{"id":56610,"date":"2021-11-22T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-11-22T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jumpcloud.com\/?p=56610"},"modified":"2024-11-14T18:15:25","modified_gmt":"2024-11-14T23:15:25","slug":"how-to-sell-ceo-zero-trust-security","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jumpcloud.com\/blog\/how-to-sell-ceo-zero-trust-security","title":{"rendered":"How to Sell Your CEO on Zero Trust"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Although the average breach results in $149,000 in damages<\/a>, most small-to-medium-sized business leaders severely underestimate that cost. In fact, in the event of a successful attack, 70% of decision-makers think they\u2019d lose less than<\/em> $25,000. Over half believe they\u2019d lose $10,000 \u4e00 nearly 15 times less than the actual average. Unfortunately, this disconnect often causes the C-suite to deprioritize or underfund security measures. But this is a mistake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The shift to remote work has exacerbated the prevalence and severity of cyberattacks. The ransom money companies have been forced to pay increased by 300% in 2020<\/a>, and it\u2019s likely not stopping there. IT experts know that the Zero Trust model<\/a> is the foundation for a modern security infrastructure that limits these attacks; they just need to get their superiors on board. In this piece, we discuss three steps to presenting in a way that sells your CEO on zero trust and safeguards your organization in the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 1: Education<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It only makes sense that people who don\u2019t spend time immersing themselves in security activities won\u2019t be well-versed in security knowledge and terms. In a survey of over 400 IT professionals, 43.8% of decision-makers<\/a> (owners or C-level) revealed they are unfamiliar with zero trust. With that in mind, how can they possibly make a sound decision?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While you need to get them up to speed on zero trust, the C-suite doesn\u2019t have time to read a novel. Instead, use bullet points to get information across quickly. Provide examples of zero trust security at work in other companies at a similar stage and size. If you can\u2019t find any, there are plenty of well-known organizations like Google and Amazon diving headfirst into the zero trust approach. Even President Biden has mandated that federal agencies must adopt zero trust by 2024.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond what other groups are doing, mention that customers will be increasingly interested in your company\u2019s security policies and that zero trust could enhance the selling process. You might also emphasize the fact that zero trust is beneficial whether or not you experience a breach. Not only does it consolidate your security tooling, it also streamlines the employee experience and prepares your company for meeting compliance requirements like CCPA, GDPR, HIPAA, and PCI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 2: Calculate ROI<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s face it, C-level executives want to see hard numbers. They want definitive proof that zero trust is a good investment. Oftentimes, that\u2019s hard to prove, but it\u2019s not impossible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, think about what you need to make zero trust a reality:<\/p>\n\n\n\n