Audit, tax and consulting firm RSM has agreed a strategic partnership with AXELOS Global Best Practice which will see RSM market the RESILIA™ cyber resilience best practice portfolio services from AXELOS to clients across the UK.

The two firms have agreed to join forces in order to meet the needs of organisations struggling to understand how best to mitigate their cyber risks effectively and engage their most effective defence – their people. Following recent cases in which companies have suffered catastrophic reputational and financial impacts of cyber-attacks, many organisations are now looking to adopt a holistic approach to their cyber security defences. This is where the collaboration between RSM and AXELOS’ RESILIA cyber resilience best practice can bring real benefits to clients.

RSM has been delivering cyber assurance services for over 10 years, helping clients to realise and manage their cyber risks. The firm has also recently developed a new approach to quantifying key cyber risk drivers and calculating the value of the risk that organisations face.

AXELOS is a joint venture company co-owned by the UK Government and Capita plc which owns and develops a number of best practice methodologies, including ITIL® and PRINCE2®, used by organisations in more than 150 countries to enable them to work and operate more effectively. RESILIA™ is a portfolio of cyber resilience best practice publications, certified training, all staff awareness learning, leadership engagement and a cyber maturity assessment tool designed to put people at the centre of an organization’s cyber resilience strategy, enabling them to more effectively recognise, respond to and recover from cyber-attacks.

Richard Smith, Partner in charge of Risk Assurance at RSM said:

‘Over the last decade, we have witnessed a dramatic increase in the frequency and nature of cyber -attacks. By joining forces with AXELOS, we will provide a unique suite of cyber resilience services to help UK businesses, public sector organisations and charities protect themselves against this growing threat.’

Abid Ismail, CEO at AXELOS, said:

‘I’m delighted that RSM is partnering with our RESILIA cyber resilience best practice portfolio. Cyber risks are now recognised as one of the most serious risks to strong business performance, market reputation and customer confidence. RESILIA helps to equip all people with the knowledge to act on cyber security risks and give renewed confidence in exploiting the opportunities for growth and innovation in the digital age.