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Cyber risk is evolving fast, and the cost of inaction is higher than ever. From 24/7 monitoring and data recovery to threat analysis and simulations, Wipfli’s holistic cybersecurity services can help proactively protect your business.
Develop a cybersecurity strategy that keeps pace with the latest cyberthreats.
Evaluate your program against security frameworks and compliance regulations.
Get managed security services for continuous, proactive defense.
Be better prepared to respond to and recover from incidents.
Test your defenses and identify vulnerabilities before attackers.
Fortify defenses and increase resilience
Whether it’s for strategy, testing or fully outsourced cyber services, our national cybersecurity team delivers up-to-date solutions scaled to meet your needs.
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Understand your current risks related to external hacks, unauthorized access, ransomware, business interruption and data or money theft.
See how your cybersecurity matches up against security frameworks, such as NIST and CSF, as well as industry-specific best practices and compliance regulations.
Be proactive about responsible AI use with Wipfli’s support for assessing AI-related security risks. Our services include AI policy development, least privilege access reviews and cloud security reviews across platforms. We also provide AI training and help teams recognize and respond to AI-driven threats such as phishing, ransomware and deepfakes.
When you give our team access to your systems, cloud environments and applications, we help identify where you may be vulnerable to exploitation so that you can keep your data secure and access tightly controlled.
We simulate real-world attacks through tactics such as penetration testing and social engineering to evaluate the strength of your network, systems and web applications. Our services include external testing to identify vulnerabilities from outside threats, internal testing to assess vulnerabilities if a breach occurs and web or mobile app testing to uncover vulnerabilities in code or databases.
Strengthen defenses with a mix of security controls tailored to your risk profile. We help you leverage tools including authentication (MFA), advanced endpoint detection and response (EDR), immutable data backup and mobile device management (MDM) to protect data and support long-term resilience.
We help organizations strengthen their resilience to cyberattacks by developing actionable continuity and incident response programs. Our services include business impact analysis (BIA), recoverability assessments and tailored business impact planning. We also support ongoing plan maintenance.
Increase trust and meet regulatory requirements with a virtual chief information security officer (vCISO). Wipfli’s outsourced CISO services provide strategy, oversight and executive reporting on a fractional basis.
Combine the power of our 24/7 monitoring, detection and response support into a managed security services package that provides high-touch, fast-moving and budget-conscious protection. We also offer DNS filtering, security information and event management (SIEM), cloud security and dark web monitoring to help safeguard your environment and proactively defend against emerging threats.
Navigate regulatory requirements with confidence. We specialize in FFIEC, NAIC, CMMC, HIPAA and PCI, and can tailor our guidance to industries, including healthcare, manufacturing and financial institutions.
Attack simulations validate that your prevention, detection and response security controls are performing as intended and delivering an optimal return on investment. By emulating real-world malware, ransomware and financial threat actor activity, we help you identify security coverage gaps and assess if your internal and third-party security vendors are protecting your organization and delivering real-time value.
Secure your cloud environment by implementing tailored strategies that help protect sensitive data, maintain regulatory compliance and mitigate the risk of cyberthreats. Through our assessments, cloud architecture design and ongoing monitoring, we empower organizations to confidently operate in the cloud with resilience and trust.
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Does your business need a fractional chief AI officer?
