Aligning Strategies: CISOs, Boards, and Security Programs

Cyberthreats are not just an IT issue – they’re a business issue. As organizations navigate an evolving threat landscape filled with increasingly sophisticated attacks, relationships between chief information security officers (CISOs) and boards of directors have never been more critical. While cybersecurity is a shared responsibility across an organization, the leadership at the top – the CISO and the board – plays a defining role in safeguarding the company’s assets, reputation, and future growth.

A strong CISO-board relationship is fundamental to an organization’s business success and cyber resilience. By fostering open communication, aligning cybersecurity with business objectives, and embracing a shared responsibility for risk management, CISOs and boards can work together to create a more secure and resilient future for their organizations.

Many organizations still struggle to align cybersecurity priorities with business objectives, which leaves security teams underfunded, misunderstood, or disconnected from key strategic discussions. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recognized this gap and implemented new regulations that require boards of publicly traded companies to take a more active role in cybersecurity governance. Despite these efforts, a lingering disconnect remains, often forcing CISOs into a reactive posture rather than a proactive leadership role.

Building a mature security program requires more than just technical solutions. It demands a strong, collaborative relationship between CISOs and boards. This partnership is essential for funding and supporting cybersecurity initiatives and for embedding security into the organization’s long-term strategic vision. When boards understand their cybersecurity risks, priorities, and challenges, they can provide the necessary resources, oversight, and executive support to empower their CISOs. Likewise, CISOs must be equipped to communicate security risks in a way that resonates with business leaders and to position their efforts not as a cost center but as a strategic enabler.

As organizations mature, their approach to cybersecurity governance evolves. A company’s ability to manage cyber risk effectively depends heavily on the relationship between the CISO and the board of directors. This relationship can exist at various levels of maturity, each with distinct challenges and opportunities.

• Level 1: A disconnect between CISOs and boards
  In organizations with an underdeveloped cybersecurity culture, the board often lacks cybersecurity expertise and views security as a technical issue rather than a business imperative. In this environment, CISOs are forced into a reactive posture, continually selling security initiatives to justify funding. Without board-level buy-in, cybersecurity remains a cost center rather than an investment in business resilience. This misalignment results in reactive strategy. Security decisions are made in response to incidents rather than through structured planning, and the organization remains vulnerable to emerging threats. Boards are often unaware of the real risks posed by cyberthreats, and CISOs can struggle to secure the necessary resources and executive support to drive meaningful change.
• Level 2: Functional but limited relationships
  As boards become more aware of cybersecurity risks, they begin to show greater interest in the organization’s security posture. At this stage, CISOs are expected to report on cybersecurity threats and incidents, including discussions on recent industry events and the potential impacts of similar events on the organization. Board discussions focus on immediate issues, such as security incidents, regulatory compliance, and IT-related firefighting, with a limited emphasis on cybersecurity maturity. While trust between CISOs and boards might exist, the security strategy is still not fully integrated into broader business objectives. CISOs provide updates, but discussions are typically narrow and concentrate on targeted risks. Cybersecurity is treated as a necessary function rather than a critical component to support business strategy. Some boards lack the necessary cybersecurity expertise, which puts more onus on the CISO to achieve collaboration. Smaller and midsize organizations, particularly in unregulated industries, might operate at this level out of necessity. However, they understand that cybersecurity is a business risk and not solely the responsibility of the CISO.
• Level 3: Strong, strategic partnerships
  At the highest level of maturity, the CISO and board operate as a unified team, recognizing cybersecurity as a core business function. The board understands its role in overseeing cybersecurity risk and actively engages with the CISO on strategic planning. Rather than focusing solely on past incidents, discussions might center on risk management, preparing the organization for anticipated threats, and integrating cybersecurity into business strategy. In this environment, CISOs often take a forward-looking approach and implement cutting-edge technologies, such as AI-driven security analytics, zero-trust architecture, and automation to scale security efforts, but CISOs are not solely responsible for cybersecurity. Board members accept their role in governance and oversight, ask informed questions, and provide the necessary support for long-term investments. With this level of partnership, the organization can manage the threat environment and mitigate risk as part of a comprehensive business strategy. CISOs can delegate operational tasks to focus on high-level planning, and boards can champion cybersecurity as a competitive advantage.

