Executive summary
A plainspoken read on current posture, key findings, and what they mean at the leadership level. Written to be forwarded.
Start here
Know where you actually stand.
A current-state assessment gives your leadership team a defensible read on security posture, where risk is concentrated, and what should happen in the next 30, 60, and 90 days.
Read-only, three to four weeks, roughly four to eight hours of your team's time.
CISSPCISMCCSIO
NIST 800-171·DFARS 252.204-7012·CMMC 2.0| also SOC 2 · HIPAA · ISO 27001
Why start here
Security spending gets expensive without a baseline.
Most companies know they need stronger security leadership, compliance readiness, or better risk visibility. The problem is that they are working from scattered inputs: aging policies, incomplete tool inventories, customer pressure, audit concerns, insurance requirements, and executive assumptions nobody has tested.
The assessment answers five questions in a form leadership can act on.
- What is actually working today?
- Where are the most consequential gaps?
- Which risks should be addressed first, and why?
- What compliance or customer requirements need attention now?
- What happens in the next 30, 60, and 90 days?
Coverage
What we evaluate.
We review the program from a leadership and business-risk perspective — how security supports the organization, where it creates exposure, and what needs to change.
01Security leadership and governance
How security decisions get made, who owns risk, how priorities are set, and how security reaches the executive level.
02Risk and control maturity
Where controls are strong, where they are inconsistent, and where gaps create operational, regulatory, or contractual exposure.
03Compliance and customer requirements
How the current program lines up against the frameworks and customer expectations that actually apply to you.
- NIST 800-171
- DFARS 252.204-7012
- CMMC 2.0
- SOC 2
- HIPAA
- Customer security requirements
04Security operations and readiness
Monitoring, incident readiness, access control, vendor risk, policy management, documentation, and recurring security activity.
05AI and automation readiness
Where sensitive workflows, data exposure, and governance gaps would affect any move toward AI-enabled or automated processes.
Deliverables
What you receive.
Five artifacts built for decisions, not for a binder.
Risk register
A prioritized list of identified risks with business context, likely impact, and a recommended next step against each.
Compliance gap summary
Practical gaps against the frameworks that apply to you, sequenced by what a customer or auditor will ask about first.
Prioritized roadmap
Urgent actions, near-term improvements, and longer-term program development, separated so budget conversations stay honest.
30/60/90-day action plan
A concrete sequence with ownership attached, designed to move you from assessment into execution without a second discovery phase.
Process
How the assessment runs.
Five stages across three to six weeks. Read-only throughout.
01 / DISCOVER
Business and security discovery
A leadership-level discussion covering your operating model, customer expectations, regulatory pressure, technology footprint, and current concerns.
02 / REVIEW
Current-state review
Documentation, policies, systems context, security processes, compliance drivers, and relevant risk indicators.
03 / ANALYZE
Gap and risk analysis
Where the program is strong, where it is exposed, and where leadership lacks visibility or clear ownership.
04 / PLAN
Roadmap development
Findings translated into immediate actions, near-term improvements, and longer-term priorities.
05 / READOUT
Executive readout
Findings presented in a format leadership can use to decide, assign ownership, and move.
Fit
Who this is for.
- Founders and CEOs who need executive-level security guidance without hiring a full-time CISO
- CIOs and technology leaders who want an outside read on risk, priorities, and maturity
- Leadership teams facing customer security reviews, contract requirements, audits, or board questions
- Growing companies that need a usable roadmap rather than another generic report
- Organizations exploring AI or automation that need to understand their security foundation first
- Companies preparing for NIST 800-171, DFARS, or CMMC 2.0 requirements
Scope
What this is not.
Clarity cuts both ways. Here is what we do not do, so you can rule us out quickly if we are the wrong fit.
- Managed IT or helpdesk services
- Tool resale — we hold no vendor partnerships and take no referral fees
- Guaranteed certification outcomes or formal audit substitution
- Penetration testing or offensive security
- A promise that risk can be eliminated
- Unvalidated AI automation claims
Before you call
Questions we get first.
Is this a formal audit?
No. This is a current-state assessment designed to help leadership understand posture, risk, gaps, and next steps. It can support audit or compliance preparation, but it is not a certification audit and does not guarantee an audit outcome.
Do we need a full-time CISO before doing this?
No. Most organizations run this assessment precisely because they do not yet have senior security leadership and need an outside read before deciding what to build.
Can the assessment support compliance planning?
Yes. It identifies practical gaps against frameworks such as NIST 800-171, DFARS 252.204-7012, and CMMC 2.0. It does not guarantee certification.
What if we are not sure what we need?
That is one of the main reasons to start here. The assessment determines whether your next step is fractional CISO support, targeted advisory, compliance planning, or nothing at all for now.
Does Apogee Defense sell or implement vendor products?
No. We hold no vendor partnerships and take no referral fees. The assessment is not a disguised product recommendation.
How much of our team's time does this take?
Roughly four to six hours in total, spread across three to six weeks and scheduled around your calendar. The review is read-only — no agents, no installs, nothing touching production.
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.