Four-week Compliance Readiness Initiative
Control-by-control gap assessment against the relevant SOC 2 Trust Service Criteria, HIPAA Security Rule, CMMC Level 2, PCI DSS 4.0, ISO 27001 Annex A, NERC CIP, or your chosen framework. Each control mapped to your current architecture. Evidence collection map. Remediation prioritized by audit timeline. We identify the gaps; a qualified auditor certifies. SOC 2 Type 1 readiness typically lands at three weeks; HIPAA Security Rule, ISO 27001 Annex A, and CMMC Level 2 push into four.
Who this is for
A defensible gap analysis against the framework you are accountable to.
CCO
You need a defensible pre-audit posture document before engaging an external auditor.
CISO
You need to know which controls actually fail before someone else discovers them.
GC
You need compliance posture documented for board reporting or regulatory disclosure.
CFO
You need audit-readiness scoped before committing to the cost of certification.
Scope
What this initiative delivers, and what it does not.
Scope is fixed at signing. Items tagged TOP are available inside the broader Technology Operating Partner retainer; the initiative alone does not include them. Items tagged with an outside source require a separate specialty engagement.
In scope
- Framework selection confirmation (SOC 2 Trust Service Criteria, HIPAA Security Rule, CMMC Level 2, PCI DSS 4.0, ISO 27001 Annex A, NERC CIP, or your specified framework)
- Control-by-control gap analysis against current architecture
- Policy and procedure documentation review
- Evidence collection map (which artifact proves which control)
- Remediation priority list mapped to audit timeline
- Pre-audit posture report formatted for auditor handoff
Out of scope
- Formal audit, attestation, or certificationQualified assessor
- Policy and procedure draftingTOP
- Staff training for audit interviewsTOP
- Implementing the remediationTOP
- Continuous monitoring or ongoing audit prepTOP
Inputs
What we need from you
Provided at kickoff. Missing inputs delay the initiative; they do not change scope.
- Confirmation of target framework
- Existing policies, procedures, and prior audit reports if any
- Read-only access to systems whose controls are in scope
- Two to four interviews (compliance lead, security lead, IT operations, audit liaison if assigned)
Timeline
Week by week
Daily visibility throughout. Mid-initiative check confirms direction before the deliverable lands.
Week 1
Framework lock and intake
Framework confirmed, scope of controls finalized. Existing documentation reviewed against framework requirements.
Week 2
Control-by-control mapping
Each control assessed against current state. Interviews conducted to fill documentation gaps.
Week 3
Evidence map and prioritization
Specific artifacts identified to prove each in-place control. Gaps ranked by audit timeline and remediation effort. Mid-Initiative check with CCO.
Week 4 (HIPAA, ISO 27001, CMMC Level 2, multi-criteria SOC 2)
Deeper mapping and handoff
Larger framework sets typically push into week 4 for completeness. Final gap report and evidence map delivered with walkthrough.
Output
What you walk away with
- Written gap analysis report mapped control-by-control to your target framework
- Evidence collection map (artifact list per control)
- Remediation priority list ranked by audit timeline
- Pre-audit posture summary formatted for auditor handoff
- Walkthrough call
Honest framing
What this initiative is not
This is a pre-audit gap analysis. It is not a formal audit, attestation, or certification. The output is designed to be handed to a qualified third-party assessor. Engage a licensed CPA firm for SOC 2, a C3PAO for CMMC, a QSA for PCI DSS 4.0, an ISO 27001-accredited certification body for ISO 27001. We do not perform the audit itself.
If you are a portfolio company
How the work calibrates to the PE-backed seat.
Companies inside a PE portfolio operate against constraints generalist enterprise framing does not cover. Each of these shapes how the Initiative is scoped and sequenced.
- Board reporting cycle. Output is sized to land before the next quarterly board read, not the company's annual planning calendar.
- Exit window math. Decisions made 12 to 24 months ahead of exit show up at the bid. Where applicable, findings are tagged for the exit-window timeline they affect.
- Add-on integration tempo. Findings that pertain to acquisition integrations are surfaced separately so the deal team can either price them in or sequence the integration around them.
- Cost discipline by hold position. Recommendations are calibrated to where the portco sits in the hold cycle. A company in early hold has different cost flex than one 12 months from exit.
Related
Initiatives that pair with this one
FAQ
Questions buyers ask first
SOC 2 or ISO 27001 first?
If the buyer base is US SaaS customers, SOC 2 Type II answers the procurement question fastest. If the buyer base is European or enterprise, ISO 27001 is the framework that appears in the contract. The control sets overlap by roughly 70 to 80 percent. The Compliance Readiness Initiative builds one control set that satisfies both, with the evidence file mapped twice, so the second audit costs a fraction of the first.
How much does SOC 2 cost for a mid-market company?
Mid-market SOC 2 Type II audit fees run $20,000 to $100,000 for the audit itself. Total program cost including tooling, internal labor, and remediation lands at $45,000 to $150,000, up to $250,000 for complex environments, over 9 to 18 months end to end. The variable is readiness. Companies that start without a control inventory pay the full readiness assessment, the remediation, the tooling, and the audit. Companies that already run continuous compliance pay mostly for the audit. Preside builds the continuous compliance posture so the second-year cost drops by half.
What is continuous compliance vs a point-in-time audit?
A point-in-time audit tests controls during a specific window, usually three to twelve months for SOC 2 Type II. Continuous compliance tests the same controls automatically every day. The annual audit still happens. The prep time falls from hundreds of hours to tens of hours because the evidence file is already current. Preside operates the program continuously, not in quarterly Initiatives, so the audit becomes a review, not a project.
What changed in PCI DSS 4.0 that we have to comply with now?
As of March 31, 2025, the 51 future-dated requirements that were optional best practices in PCI DSS 4.0 are mandatory. Multi-factor authentication for all access into the cardholder data environment, not just remote. Twelve-character minimum passwords where supported. Documented cryptographic cipher inventory, reviewed at least annually. Targeted risk analyses on a defined cadence. The Compliance Readiness Initiative inventories the gap against the future-dated controls and sequences remediation against the next audit date.
For your role
Where this initiative fits into the wider Preside view
Inside the broader program
When the initiative becomes the standing engagement
This Initiative is a one-time fixed-price engagement. The Technology Operating Partner relationship continues the work on a quarterly cadence at one of four Program tiers: the dashboard gets re-run, the savings get re-baselined, the architecture gets re-mapped, and the board gets the same format every meeting. Most clients begin with an Initiative like this one and decide on the tier after the deliverable lands.
Ready to scope this
From audit anxiety to a defensible pre-audit posture. Three to four weeks.
One email. Brief description of the situation. We respond within one business day with initiative confirmation or a recommendation of a better fit.
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