G · Governance
The CSO your business needs, without the full-time hire.
Executive-level security leadership on a defined engagement. Your CSO owns the programme, attends your board meetings and turns cyber risk into decisions your leadership team can act on.
What is a CSO?
Security leadership is a role, not a report.
A Cyber Security Officer (CSO) as a Service is a managed offering that gives your organisation executive-level security leadership and strategic oversight, without the cost of hiring a full-time CSO.
This service delivers end-to-end responsibility for your security programme, aligning your security strategy with business objectives, regulatory requirements and the evolving threat landscape. Acting as a trusted advisor to senior leadership, the managed CSO oversees:
- Risk management
- Policy development
- Incident response readiness
- Compliance frameworks: ISO 27001, NIST CSF, SMB1001
By leveraging CSO-as-a-Service, organisations gain expert guidance, board-level reporting and scalable governance, all tailored to their specific needs and maturity level.
Risk management
Maintains the risk register, chairs risk reviews and ensures treatment plans are owned and progressing.
Policy development
Owns your policy suite, authoring, updating and signing off policies that align to your chosen framework.
Incident response
Leads tabletop exercises, owns the incident response plan and acts as incident commander when events occur.
Compliance frameworks
Manages alignment to SMB1001, ISO 27001, NIST CSF or NZISM and coordinates evidence for certification and audit.
Board reporting
Prepares and presents board-ready security updates in plain language, framed as business decisions.
Vendor governance
Reviews supplier security posture, manages third-party risk and coordinates any remediation required.
Service tiers
Three levels of engagement.
Choose the model that fits your budget and security maturity. Move between tiers as your needs change.
Strategic oversight, monthly leadership meetings, board reporting and security roadmap. Right for businesses taking their first steps toward structured cyber governance.
Ideal for SMB1001 Bronze → Silver
Ongoing programme management, vendor governance, incident readiness and quarterly review cycles. Your CSO is a regular presence in the business.
Ideal for SMB1001 Silver → Gold
Near full-time engagement. Your CSO owns the entire security function: strategy, execution, audit coordination and board relationships.
Ideal for SMB1001 Platinum → Diamond
With three clear tiers (Advisor, Active and Embedded), you choose the model that best fits your needs, budget and security maturity.
Platform-driven advisory
Your CSO works from one operational hub.
Your fractional CSO uses the CyberGrape Platform as their day-to-day operating environment. Every risk, policy, evidence item and board report lives in one place, giving you complete transparency into what your CSO is working on, and a single source of truth your whole team can rely on.
Security Programme
Acme Corp · Q3 2026
On track for Platinum certification
2 modules need attention · next review Oct 8
CSO Activity
Board report drafted and sent
2 days ago
Risk register reviewed with team
5 days ago
Policy suite updated for SMB1001
1 week ago
Incident response drill assessed
2 weeks ago
UPCOMING
Board presentation
Oct 14, 2026
SMB1001 evidence deadline
Oct 28, 2026
Programme dashboard
Your CSO works from a live dashboard showing the status of every GRAPE module in one view. Risk posture, compliance status and programme health at a glance.
Policy and evidence hub
Policies, sign-off workflows and attached evidence live in the platform. When your auditor asks for proof, it is already packaged.
Action Hub: remediation tracking
Every risk treatment, control gap and incident finding becomes a tracked, owned task in Action Hub. Your CSO assigns, monitors and closes remediation work directly from the platform.
Incident response command
When an incident occurs, your CSO operates the platform's incident module: logging events, assigning commanders, recording containment actions and producing the NDB-ready timeline.
Third-party risk monitoring
Vendor risk ratings from Black Kite are reviewed and actioned by your CSO. Supplier remediation conversations, due diligence and risk register updates all managed.
Privacy legislation monitor
AU and NZ privacy law changes are flagged automatically. Your CSO reviews each change, assesses programme impact and initiates policy updates where required.
Board reporting, built in
The platform generates board-ready security reports at any time. Your CSO presents from the platform; there is no separate slide deck to maintain.
Cyber Governance
What your CSO takes ownership of.
Your fractional CSO is not a consultant who delivers a report and disappears. They are an embedded security leader who owns your programme, attends your meetings and makes decisions alongside your leadership team.
A senior security officer embedded in your business for a set number of hours each month — owning your programme, attending your board and turning cyber risk into decisions your leadership team can act on.
Inside Governance
- CSO-as-a-Service: Advisor, Active and Embedded tiers
- Security strategy, roadmap and annual board reporting
- Risk register ownership, incident command and vendor governance
- SMB1001 and ISO 27001 certification programme management
Your CSO drives your SMB1001 certification programme.
A fractional CSO provides the security leadership required for Gold, Platinum and Diamond certification tiers. Your CSO manages your certification programme, owns your evidence pack, coordinates your independent audit and presents progress to your board at every stage.
Learn about SMB1001 certification →Common questions.
Most SMBs don't. A fractional CSO gives you the same strategic security leadership at a fraction of the cost, typically 10–20% of a full-time hire, with none of the HR overhead.
Your CSO works with you on a defined number of hours each month, focused on the highest-value activities: strategy, governance, board reporting and incident oversight. Hours don't roll over. They are allocated to the current month's priorities.
Yes. Board presentation and executive briefings are included in all three engagement tiers. Your CSO will prepare and present security updates in language your board understands.
The platform is your CSO's operational hub. They manage risks, maintain your policy suite, track evidence and generate board reports directly from it. You can see exactly what they are working on at any time.
Your CSO acts as incident commander: coordinating your internal team, communicating with leadership and managing the response process. The platform's incident management module is used to log and track every action taken.
Yes. Tiers are reviewed at each contract renewal. Most clients start at Advisor or Active and move to Embedded as their programme matures or as they approach higher SMB1001 certification tiers.
Explore the full GRAPE platform
Ready to get started?
Book a free consultation and we will walk you through the right engagement tier for your business and security maturity.