Something’s shifted in enterprise assessments of cloud vendors. Where procurement teams used to come with a basic security questionnaire, these days, they arrive with a list of required certifications. And increasingly, that list is topped by one certification.
Cloud vendors are learning the hard way. Companies with sound security practices, strong teams, and proven track records find themselves screened out of the first level discussion solely based on paperwork (or lack thereof). In the last few years, this has become an expectation.
Why Enterprises Want More Than a Vendor’s Word
Here’s the deal: enterprise security teams are under a massive amount of stress. The moment they approve a vendor, that party becomes yet another potential vulnerability within their security architecture. One breach could cost millions and compromise reputations. Thus, they’ve stopped taking vendors at face value.
But this puts companies with reputable security cultures in a difficult position. It’s not enough to have solid security practices. Buyers now want verification from someone who knows what they’re doing, someone who has truly vetted the controls. They want assurance.
Gone are the days where security documentation from internal teams can suffice. Procurement teams see hundreds of these videos, and they all blend together. What helps the good vendors stand out from all the rest is standardized, known certification that speaks the same language.
The Certification That Provides the Framework They Were Missing
The Cloud Security Alliance created something to fill this void. Instead of forcing every vendor to create their own story about security control, csa star certification gives enterprises what they need to understand cloud security controls.
How this differs from other certifications is its creation by those who know cloud environments. Other security frameworks were created pre-cloud, meaning they miss aspects of multi-tenancy, shared infrastructure and distributed data concerns. The Cloud Controls Matrix was developed by people who know how the modern cloud services operate.
Buyers love transparency. Thus, with certification comes public accessibility in a central registry. It’s one thing for a company to pass an audit behind closed doors; it’s another thing for that company to publish its security posture for all to see. That’s trusted transparency that brings confidence that private audited assessments cannot.
What It Means For Cloud Vendors
Eventually most cloud companies find the same tipping point. They’re stable and growing and acquiring small clients and getting their momentum, but as soon as they seek enterprise contracts, everything comes to a halt. The overwhelming feeling of security feels crippling. Procurement drags on for months, if not longer, and what feels like a great deal goes into extended evaluation.
This is when investment makes sense. Companies with prominent cloud security certifications find their procurement processes moving along faster since the questions buyers have already exist in the certification documentation that’s doing most of the work for them in security assessments.
But it’s not only about one deal. It’s about how positioning changes across the board for any potential wins after this point. Sales teams can chase opportunities that were previously sidelined since buyers now seek proper security evaluations. Marketing can speak credibly to enterprise clients as well.
Go-to-market strategies expand.
The Value Of Compliance Beyond Expectations
Some companies engage in security certification because they have to; it’s a compliance task. This misses the point, the means of acquiring cloudy security standards forces operational components that strengthen the business beyond expectation.
The assessment process requires comprehensive documentation of controls which makes things more efficient as well as effective over time. Security incidents get managed better when there’s a clear process all must follow. Staffing onboarding gets improved since new employees rely on documentary assessment rather than tribal knowledge.
These efficiencies turn into reduced costs over time as mistakes happen less frequently.
Then there’s the hypothetical advantage that comes into play when a bid happens between two disparate cloud vendors for an enterprise buyer. If one company boasts comprehensive security certification and another lacks any, the decision is easy, the lower risk option reigns supreme.
The Investment Becomes Worth It
Companies fail to get on board because of cost/effort/energy, it’s not an immediate process, it requires significant buy-in across leadership and technical teams for it to make sense, but it costs way more when these companies lose out on enterprise sales because competitors made the investment.
Companies need to take this seriously as a strategic priority, not just another compliance task. It needs to be incorporated into a logical timeline and factored into business planning efforts so adequate resources can be set aside instead of crammed in between other efforts.
If cloud services grow increasingly more competitive and mature, enterprise buyers have learned what they want, and they’re not lowering their standards anytime soon. Thus, cloud companies looking to compete at this level must meet the expectations now standardized within this space.