Hotman Group · Client Results

Cybersecurity and Cyber GRC Case Studies

The real test of a cybersecurity program is not whether it sounds good on paper. It is whether the organization can reduce risk, satisfy demanding customers and assessors, support the business, operate the program year after year, and know what to improve next.

These examples show Hotman Group working alongside organizations to diagnose complex problems, design the right approach, build and remediate programs, implement GRC technology, prepare for assessments, support business growth and operate Cyber GRC over time.
200+people in a new federal business supported by CMMC Level 2 certification
<3 mo.from very little in place to SOC 2 Type 1, including GRC platform implementation
95%audit evidence reused across frameworks in a GRC transformation
2/3reduction in mapped controls in a complex multi-framework program

Proof Across the Problems Organizations Actually Face

The engagements below are intentionally organized around the client problem and business outcome, not around a list of frameworks or services.

CMMC Level 2 · Complex Scoping · Federal Growth

Building the Cybersecurity Foundation for a New Federal Business

A large global consulting organization needed CMMC Level 2 certification to support a rapidly growing federal business. Its technical environment was complex, including an enclave, on-premises systems and broader enterprise dependencies.

The problem

The organization needed more than a checklist assessment. It needed to determine the correct CUI scope, remediate technical and documentation gaps, make practical architecture decisions and prepare a defensible program for formal assessment. Revenue depended on getting it right.

What Hotman Group did

HG began with gap and scoping work, then supported remediation end to end. The team developed and strengthened documentation including the SSP, worked directly with technical teams on solution design, helped make time-sensitive implementation decisions without compromising program integrity, and supported the organization through certification.

Outcomes

  • Achieved a clean CMMC Level 2 certification.
  • Completed the journey in approximately 12 months despite significant client-side technology delays.
  • Supported a new federal business unit that grew to more than 200 employees.
  • Enabled continued pursuit and delivery of multi-million-dollar federal revenue.
  • Continued post-certification work to mature technical capabilities and adjust scope as the business evolved.
  • Avoided further certification delay that would have continued putting federal revenue at risk.

Capabilities demonstrated: CMMC Level 2, NIST 800-171, CUI scoping, enclave strategy, SSP development, technical remediation, assessment readiness, post-certification sustainment and cybersecurity-enabled business growth.

SOC 2 · AI Company · GRC Technology

Going From Almost No Formal Program to SOC 2 Type 1 in Under Three Months

An AI-focused company needed SOC 2, but had very little formal cybersecurity and compliance infrastructure in place. A generic out-of-the-box control set would not adequately reflect the company's actual technology, risks or operating environment.

The problem

The company needed to move quickly without building a checkbox program that existed only to obtain a report. It needed an appropriately scoped control environment, usable GRC technology and an audit approach that could withstand scrutiny while supporting the business.

What Hotman Group did

HG designed a right-sized control environment around the company's actual risks, built the program into an appropriate GRC platform, developed the necessary governance and documentation, helped remediate gaps, connected the company with an appropriate independent auditor and supported the audit process.

Outcomes

  • Moved from very little formal program infrastructure to SOC 2 Type 1 in under three months.
  • Built and operationalized the program in the GRC platform within that same period.
  • Designed controls for the company's real AI and technology environment rather than adopting a generic control bank.
  • Successfully completed Type 1 and entered the Type 2 operating period.
  • Created a foundation designed to mature after the initial audit milestone.

Capabilities demonstrated: SOC 2, AI-company cybersecurity, control design, GRC platform implementation, remediation, audit readiness and rapid program buildout.

vGRC · Ongoing Operations · Five Frameworks

Operating 400+ Controls Across Five Frameworks Without Adding Internal GRC Headcount

For nearly five years, Hotman Group has worked alongside one organization as an extension of its internal team, helping operate and mature a large multi-framework Cyber GRC program instead of treating compliance as a once-a-year audit project.

The problem

The organization's internal professionals already had full-time responsibilities. Multiple frameworks, recurring audits and assessments, customer expectations and ongoing control monitoring created workload that did not occur evenly throughout the year. Staffing internally for peak periods would have created a different problem during quieter periods.

What Hotman Group did

HG provides ongoing program oversight, monitors control performance, identifies failures and opportunities for improvement, prioritizes remediation, organizes audit and assessment activity, supports control owners and helps expand the program as new requirements emerge.