Within mid-market firms, there’s been much talk about AI as a potential pathway to increased productivity and more effective use of resources. But while many businesses have begun exploring AI tools, one study found that 95% of companies that implemented generative AI pilots said those pilots failed to generate growth . What’s causing this disconnect? Too often, businesses don’t have a real AI strategy to guide where and how they implement AI, which means that AI is often introduced haphazardly and without the focus needed to drive results . What is a fractional chief AI officer? A fractional chief AI officer (CAIO) is an executive-level AI leader who works with an organization on a part-time, interim or flexible basis to help develop and execute its AI strategy. Unlike a full-time chief AI officer, a fractional CAIO provides strategic leadership and hands-on guidance without the cost and long-term commitment of a permanent executive hire. A fractional CAIO helps organizations move beyond AI experimentation by aligning AI initiatives with business goals, identifying high-value use cases, establishing governance frameworks and guiding implementation. The role is especially valuable for organizations that need experienced AI leadership but lack the budget, internal expertise or immediate need for a full-time executive. Roles and responsibilities of a fractional chief AI officer A fractional chief AI officer serves as both a strategic advisor and an execution partner, helping organizations adopt AI responsibly and effectively. Key responsibilities typically include: Developing an AI strategy and roadmap aligned with business objectives, operational priorities and growth goals. Identifying and prioritizing AI use cases that offer the greatest potential for efficiency, innovation and return on investment. Assessing AI readiness across people, processes, data and technology to identify gaps and opportunities. Establishing AI governance and policies to support responsible, secure and compliant AI adoption. Guiding AI implementation and adoption , including technology selection, pilot programs and scaling successful initiatives. Building AI literacy and organizational capability through leadership coaching, employee education and change management. Measuring performance and business impact to ensure AI investments deliver meaningful outcomes and ongoing value. By combining strategic oversight with practical execution support, a fractional chief AI officer helps organizations accelerate AI adoption, reduce risk and create a clear path from AI experimentation to measurable business results. Who needs a fractional chief AI officer A fractional chief AI officer (CAIO) is ideal for organizations that want to capitalize on AI opportunities but do not yet need, or cannot justify, a full-time executive dedicated to AI strategy and governance. This model gives businesses access to experienced AI leadership at a fraction of the cost of a permanent C-suite hire while providing the strategic guidance needed to move from experimentation to measurable business outcomes. Fractional CAIO services are particularly valuable for mid-market organizations, growing companies and mission-driven organizations that need executive-level expertise to develop an AI roadmap, establish governance, prioritize investments and oversee adoption efforts. They can also benefit organizations facing limited internal AI expertise, unclear ownership of AI initiatives or pressure to implement AI without a clear strategy. Several industries can realize significant value from fractional AI leadership: Construction firms can use this to better allow the back office to organize field data and field employees to understand back office financial data. Manufacturing organizations can leverage AI for production optimization, predictive maintenance, supply chain visibility and operational efficiency improvements. Healthcare providers and healthcare-related organizations can benefit from AI-enabled insights, workflow automation, data management and operational modernization initiatives. Higher education institutions can apply AI to student engagement, administrative efficiency, academic support and institutional decision-making. Nonprofit organizations can use AI to strengthen fundraising, donor engagement, reporting, program delivery and resource allocation while maintaining responsible governance practices. Financial services and other data-intensive organizations can benefit from improved analytics, automation, governance and AI-driven decision support. Organizations typically gain the most value from a fractional CAIO when they are ready to move beyond isolated AI experiments and need strategic leadership to align AI investments with business goals, establish responsible governance and create a scalable foundation for long-term success. Comparison of fractional CAIO vs. a full-time CAIO vs. an AI consultant Fractional CAIO Full-time CAIO AI consultant Best fit Organizations that need executive-level AI leadership but do not need a permanent C-suite role. Large or highly complex organizations with enough AI activity to justify a dedicated executive. Organizations that need help with a specific AI project, assessment or implementation need. Business scale Often ideal for mid-market companies, growing businesses and organizations building AI maturity. Best suited for enterprise-scale companies with broad AI teams, multiple business units and ongoing AI transformation needs. Can support businesses of many sizes, especially when the scope is narrow or project-based. Primary focus Aligns AI strategy, governance, use cases and adoption with business goals. Owns enterprise AI strategy, investment decisions, teams, governance