Should you hire a CISO or bring in outside help?
It depends on how much leadership work security takes in your company, and whether anyone is already doing it. Accel Comply sets out the case for each route and will tell you plainly when the answer is to hire.
The short answer
Accel Comply, founded by Behzad Motaghi, advises: hire a CISO when security needs a leader every day, with authority and a team to manage. Bring in senior outside help when leadership needs experience and direction but not a full-time role. Back your own leader when they have the authority but lack time or a sounding board. Accel Comply covers the last two in Denmark and the Nordics.
When hiring a CISO is the right answer
Hire when security is a full-time job for a leader, now and for the foreseeable future. The signs are that you have security staff or operations to manage every day, that security is part of what you sell, or that the function has to be built up inside the organisation over several years. Then you need someone in the building who manages the team and holds the authority. Outside help can still be useful while you recruit, or to pin down what the role has to deliver, but it shouldn't paper over the need for a permanent leader.
Outside help as an alternative to hiring a CISO
Outside help fits when what you lack is experience at leadership level rather than extra hands in operations, and when the work comes in waves: a budget round, a board meeting, a new supplier, a new market. Leadership gets that help when there's a decision to make, without creating a new post.
When you already have a head of security or IT
Then the real question may be whether your leader has enough time, rather than whether to hire another. If your head of IT has been handed security as well, it's worth working out how much of it is leadership work and how much is operations. Operations can be bought from a provider, and leadership work can be shared with an experienced adviser from outside, as described in Second opinion. When the leadership work outgrows that, it's time to hire.
What does a fractional CISO cost in Denmark? What drives the price
The price depends on four things. Scope: a single decision or an ongoing share of the security work. Cadence: a few times a year, or monthly with the executive team and board. Availability: how quickly you need to reach your named senior lead, including when something urgent comes up. Complexity: how many systems, suppliers, countries and regulations are involved. At Accel Comply the price is set in the proposal once the scope is clear. Weigh it against what a hire involves in salary, recruitment and management time, and against how much work there really is.
Three moments when the question comes up
The board wants a head of security hired, but nobody can say what they'd solve
You get a map of which security decisions are pending and how much leadership work they involve. The board can then choose between a hire and outside help based on the actual work, and if you do hire, candidates know what they're there to solve.
Recruitment drags on, and a supplier choice and a budget are stuck waiting
Accel Comply takes the pending decisions to leadership in the meantime, so they don't wait for the new hire as well. The new leader starts with the decisions and the reasoning in one place instead of piecing them together.
A new owner asks who is accountable for security, and the answer is the CEO
Accel Comply helps leadership work out whether that question calls for a hire now, or whether outside help can cover the work. You get an answer for the new owner that fits your plans and your budget.
What the work on this decision covers, and what it doesn't
What Accel Comply takes on
- An assessment of how much leadership work security takes in your company
- A paper for the executive team and board on hiring, outside help or backing your own leader
- A description of what a new leader needs to deliver, if you decide to hire
- Senior help at leadership level, if that's the route you choose
What Accel Comply does not take on
- Recruitment, headhunting and candidate selection
- Security operations and 24/7 incident response
- Audit, certification and penetration testing
Your board and executive team decide whether to hire, and they stay accountable for security even if Accel Comply is your appointed CISO.
Questions about hiring a CISO
What does a fractional CISO cost?
The cost of a fractional CISO depends on scope, cadence, availability and complexity, so there's no single price. A single bounded decision costs something different from ongoing work with the executive team and board. Accel Comply prices the work a fractional CISO typically covers in a proposal once you've described your situation, so you can compare it with a hire on concrete terms.
Do we need a CISO?
Yes, if security fills a full working week and there are staff and operations to manage. Look at who answers today when the board asks about security, and how much of their week it takes. If it's the CEO and it takes part of the week, outside help may be enough. In between, you can start with outside help and see how much the work grows.
What's the alternative to hiring a CISO?
There are three: senior outside help at leadership level, backing for a head of security or IT you already have, or operations bought from a security provider if what's missing is people and monitoring. They can be combined. Accel Comply takes on the first two, and helps you set requirements for a provider if you need the third.
Does NIS2 require us to have a CISO?
The Danish NIS 2 Act doesn't mention a CISO. It requires the management body to approve the security measures and oversee their implementation (section 7). Accel Comply helps leadership see which security decisions sit with them, whatever title anyone holds. Board responsibility for cybersecurity looks more closely at leadership's role, and NIS2 readiness covers the wider preparation.
Can we start with outside help and hire later?
Yes. You'll see how much work there really is before you write the job advert, and pending decisions get made along the way. When you're ready to hire, Accel Comply can help pin down what the role needs to deliver.
More on the decision
Not sure whether to hire?
Describe who is responsible for security today and what's waiting for a decision. You'll hear which route looks right, even if it's a hire.