Outcomes

  • Supports ongoing operation of more than 400 controls.
  • Expanded and integrated the program to five frameworks.
  • Also supports external assessments including HIPAA and NIST CSF.
  • Internal GRC headcount has remained flat while the program expanded.
  • Reduced dependence on last-minute audit preparation and scarce engineering time.
  • Created continuous visibility into failures and improvement opportunities instead of waiting for an auditor to find them.

Capabilities demonstrated: vGRC, managed Cyber GRC, multi-framework operations, control monitoring, audit support, HIPAA, NIST CSF, program expansion, remediation prioritization and long-term sustainment.

Multi-Framework · SOX · SOC 1 · SOC 2

Reducing a Bloated Control Environment by Approximately Two-Thirds

A large publicly traded SaaS company had a fragmented compliance environment and hundreds of controls. Years of audit-driven decisions had created unnecessary complexity without producing a better operating model.

The problem

Control scope and design needed to be corrected across SOX ITGC, SOC 1 and SOC 2 while coordinating decentralized product teams. The organization was doing too much in some places and lacked the right structure in others.

What Hotman Group did

HG reassessed scope, controls and testing; rewrote and rationalized controls; aligned overlapping requirements; worked with control owners and product teams; and established a more risk-based model designed for continuous operation rather than audit-time activity.

Outcomes

  • Reduced mapped controls by approximately two-thirds.
  • Reduced duplicate effort across frameworks.
  • Created a more defensible and appropriately scoped control environment.
  • Improved audit preparation and control consistency across decentralized teams.
  • Shifted the program toward risk and ongoing Cyber GRC maturity rather than simply producing an audit result.

Capabilities demonstrated: control rationalization, multi-framework architecture, SOX ITGC, SOC 1, SOC 2, scoping, control design, operating-model improvement and audit readiness.

GRC Technology · Common Controls · Automation

Consolidating 20+ Tools and Reusing 95% of Audit Evidence Across Frameworks

Trintech needed to modernize disconnected GRC processes and manual workflows while supporting a growing compliance portfolio. Hotman Group worked with Trintech and StandardFusion to align the technology with the operating model and improve adoption.

The problem

Risk management, policy mapping and audit preparation were spread across more than 20 tools. Redundant processes, manual follow-up and disconnected evidence made it increasingly difficult to scale.

What Hotman Group did

HG helped optimize workflows, align the GRC platform to operational goals, support adoption, automate processes and enable cross-framework evidence mapping through a Common Control Framework.

Outcomes

  • Consolidated more than 20 tools into a single GRC platform.
  • Reused 95% of audit evidence across SOC, ISO, CSA and DORA.
  • Handled a 33% increase in audit volume without additional resources.
  • Avoided the need for an additional FTE.
  • Reduced manual follow-up through automated workflows.
  • Improved scalability as compliance requirements grew.
“Hotman Group and StandardFusion helped us move from manual processes to a system that drives itself.”Jerry Koshy, Director of Compliance and Audit, Trintech

Capabilities demonstrated: GRC platform implementation, workflow design, Common Control Frameworks, evidence reuse, automation, multi-framework management and operationalization.

Enterprise Risk · Executive Reporting · GRC Transformation

Turning Multiple Risk Registers With Hundreds of Risks Into a System Leadership Could Use

One organization had at least three separate risk registers, each containing hundreds of risks. Different parts of the business maintained different views, issues inflated the registers, and executives had no coherent way to determine what required action.

The problem

A long list is not the same thing as risk management. Business, product, security and technology risks needed to come together without turning every vulnerability, finding or issue into another top-level enterprise risk.

What Hotman Group did

HG consolidated the risk structure, created hierarchy and categorization, assigned ownership, established issue management within the broader risk model, defined a recurring update cadence and designed executive reporting that elevated the small number of issues leadership could meaningfully act on.

Outcomes

  • Consolidated at least three separate registers containing hundreds of risks each.
  • Created one risk structure spanning business, product, cybersecurity and technology.
  • Established hierarchy so findings and issues could be ingested without artificially inflating enterprise risk counts.
  • Connected vulnerabilities, audit findings and other issues back to underlying risks.
  • Created executive-level dashboarding and prioritization.
  • Established a dynamic process rather than an annual risk-register exercise.

Capabilities demonstrated: enterprise cyber risk, risk-register rationalization, issue management, executive reporting, risk ownership, GRC operating model and technology enablement.

