Continuing growth trajectory while maintaining stability, security, and compliance.
A multi-state senior living provider found itself at a crossroads: its expansion through acquisitions supported its growth but introduced new security risks. Each community added to its network introduced more users, more systems, and more sensitive data to protect. As the organization’s technology environment sprawled, insurers, funding partners, and prospective acquisition stakeholders required proof the organization could protect its data and manage risk.
How could the organization approach security in a way that matched its size, pace, and operational realities? It turned to GuideIT to find out.
The Challenge: Insurance, Investors, and Growth
As a multi-community healthcare provider, this senior living network supports residents, staff, and corporate operations across a growing footprint — managing increasing volumes of sensitive data and technology systems.
During acquisition efforts, security pressure mounted:
- The organization’s cyber insurer issued a set of requirements the security program had to meet to maintain coverage.
- Funding partners and M&A stakeholders increasingly evaluated the organization’s cybersecurity maturity as part of financial diligence and deal readiness.
- Multiple communities and tech systems contributed to a growing attack surface.
- The company’s limited internal security leadership meant no clear owner to plan to address all these requirements and gaps.
At the same time, the organization recognized that its current managed services provider (MSP) could not scale with its growth or support future-state technology and security demands.
Leaders initiated a request for proposal (RFP) to find an MSP capable of supporting both current operations and long-term growth. They chose GuideIT not only because it met the organization’s current needs, but because it demonstrated the structure, process, and expertise to support future modernization and rising security expectations over time.
The Solution: Assessing, Guiding, Executing
PHASE 1: Assessing
GuideIT’s first move was not to sell tools.
Instead, the MSP conducted a high-level security assessment to:
- Identify existing controls and protections
- Highlight critical gaps — especially ones relevant to cyber insurance expectations
- Evaluate risk across users, tech stacks, locations, and more
The findings confirmed what both parties expected: the organization lacked strong security controls and infrastructure. GuideIT translated these findings into a scorecard that helped leadership understand their current security posture — and what “good” could look like.
PHASE 2: Alignment and education
Next, the MSP reconciled external security expectations with internal capacity and restraints. GuideIT’s Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) mapped needs according to insurance and partner requirements and clarified which improvements could be phased over time versus addressed immediately.
GuideIT offered explanations for why each requirement mattered to show how security improvements connected back to real business risk. It also helped the organization understand:
- What security they already had
- What security they actually needed (not a one-size-fits-all checklist)
- How different levels of protection align with budget, risk tolerance, and capacity
The CISO designed a roadmap that accounted for all these factors to provide security as a continuum that would evolve alongside the organization’s growth.
PHASE 3: The Strategic Shield
After coming to an understanding about where the organization stood and where it needed to go, its leaders chose GuideIT’s Strategic Shield security offering — the most comprehensive level of protection.
This engagement is designed to deliver:
- Ongoing security leadership and guidance
- Policies and controls aligned to recognized frameworks such as NIST
- Continuous risk assessment and improvement
- Security awareness and training integrated into daily operations
- A scalable foundation to support acquisitions and growth
While implementation is ongoing, the direction is clear. The senior living provider will enjoy a security program that helps it meet current demands while keeping pace with its expanding footprint.
The Outcome: Confidence in the Road Ahead
Although the full security journey is still underway, the organization now operates with confidence that:
- GuideIT will lead it through intensifying security expectations
- The company will meet insurance and financial partner requirements
- Security investments align with growth plans
The healthcare provider has a clear, defined roadmap — one that takes it from inadequate security to a modern posture that protects its data and people. Armed with this plan, GuideIT’s oversight, and the technology in the Strategic Shield, the organization looks forward to stable growth.
Learn more about GuideIT’s security offerings or get in touch with our CISO here to discover how we can help secure your organization.
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