| Hire a full-time CSO | $250K–$450Ksalary + benefits + tools | 4–9 months to hire, 6+ months to ramp | One person. Their bandwidth. Their network. Their politics. |
| Engage Pinkerton / Kroll / Tier-1 | $30K–$75K assessment+ $20K–$40K/mo retainer≈ $270K–$555K Year 1 | 3–6 months to first deliverable | A binder. A junior consultant doing the actual work. The senior partner who pitched you? Gone after the kickoff call. |
| Fleet Security Group | $0 assessment+ $72K–$144K/yr retainer≈ $72K–$144K Year 1 (lower-mid to mid-market) | 5 business days to written report | A program owner, the playbook, and the AI infrastructure to run it. With our money on the line. |
| Status quo (vendor sprawl) | $200K–$1.5M+/yrguards + alarms + cameras + theft losses + insurance hikes | Negative — your costs compound every month you wait | Vendors who don't talk to each other. A renewal where your broker can't answer "what changed." |