and long-term transformation. Provides specialized expertise around a defined AI challenge, technology or implementation project. Engagement model Part-time, interim or flexible leadership role embedded enough to guide strategy and accountability. Permanent executive position with day-to-day ownership of AI strategy and execution. Limited-term advisory or project support, usually tied to specific deliverables. Key advantage Provides strategic AI leadership with more flexibility and lower cost than a full-time executive. Offers continuous leadership and deep organizational accountability for AI transformation. Brings targeted expertise quickly when the business needs support in a specific area. Potential limitation May not be necessary if the organization has very limited AI activity or needs only one narrow technical project. Can be costly and may exceed the needs of organizations still building their AI foundation. May not provide the ongoing executive ownership needed to drive firmwide AI strategy and adoption. When should your business consider hiring a fractional chief AI officer? A fractional chief AI officer can help when your organization is investing in AI but lacks the strategic leadership to turn that investment into measurable business value . Here are signs you may need fractional AI leadership: Low ROI on AI investments: You’ve invested in AI tools, but they aren’t improving performance because they aren’t connected to a clear, organization-wide strategy. Poor-quality AI insights: Your AI-powered analytics produce inconsistent results, potentially because you lack a unified data strategy and reliable, high-quality data. Unfocused AI initiatives: You’re adopting AI to keep pace with competitors rather than identifying specific business problems it can solve. Low employee adoption: Your team is expected to use AI without the skills, training or guidance needed to integrate it effectively into their work. A fractional chief AI officer can help align your technology, data and workforce around a practical AI strategy without the commitment of hiring a full-time executive. Benefits of hiring a fractional chief AI officer For large firms, hiring a full-time CAIO makes sense, as there will be more than enough work to justify adding the position. But many middle-market businesses will find that hiring a fractional CAIO hits a sweet spot from a cost-benefit perspective. Here’s what a fractional CAIO can bring to the table: 1. Strategic leadership The overarching responsibility of a fractional CAIO is to help your business use AI to drive results. From a strategic leadership perspective, a CAIO can set specific goals and create a roadmap to help your business achieve them. Your CAIO can also drill down into specific AI tools that will actually provide value, helping you avoid costly mistakes, and play a major role in communicating your AI goals and creating buy-in within your team. 2. Problem-solving focus AI works best when it’s used to solve specific problems that your organization needs to overcome. A fractional CAIO can help not just identify those problems, but also prescribe which AI tools make the most sense for solving them. This kind of problem and solution focus can help make your AI efforts much more successful. You’ll also have the insight to concentrate your investments on where they will create the largest impact. 3. Governance and collaboration Your AI strategy needs buy-in and collaboration from across your business. Your CAIO can create governance structures like an AI oversight committee to lead AI implementation and raise awareness among stakeholders. Plus, this sort of process will help an outsourced CAIO, who doesn’t work in your business full-time, collaborate more effectively with team members who do and ensure that you integrate AI into your core workflows. 4. Innovation culture AI won’t do much for your business if your team doesn’t embrace it . To really make the most of AI, you need to foster a culture of innovation where your whole team, not just your C-suite, is encouraged to talk about problems and explore new solutions. Your CAIO can help lead this innovation culture by establishing lines of communication, empowering change champions to experiment with AI at lower levels of your organization and identifying specific KPIs to help your team assess AI’s impact on their work. How a fractional CAIO builds an AI roadmap A fractional CAIO helps turn AI ambition into a practical roadmap your organization can execute. Rather than starting with tools, the roadmap begins with business priorities: Where can AI improve efficiency, strengthen decision-making, reduce risk or create new value? From there, the CAIO helps leaders identify the highest-value use cases, assess data and technology readiness, and sequence initiatives so AI investments support measurable goals. A strong fractional AI roadmap typically includes four connected workstreams: AI strategy: Define the business problems AI should solve, prioritize use cases by value and feasibility and align AI investments with growth, margin, productivity and risk-management goals. AI implementation: Move priority use cases from concept to pilot to scale, including tool selection, vendor evaluation, workflow design, integration planning and performance measurement. AI governance: Establish the policies, oversight structures, data controls and decision rights needed to support secure, ethical and compliant AI adoption. AI adoption: Build employee confidence through training, change management, leadership communication and clear guidance on how AI should be used in day-to-day work. By connecting strategy, implementation, governance and adoption, a fractional CAIO helps organizations avoid scattered