Multinational agricultural company

How we helped

• Cybersecurity
• Digital Innovation

A large multinational chemical and seed producer with substantial operational technology infrastructure wanted to assess their cyber maturity. The chief information officer (CIO) brought in AlixPartners to provide an independent view of the cybersecurity program—and to do it fast, so that the company could swiftly stabilize the cybersecurity program and minimize disruptions.

AlixPartners mobilized a team to work hand-in-hand with IT and Cyber leadership to transform cybersecurity strategy. Chiefly, we:

• performed discovery of current operating model and embedded into the security team
• created a single-panel dashboard of organizational model, tools, functions, and recommendations for tracking against a future-state model
• developed a security maturity acceleration program and created scorecards to manage 15 strategic initiatives
• defined a future state security operating model to understand integration points with the wider business
• coached the CIO/CISO on effective board reporting and developed report read-outs
• deployed managed security service provider (MSSP) RFP execution methodology, which is a program to fully understand the role of MSSP, define a vision, and place the organization on a path to success in provider selection
• performed a recurring maturity assessment to deliver rapid maturity results and aligned security program metrics to security program domains for board reporting and internal metric tracking

Buy-in, transparency, and fast-tracked results were key to our success. We secured around $7.5 million (a 50% increase) in additional funding every year from the board for the following three years to implement new technology, and processes, and embed new personnel.

We also developed a new operating model to modernize the security program, improve collaboration with the wider business, and align with the strategic imperatives. Crucially, our strategies and processes enhanced the board’s insight into security risk measurement and reporting, allowing them to yield a more secure, more future-tracked operation.