TL;DR
Cybersecurity budgets rarely “sell themselves.” When leaders see cyber as a sunk cost, cuts are easy. But the real ROI isn’t about revenue — it’s about resilience, avoided losses, and protecting continuity. This issue gives you a framework to prove cybersecurity’s business value in terms every executive and board understands.
Missed Part 1 of this series? Start here: The Budget Squeeze: Why Cutting Cybersecurity is Cutting Continuity
Why Leaders Should Care
Budgets don’t shrink because cyber isn’t important. They shrink because leaders fail to connect cyber to business outcomes:
Revenue at risk from downtime
Regulatory fines and lawsuits avoided
Brand reputation preserved
Operational efficiency gained through automation
Without this translation, cyber remains “tech spend” instead of a strategic investment in continuity.
Numbers Executives Can’t Ignore
IBM (2024): The average cost of a breach is $4.88M globally.
Ponemon Institute: Companies with mature security automation cut breach costs by up to 40%.
Gartner: By 2026, 70% of boards will demand cybersecurity ROI reporting as part of risk oversight.
These numbers aren’t IT metrics. They are business metrics.
Building the ROI Case for Cybersecurity
Step 1: Translate Risk Into Dollars
Instead of “we reduced vulnerabilities,” say: “We reduced breach probability by 20%, representing $1.2M in avoided costs.”
Step 2: Highlight Efficiency Gains
Show how automation cuts analyst hours, freeing resources to focus on higher-value work.
Step 3: Compare Cost vs. Consequence
Cyber budget = $1.2M.
Downtime from a ransomware incident = $5M in lost revenue + recovery.
Which sounds more convincing in the boardroom?
Step 4: Use Peer Benchmarks
Show what competitors or industry peers are spending. Boards hate being underfunded compared to rivals.
Instant AI Value: Prompts for ROI
Prompt 1: ROI Model
“You are a CISO. Build a cybersecurity ROI model for the board that includes avoided breach costs, compliance savings, and efficiency gains. Present as a business case.”
Prompt 2: Peer Benchmark Report
“You are a cybersecurity analyst. Compare my organization’s cyber budget to industry peers and highlight where we’re under- or over-investing.”
Quick Leadership Actions
Require yourself/your CISO to present ROI in business terms, not technical metrics.
Add “risk avoided” and “efficiency gained” to budget reviews.
Train finance leaders to read cyber budgets like insurance premiums — not cost centers.
Final Word
Cutting cybersecurity doesn’t save money — it buys risk. In the previous issue, we showed why slashing budgets undermines continuity. In this issue, we’ve built the ROI framework to make your case.
The next step? Turn this framework into your 2026 budget playbook — what to cut, what to keep, and where to double down.
Stay resilient,
The Resilience Brief