experimentation and build a disciplined path for scaling AI responsibly. The costs of not having an organization-wide AI strategy In an era of economic uncertainty, mid-market firms often think twice before investing in new hires, even fractional ones. But consider that the expense of onboarding a chief AI officer may be significantly lower than the cost of not filling the position. If you don’t have a firmwide AI strategy led by someone who understands how to implement AI technology inside a business, you’re almost certainly going to waste money on AI solutions that don’t pan out. When you do find the right AI tools, you’ll struggle to use them effectively. And you’ll likely lack the strong data foundation you need to generate high-quality AI outputs. Without an organization-wide AI strategy, businesses may face costs such as: Wasted spend on disconnected AI tools: Without a clear strategy, firms may invest in platforms or pilots that do not solve meaningful business problems or deliver measurable ROI. Lower return on the tools that do work: Even successful AI solutions can fall short if employees do not have the processes, training or leadership guidance needed to use them effectively. Poor-quality AI outputs: AI depends on reliable data. Without a strong data foundation, organizations risk inconsistent insights, inaccurate recommendations and limited trust in AI-enabled decisions. Costly rework and course correction: It is often harder and more expensive to unwind poorly planned AI initiatives than to build the right strategy, governance and implementation roadmap from the start. Change fatigue across the organization: Pushing new AI tools without a clear purpose or roadmap can frustrate teams, slow adoption and make future transformation efforts harder. Leadership hesitation around AI: When early AI efforts disappoint, leaders may become reluctant to make future investments, even when stronger opportunities emerge. In other words, inaction on AI leadership and strategy is expensive. It’s harder and more costly to undo your mistakes around AI than it is to get it right the first time, and you’ll also begin to struggle with change fatigue or leadership hesitation if you continue to push AI tech on your organization without a clear roadmap for doing so. Read more AI checklist: Scaling AI in the mid-market What misaligned data is really costing you Surfing the AI tsunami: Scaling AI in the mid-market
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AI for Tribes: Managing risk and maximizing impact
Explore AI for tribes, including practical use and automations, future opportunities and strategies to manage risk while protecting tribal data and culture.
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Cybersecurity risk assessment: A guide to identifying and prioritizing cyber risks
The cybersecurity landscape is more volatile than ever. Is your business prepared to meet this challenging moment? To find out — and to help ensure your organization is prepared and resilient — conduct a cybersecurity risk assessment. A risk assessment helps you understand the threats you face and strengthen your defenses . Keep reading to learn more about what a cybersecurity risk assessment is and how to start yours. Plus, we’ve put together a downloadable checklist to guide your risk assessment. What is a cybersecurity risk assessment? A cybersecurity risk assessment is an in-depth review of your business’s cybersecurity program and risk level. The goal of an assessment is to evaluate your threat environment and then align your cybersecurity efforts to better protect against those risks. A risk assessment includes both external threats, like phishing scams or ransomware attacks and internal threats, like employee fraud. An assessment will consider your specific industry. A manufacturing company faces different risks than a financial services firm, which will also differ from a construction company that contracts with the military. During the assessment, you’ll also evaluate your security controls to determine whether those controls can successfully mitigate your threats to an acceptable level or need improvements. Cybersecurity risk assessment vs. cybersecurity audit: What’s the difference? A cybersecurity risk assessment and a cybersecurity audit are two different, but related activities. Here are the key differences: Cybersecurity risk assessment Cybersecurity audit Goal Big-picture evaluation to understand your cybersecurity threats, controls, gaps and overall level of risk. Audit to determine whether your security controls meet the standards of a specific cybersecurity framework like NIST CSF or ISO 27001. Purpose Help you make business decisions about managing risk. Demonstrate compliance with a cybersecurity framework. Focus Identifying threats. Evaluating specific controls Primary audience Your executives, board and IT leadership (although it may be useful to external stakeholders too). Customers, clients, partners, investors and regulators Outcome A clearer awareness of your enterprise-level cybersecurity risks and how to manage them. External stakeholders are satisfied that you meet their standards or requirements for doing business. Why cybersecurity risk assessments matter for business leaders Business leaders increasingly understand that cybersecurity is a financial business risk . However, you probably don’t know your specific vulnerabilities or which threats you should prioritize. A cybersecurity risk assessment will help you better evaluate your risk of threats like: Data breaches Unauthorized network access A ransomware or malware incident Unauthorized funds transfer or fraud Business email compromise Business interruption Risks associated with a mobile workforce