Become a CyberKainos vCISO Associate
CyberKainos helps organisations close their compliance gaps, meet cyber insurance requirements, and identify supply chain and third-party risks fast. Associate with us and do the senior work you are good at, under an established brand, with all the marketing, selling, admin and the junior overflow lifted off you. Work on a project by project basis and non-exclusive basis, meaning all and any existing clients remain yours.
CyberKainos are proud to be trusted by these leading organisations
Succeed at cybersecurity with CyberKainos
I started CyberKainos to do cybersecurity the way it should be done: practical, accountable, and built to leave the client stronger. I want associates who work to the same standard, who can sit in front of a board and be trusted, and who would rather do excellent senior work than chase the next deal. If this is you, I would like to hear from you.
Nick Prescot, CyberKainos Founder, vCISO, and ISO 27001 Lead Auditor
Our four commitments we make to all our vCISO consultants
Work on senior level engagements
Our expertise is in strategic consultancy and board level advisory on cybersecurity matters. We will match you to work suited to your experience and seniority, but you will not be taking on a junior position or working on basic client fundamentals.
Work on your terms
We work to a NED model. You can work for a single client 2 days a month or for multiple clients for 20. It is completely up to you. We are non-exclusive and work project by project meaning any existing clients or relationships remain your own.
We do the selling
We put in all the work to win the engagement and will own the client relationship. Your role starts on day #1, providing advise, guidance, and mentorship based on your years of cybersecurity experience and deliver exceptional client service.
Get all the support you need
You will work under CyberKainos’ methodology and assurance, using our approved tooling to deliver impartial advice, lead auditor oversight, huge time and cost savings, and outcomes our clients boards can use and act on.
Our engagements typically address key strategic decisions, gaps around risk management, asset prioritisation, and incident response preparation.
vCISO and CISO advisory mandates
We work with clients that need security leadership but cannot justify a full-time hire, so they need a trusted person who can step in seamlessly. You will operate as the CISO on a fractional basis, with the engagement scoped clearly from the outset. Thats objectives, cadence, and decision rights all agreed in advance so you can leave the client with a stronger posture and understanding of their cybersecurity risks.
Compliance frameworks
We help clients achieve compliance against over 20 internationally recognised frameworks and standards such as ISO 27001, NIST CSF, and Cyber Essentials. Our value is in providing our clients with experienced people who has lived inside these frameworks and the prioritised gap analysis that tells leadership where effort and investment will move the needle the fastest.
Board level security briefs
Boards are making consequential decisions about cyber risk with limited context and information obtained from manual processes. You will need to translate risk into language boards can easily understand covering budget limitations, liability exposure, and regulatory obligation. Your role is often to shift security from a cost centre the board resents to a risk function they understand and ultimately own.
SOC metrics and design
A SOC producing the wrong alerts at volume is not a viable security function. We work hard to define what good detection should look like against the specific threat profile of our clients. CyberKainos consultants work closely with the people running SOCs day-to-day in a collaborative, consultative manner that leaves them with insights and actions they can actually use to improve their operations.
IT infrastructure hardening
Some of our clients originally came to us having accumulated years of configuration debt without ever having had it independently reviewed. We work to identify what is exposed, what matters most, and what to fix first and why. You will hand the client a defensible, documented baseline rather than a list of findings where they do not know their relevance or where to start remediating them.
Incident response planning
We make sure our clients know their incident response plans will be effective at the moment they need them the most. Our regular exercises stress test technical competency, communication protocols, escalation paths, and policy cohesiveness.
Is a vCISO life for me?
We keep our roster deliberately small and the bar high. Honesty in both directions saves everyone time.
Associate with CyberKainos if:
- You have a real and demonstrable track record as a CISO, Head of Security, or senior IT leadership level
- You hold recognised credentials such as CISSP, CISM or ISO 27001 Lead Auditor, or equivalent
- You already operate your own practice and want curated, senior work without the business development costs
- You have experience in the finance, retail, pharmaceutical or public sector spaces
- You hold UK security clearance or are eligible for it (preferred)
Look elsewhere if:
- You are early in your cybersecurity career
- You are looking for a salaried, full-time position
- You need a guaranteed volume of work rather than selective, high quality engagements
- You are unwilling to be vetted or declare conflicts
How the CyberKainos Associate Programme works
Send your background, credentials, clearance status, and relevant sector experience to hello@cyberkainos.com
We will arrange an initial call to verify your experience, check references, and ensure a cultural fit both ways.
With your agreement, we hold you details on the CyberKainos associate roster.
When a project that matches your experience, credentials and preferred working practices / location arises we bring you the scope. You can choose to accept or decline on an engagement by engagement basis.