Manufacturing / PE-Backed · 600 Employees
A private equity firm required a portfolio company to stand up a formal security governance program and present quarterly security metrics to the board — on a non-negotiable timeline. The target company had no security leadership, no risk management infrastructure, and no reporting capability.
The Challenge
The PE firm required all portfolio companies to implement a formal security governance program and present quarterly security metrics to the board. The target company had none of the prerequisites: no security leadership, no risk register, no reporting capability. The timeline was fixed.
Leadership needed a program that could be built from the ground up, presented credibly to a sophisticated board, and eventually handed off to an internal hire — all without disrupting ongoing operations.
Our Approach
Antares designed a security governance framework aligned to NIST CSF, giving the organization a structured foundation for identifying, assessing, and communicating risk. A risk register was established from scratch, with risks identified across the business and prioritized by operational and financial impact rather than technical severity alone.
The board reporting package was built with one objective: translate security posture into business risk language. Not control counts. Not vulnerability metrics. Risk exposure, business impact, and the decisions the board needed to make.
Antares presented directly to the board for the first two quarters, establishing the cadence and demonstrating what substantive security governance conversations look like at the executive level. The program was then documented in full and transitioned to a permanent internal security hire.
What the Client Said
"The board went from asking basic questions about whether we had antivirus to having substantive conversations about risk tolerance. That shift happened because of how Antares framed the program."
Outcomes
- NIST CSF-aligned security program implemented in 90 days
- Quarterly board reporting package designed and delivered
- Risk register established with 40+ identified risks prioritized by business impact
- Board transitioned from operational questions to risk-level decision-making within two quarters
- Full program documentation completed for smooth handoff to internal security hire
Key Insight
The mandate was framed as a compliance obligation. In practice it became a forcing function for governance that actually functioned. The company did not need more security technology — it needed a program that could translate technical reality into business decisions and put those decisions in front of the people accountable for them.
This is the gap Antares operates inside. Read more about Our Approach or Schedule a Consultation.