or remote work During an assessment, you’ll get a better sense of how these and other cybersecurity threats affect your specific business and if you have the controls and governance needed to defend against them. This is a key step toward making your business not just more secure but also more cyber-resilient . A cybersecurity risk assessment offers additional strategic benefits Beyond understanding your threat environment, risk levels and priorities, completing a cybersecurity risk assessment can also offer additional strategic benefits. These include: Meeting compliance standards: For businesses that operate in regulated industries, an assessment helps you understand whether you meet security compliance requirements. Satisfying insurers: A cyber risk assessment is increasingly a requirement to get cybersecurity insurance, especially if you want to pay reasonable rates. Demonstrating a board-level commitment to security: Boards don’t get a pass on cybersecurity oversight anymore, and are required to take more responsibility for managing organizational cyber risk. Fulfilling due diligence requirements: Cybersecurity due diligence is an essential element of any transaction, with sellers needing to prepare their businesses for scrutiny (and potentially command a higher price ) and buyers wanting to clearly understand the risks they could be taking on. Establish trust: Conducting a cybersecurity risk assessment demonstrates a level of organizational maturity that impresses partners, customers, clients and other external stakeholders. Protect your reputation: Managing your cybersecurity risk is also an investment in protecting your reputation from damaging incidents that could hurt your public image. Better understand AI risks: There’s significant overlap between cyber and AI risks, so a risk assessment can also help you better understand the risks you face as you integrate AI more deeply into your organization. What does a cybersecurity risk assessment include? A cybersecurity risk assessment typically involves working with a third-party cybersecurity advisor to evaluate your risk and cyber readiness levels so you can manage them more effectively. Key elements of an effective assessment include: Choose a cybersecurity risk advisor Most successful cybersecurity risk assessments start by bringing in an external partner to conduct the assessment. This is the gold standard. You shouldn’t even consider trying to do an assessment in-house unless you have a skilled, knowledgeable internal audit team in place (and even then, your internal team may be too close to your business to offer the most useful perspective). Evaluate cybersecurity as part of a broader enterprise risk assessment Cybersecurity risk is intertwined with other enterprise-level risks, like operational risk, AI risk and technology risk. Mature organizations will typically do a cybersecurity risk assessment as part of a broader enterprise risk assessment that evaluates all these areas. If you can, take this approach, because it offers a holistic perspective that’s invaluable to understanding the complete risk picture, which leads to smarter business decisions. Include a business impact analysis A good risk assessment should include a business impact analysis to evaluate how a disruption to each department within your business would affect your business as a whole. This involves identifying the type of information each department is using and how downtime in a particular department would hurt your operations or reputation. Align your approach to industry standards Consider how your industry as a whole manages risk and cybersecurity. Many industries use a particular risk or cybersecurity framework, like NIST or ISO. Align your assessment to whatever your industry standard framework is, while also adapting for areas like AI that may not be incorporated into existing frameworks. How to conduct a cybersecurity risk assessment A cybersecurity risk assessment is a process that includes several stages. While your particular assessment may align with a specific risk framework like NIST 800-30, here are key steps that you should expect to see in most assessments: 1. Define assessment objectives Establish a clear scope for your assessment as well as the specific outcomes you plan to achieve. 2. Inventory systems and data Create an inventory of all systems and data that are vulnerable to cybersecurity-related threats. 3. Identify threats and vulnerabilities Based on your inventory, look for what are called inherent risks or threats that exist prior to implementing mitigating controls. 4. Evaluate likelihood and impact Assess your risks to determine which are the most dangerous or likely to occur, classifying the most urgent as high-likelihood, high-impact. 5. Prioritize and address risks You can’t defend against every risk at all times, so you want to create a risk management roadmap that establishes priorities based on the likelihood and impact analysis you’ve completed, then implement controls to mitigate those risks. 6. Monitor and reassess Risks are constantly changing, so think of risk assessment as an evolving process that involves periodic formal assessments, regular testing and ongoing monitoring. Cybersecurity risk assessment checklist Download Wipfli’s cybersecurity risk assessment checklist to get an actionable one-pager that lays out how to get ready for, conduct and learn from a cybersecurity risk assessment. Get your cybersecurity risk assessment checklist Read more Cybersecurity is now a major financial risk for businesses Nation-state actors represent a growing cybersecurity threat The right cybersecurity framework boosts a business’s value | Wipfli
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