ISO 27001 · DORA · End-to-End Implementation

Implementing ISO 27001 and DORA Together in Approximately Nine Months

An organization without dedicated internal compliance expertise needed to address ISO 27001:2022 and DORA at the same time. The requirements mattered not only for compliance, but for protecting customer relationships and supporting future opportunities.

The problem

The company needed to understand the gaps, determine what actually had to change, build the program, remediate the environment and successfully navigate certification without creating separate silos for ISO and DORA.

What Hotman Group did

HG performed the gap assessment, developed the roadmap, supported remediation, designed the program across both requirements, helped select the independent auditor and supported the organization through the certification process.

Outcomes

  • Completed ISO 27001 and DORA work together in approximately nine months end to end.
  • Successfully completed ISO 27001 certification with no certification issues.
  • Built one coordinated approach rather than two separate compliance programs.
  • Closed critical security and compliance gaps.
  • Created a sustainable foundation for ongoing ISO and DORA requirements.

Capabilities demonstrated: ISO 27001, DORA, gap assessment, roadmap development, remediation, certification readiness, auditor selection and multi-requirement program design.

Customer Due Diligence · Cyber Risk · Revenue Enablement

Helping a Service Provider Navigate Security Demands and Win a Major Banking Contract

A niche service provider faced an intensive pre-contract cybersecurity review from a major banking customer. The customer's expectations extended beyond normal industry practices, and blindly implementing every request would have created unnecessary cost and operational disruption.

The problem

The review raised questions involving logging, network security, privileged accounts, DLP, change management and an audit issue. The client needed to distinguish the customer's stated request from the underlying risk the customer actually needed addressed.

What Hotman Group did

HG supported the on-site review and months of follow-up, translated requirements into risk decisions, identified alternative controls where appropriate, corrected the interpretation of an audit issue and helped the client communicate a clear, defensible security position.

Outcomes

  • Successfully secured the banking contract.
  • Addressed customer risk without unnecessary operational disruption.
  • Improved the organization's ability to respond to future customer due diligence.
  • Strengthened audit readiness and regulatory-response capability.
  • Demonstrated how cybersecurity judgment can support revenue rather than simply add requirements.

Capabilities demonstrated: customer security requirements, cybersecurity risk assessment, due diligence, compensating controls, audit interpretation, customer assurance and revenue enablement.

Sometimes the Right Answer Is Not What the Client Originally Asked to Buy

Independent judgment matters because the requested service, technology or control is not always the solution to the underlying cybersecurity problem. Hotman Group starts by determining what problem actually needs to be solved.

Scope before the CMMC gap assessment

A complex organization was prepared to spend tens of thousands of dollars on a CMMC gap assessment before it understood where CUI existed across seven ERP systems and a major technology transformation. HG recommended scoping first so the eventual assessment would evaluate the right environment.

Design the program before trusting the software

Organizations frequently buy GRC technology expecting the platform to create the program. HG instead establishes the operating model, controls, ownership and workflows the technology needs to support, then configures or selects technology around those requirements.

More controls do not automatically mean more security

When a large SaaS environment had accumulated more than 300 SOC 2 controls, HG challenged the inherited model and rationalized the control environment around actual scope, risk and responsibility rather than perpetuating unnecessary complexity.

More Evidence of How HG Works

110 SPRS

30-day NIST 800-171 preparation

A defense contractor facing a DCMA-led assessment with only 30 days to prepare achieved a perfect 110 SPRS score after focused scoping, evidence, SSP and remediation work.

0 NCs + 51 OFIs

Passing is not the end of the work

In a recent ISO internal audit, HG identified zero nonconformities and 51 opportunities for improvement, giving the client a risk-based improvement roadmap instead of treating a clean result as a reason to stop looking.

Years, not audit cycles

Programs should keep getting better

HG's ongoing work includes control monitoring, internal audits, external assessments, customer reviews, remediation prioritization and maturity improvements that continue long after an initial certification or audit.

The Common Thread: Solve the Cybersecurity Problem, Not Just the Requirement

These engagements span different industries, frameworks, technologies and business pressures. The operating principle is consistent: connect cybersecurity, risk, governance, compliance, technology, audit understanding and implementation so the organization can build something that works in practice and keeps working over time.

Learn more about Hotman Group and the complex cybersecurity and Cyber GRC problems HG solves, or explore how Hotman Group helps organizations assess, build, remediate and operate cybersecurity programs.