Cybersecurity threats are escalating at an unprecedented pace. In 2024 alone, organizations faced a 38% year-over-year increase in cyberthreats. Moreover, the compliance failures and mismanaged risk controls contributed over $7 billion in losses worldwide including notable fines for GDPR, NIST 800-171 and CCPA violations.
Yet despite significant investments in security and compliance tools, many organizations still operate without clear visibility, accountability, or coordination.
The problem isn’t awareness. It’s execution.
So, to make things easier for you, we’ll explore the 10 Cyber GRC best practices that can help you implement Cyber GRC platforms with long-term impact. Let’s get into it.
10 Cyber GRC Best Practices for Companies
If you’re looking to understand how Cyber GRC can transform program, here are the best practices that you need to follow:
1. Start with Clear Objectives and Use Cases
The foundation of a successful Cyber GRC implementation begins with defining exactly what your organization needs to achieve.
This includes outlining measurable objectives such as reducing audit preparation time by 50%, identifying high-risk assets in real-time, or mapping controls across ISO 27001 and NIST frameworks.
According to PwC, companies that align GRC initiatives with business objectives are 2.5x more likely to achieve desired outcomes. To implement this:
- Conduct stakeholder interviews to understand compliance pain points.
- Define 3–5 specific use cases for your GRC platform (e.g., third-party risk management, continuous compliance).
- Translate these into KPIs and reporting metrics to track performance post-rollout.
2. Involve Stakeholders Early and Often
One of the most common reasons Cyber GRC solutions stall is lack of internal buy-in. Successful implementations require alignment across risk, security, legal, compliance, and IT teams.
A Forrester study revealed that 33% of failed GRC rollouts stemmed from lack of stakeholder engagement.
To implement this:
- Identify your core stakeholder group from the start.
- Host early workshops to define roles, data needs, and expectations.
- Establish a regular cadence of updates (weekly or bi-weekly) to share progress, gather feedback, and align priorities.
3. Choose a Platform That Aligns with Your Risk Maturity
Not all GRC platforms are created equal. A small company just starting with formalized controls has very different needs than a global enterprise managing 20+ frameworks. Choosing a platform beyond your maturity can lead to underutilization or implementation fatigue.
Gartner recommends aligning Cyber GRC investment with risk maturity, defined by your policies, control structure, and incident response capability.
To implement this:
- Conduct a GRC maturity assessment (many are available free online or via partners).
- Shortlist vendors that serve your current stage (e.g., foundational, scalable, or advanced).
- Ensure the platform allows you to evolve without needing a complete overhaul.
4. Automate Evidence Collection and Control Monitoring
Manual evidence gathering drains resources and increases error rates during audits. A McKinsey report estimates that organizations spend up to 30% of audit preparation time simply tracking documentation.
Cyber GRC platforms with continuous control monitoring reduce this burden by automating evidence collection, validating technical controls, and flagging non-compliance.
To implement this:
- Integrate your GRC tool with identity access, cloud, and endpoint security solutions.
- Set automated triggers for evidence collection tied to audit calendars.
- Use built-in mapping templates to link controls to specific frameworks.
5. Establish a Single Source of Truth
One of the biggest challenges in risk and compliance management is fragmentation. Spreadsheets, siloed reports, and inconsistent data create confusion.
A centralized dashboard within a Cyber GRC platform solves this.
To implement this:
- Consolidate controls, risk registers, and policy tracking into your platform.
- Use role-based access to ensure the right teams see relevant data.
- Set up cross-framework reporting for simplified board communication.
6. Prioritize Risk Quantification
Qualitative risk scores (e.g., high, medium, low) aren’t enough.
Executive leadership needs to see business impact in financial terms. Risk quantification helps convert cyber risk into monetary exposure (e.g., Annualized Loss Expectancy or ALE).
To implement this:
- Work with finance and risk teams to define key impact metrics.
- Leverage your GRC platform’s risk quantification engine to model scenarios.
- Use these insights to guide investments in controls, insurance, and remediation.
7. Integrate with Existing Security and IT Tools
Your Cyber GRC platform should not operate in isolation. Integrating it with existing SIEM, vulnerability management, and asset inventory tools enhances data accuracy and reduces manual entry.
To implement this:
- Map out your current security tool stack.
- Work with your GRC vendor to configure APIs or connectors.
- Test integrations with one system first (e.g., endpoint protection) before scaling across your stack.
8. Build Policy and Control Ownership
Accountability is critical for long-term success. Without assigned control owners, gaps persist and compliance weakens. Define who owns which policies and controls and make them part of the review and update cycle.
According to Swimlane, 68% of organizations take more than 24 hours to solve any vulnerability risks.
To implement this:
- Assign control and policy owners at the department level.
- Automate reminders for reviews and changes.
- Track ownership within your GRC dashboard and link it to performance metrics.
9. Monitor and Improve Continuously
Cyber GRC is not a one-time project; it’s an evolving capability. Compliance requirements shift, risk landscapes change, and business models evolve. Your GRC program must be flexible.
ISACA recommends quarterly GRC performance reviews as part of enterprise risk strategy.
To implement this:
- Set KPIs for control effectiveness, audit closure rates, and risk remediation timelines.
- Create quarterly GRC review meetings with leadership.
- Update your platform’s workflows and dashboards as new frameworks or risks emerge.
10. Train and Enable End-Users
The success of any Cyber GRC rollout depends on how well teams adopt the platform. Without training, tools go unused and controls become checkboxes.
A survey by Financial Technology found that 57% of employees used up their time for risk compliance management, which was up from 35%.
To implement this:
- Conduct onboarding sessions by user role (e.g., risk owners, IT staff, compliance leads).
- Build a resource library with SOPs, videos, and FAQs.
- Offer refresher training quarterly or during key audit cycles.
Ready to Simplify Cyber GRC Implementation?
Cyber GRC can feel like a never-ending maze of frameworks, audits, risk registers, and compliance reports. Most organizations know what needs to be done but struggle with how to implement it effectively. That’s where things fall apart.
But it doesn’t have to be that way.
At FortifyData, we’ve built a Cyber GRC platform specifically designed to reduce friction. Our tools are purpose-built to help you go from reactive to resilient.
No more spreadsheets. No more last-minute scrambles.
Explore FortifyData’s Cyber GRC platform today.