For boards and CISOs to cooperate effectively, open communication is critical. Productive, reciprocal, and communicative relationships can begin with a series of questions and answers, even for boards operating below the most mature organizations. For example, boards often have similar questions when it comes to establishing, supporting, and improving security programs. Questions can include:

• How is the cybersecurity threat landscape evolving, and how are we adapting?
• What is our current risk exposure, and how does it compare to our stated risk appetite?
• How effectively are we using our cybersecurity budget, and where could we become more efficient?
• Are we investing the right amount, financially speaking, relative to our industry peers and risk profile?
• What is our road map for cybersecurity?
• What additional resources or investments would significantly strengthen our security posture and overall security program?
• What emerging cybersecurity technologies or strategies should we consider adopting?
• Are there specific cybersecurity topics or trends that board members should be educated on?
• How prepared are we to respond to a major cybersecurity incident, and do we have a clear incident response plan?
• What recent cybersecurity incidents have occurred, and what have we learned from them?
• Are we fully compliant with relevant cybersecurity regulations and industry standards?
• What are the potential legal, financial, and reputational consequences of a compliance failure?
• How do we benchmark our cybersecurity maturity against industry best practices?
• What does long-term cybersecurity success look like for our organization, and how do we measure it?

CISOs, too, can ask questions to better understand the needs and risk appetites of their organizations. To foster a reciprocal and productive relationship, CISOs should engage their boards with thoughtful questions that promote strategic alignment and shared accountability. Following are questions that CISOs can ask their boards:

• What are the organization’s top business priorities, and how can cybersecurity support them?
• How does the board define success in cybersecurity? Is it the absence of incidents, regulatory compliance, business enablement, or something else?
• How involved does the board want to be in cybersecurity strategy, and how can we ensure meaningful oversight?
• How can we integrate cybersecurity into broader business decisions, such as mergers, acquisitions, and new market expansion?
• What metrics or reporting would help the board better understand where our security investments are allocated?
• How should we balance cybersecurity investments between compliance-driven requirements and proactive security measures?
• Would the board be open to periodic cybersecurity briefings to improve understanding?
• Are there specific cybersecurity topics or trends we could clarify or present to the board?
• In the event of a major breach, what are the board’s priorities: financial protection, reputational management, regulatory compliance, or something else?
• How can we improve the crisis response collaboration between security leadership and the board?
• What level of board involvement is expected when it comes to compliance with regulatory requirements?
• What role should the board play in communicating cybersecurity compliance efforts to stakeholders, investors, and regulators?
• How much emphasis should we place on emerging security technologies, such as AI-driven threat detection and zero-trust architecture?

Open lines of constructive communication between boards and CISOs can help establish productive relationships and better inform the board of the benefits of a cooperative relationship and strong security program. With these strong relationships, CISOs and boards can develop focused strategies to establish, support, and improve their security programs.

When boards and CISOs communicate effectively, they can collaboratively establish, maintain, and enhance their security programs. Both parties have key responsibilities for helping protect the organization against cyberthreats. They can also address specific areas to make sure they are working together to protect their organizations.

• Roles and responsibilities. CISOs must bridge cybersecurity and business strategy, demonstrating how security risks impact reputation, finances, operations, and competitiveness. Beyond managing security threats, CISOs should position security as a business enabler that supports growth and innovation. Boards, in turn, must recognize cybersecurity as a core business risk, not just an IT issue. The SEC’s rules underscore their responsibility for overseeing cyber risk, ensuring informed discussions and integrating security into strategic decisions like mergers and expansions. Boards should actively educate themselves on cybersecurity and acknowledge that no organization is ever 100% secure.
• Risk management and strategic planning. CISOs should use both quantitative and qualitative metrics to communicate risks in business terms. Boards must understand that cybersecurity extends beyond compliance: It influences customer trust, investor confidence, and overall business stability. Rather than seeking perfection in risk quantification, boards should focus on continual improvement and encourage CISOs to present clear, actionable insights. Together, CISOs and boards must define the organization’s risk appetite, balancing security investments with business objectives. A well-structured cybersecurity strategy should anticipate threats, integrate emerging technologies, and align with the company’s long-term vision.
• Regulatory compliance and accountability. CISOs must ensure security programs align with evolving regulations while proactively updating leadership on risks, incidents, and mitigation plans. Boards, in turn, should provide necessary budget approvals and support compliance initiatives to avoid legal and financial repercussions. Accountability is critical. In the event of a breach, boards should resist the knee-jerk reaction of blaming CISOs, particularly if security programs were underfunded. Instead, they should focus on identifying gaps, supporting remediation efforts, and reinforcing a culture of shared responsibility.
• Continual improvement and resilience. Even with a robust cybersecurity road map, adaptability is essential. Reviews after an incident can help support improvements, and boards can ask constructive questions about lessons learned and strategies for mitigating future threats. By fostering a culture of collaboration and ongoing enhancement, boards and CISOs can build a resilient security program that safeguards the organization’s future.

When boards and CISOs develop and maintain productive communication, the organizations they serve become stronger and more resilient. Given the likelihood of a security incident or breach, strong CISO-board relationships are vital to any organization’s success. By fostering healthy CISO-board relationships, organizations can move from reactive, underfunded security postures to mature, well-integrated security programs that support business growth and resilience.