Cyber Risk Is a Board Topic Now. Here Is How to Brief It
Cyber risk now belongs on the board agenda. How to brief it in plain language, without fear or jargon.
By Claire Beaumont, Partner, finance and capital , 1 min read
Cyber risk now belongs on the board agenda. It can be briefed in plain language, without fear or jargon. Cyber risk now belongs on the board agenda. How to brief it in plain language, without fear or jargon.
Explain risk in business terms
Describe which systems would stop the business, how long you could operate without them and what an incident would cost. Boards understand downtime and money; they rarely need to understand the technology itself.
Report a few measures every quarter
Backup restore tests, patching speed, multi-factor coverage and phishing test results. Trends in these measures tell the board whether risk is going up or down far better than a list of tools.
How we apply this with clients
In client work this usually becomes one priority on the quarterly plan, with a named owner and a measure the leadership team reviews every month. Our technology & ai partners start with a short diagnostic of where the business is today, then agree the smallest change that will make a visible difference within ninety days.
Key takeaways
- Describe cyber risk as downtime and cost.
- Test backup restores, not just backups.
- Report a handful of trend measures each quarter.
Want to apply this in your business? Book a discovery call with a Maia Lafortezza partner.
Claire Beaumont
Claire Beaumont leads the firm's finance and capital practice. A chartered accountant and former chief financial officer of two founder-led companies, she has guided clients through capital raises, refinancings and sale processes. She advises leadership teams on cash forecasting, unit economics, board reporting and exit readiness, and writes the blog's finance coverage from the New York office.
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