you can stay on the product.
COOs & operators
"There's a board meeting, an audit, and an insurance renewal in the same quarter."
You need one coherent picture of risk that holds up in all three rooms, and a roadmap with real sequencing behind it.
Before you call
Questions we get first.
How is this different from hiring a CISO?
A full-time CISO runs well into the mid-six figures fully loaded, and most companies at this stage need the judgment far more than the headcount. A fractional engagement gives you that seniority on the decisions that actually matter. The assessment also tells you honestly whether you need ongoing leadership at all — sometimes the answer is no.
What does a current-state assessment actually involve?
Leadership interviews, review of your existing policies and documentation, and a walkthrough of the controls tied to your specific obligations. Read-only throughout — no agents, no installs, nothing touching production.
Do you resell security tools?
No. We hold no vendor partnerships and take no referral fees. If a tool is the right answer we will say so and tell you what to look for, but the recommendation is never the product being sold.
Is this a formal audit?
No. It is a leadership assessment designed to clarify posture, risk, gaps, and next steps. It can support audit or certification preparation, but it does not replace a formal audit and does not guarantee a certification outcome.
How quickly can we start?
Scoping calls are usually available within a week. Assessment kickoff typically follows within two to three weeks depending on the current engagement calendar.
Get a clearer starting point.
Thirty minutes to see whether an assessment is the right next move. If it isn't, we'll tell you that on the call.