The Situation
A large financial services provider was at a crossroads. A new CISO had stepped into the role, inheriting a lean team and a challenging fiscal environment. Internal cost-cutting measures put cybersecurity funding at risk, with leadership proposing the removal of $2 million from the security budget. At the same time, the company faced upcoming cybersecurity insurance audits, where higher premiums loomed as a possibility.
To protect both the security team’s budget and the organization’s security posture, they needed a credible, data-driven way to demonstrate the value of their cybersecurity investments and the consequences of reducing them.
The Challenge
With no formalized framework for quantifying and communicating risk, our client had previously relied on ad hoc methods to justify its cybersecurity spend. The CISO needed to change that. The challenge wasn’t just to protect existing funding it was to make the case in terms that resonated with the board, stakeholders, and insurance providers.
What was at stake: the organization’s ability to defend against evolving threats without compromising operational resilience
The Approach
Consortium partnered with the CISO and her team to bring structure and clarity to their cybersecurity risk management. Using Metrics That Matter® (MTM®), they mapped more than 230 controls across products, policies, and procedures – creating the most comprehensive MTM profile of any Consortium client at the time. Working collaboratively, Consortium fine-tuned risk data, maturity levels, and reporting outputs. The CISO’s feedback even helped shape future improvements to the MTM platform. With a clearer picture of their security posture, the team could quantify how specific budget cuts would translate into increased risk– giving the CISO the evidence she needed to advocate effectively.
The Impact
The MTM-backed analysis helped the CISO demonstrate to the board exactly how cutting the cybersecurity budget would increase the company’s exposure to risk. Leadership chose to preserve the full $2 million in funding – and even approved a slight budget increase.
When facing cybersecurity insurance auditors, the CISO used MTM data to present a compelling case for a lower risk profile than initially assessed. The result: a 12–13% reduction in the company’s insurance premium.
What began as a defensive move to protect the security budget evolved into a more strategic, proactive partnership – giving our client better tools to plan, report, and manage risk moving forward.
