Foundations Assessment
Companion
Guide
Everything you need to know before you begin. No technical background required.
Why This Matters
You've taken the first step.
Most organizations in your position have known for a while that their digital environment deserves a closer look. Deciding to actually do it is not a small thing. The Foundations Assessment exists to make that look productive, clear, and manageable.
This is not a compliance audit. It is not a stress test. It is not an evaluation of how well your team has done. It is a guided process designed to give your organization an honest picture of where you stand today, so you can make thoughtful decisions about what to do next.
The organizations that benefit most from this process are the ones that come in curious rather than defensive. They already suspect there are things to strengthen. They just want to see the full picture and know what to do about it.
A note on what you will find
Every Foundations report contains a mix of strengths and areas for improvement. That is not a reflection of how well-run your organization is. It is the reality of operating in a digital environment that changes faster than any small team can track. What matters is not where you start. It is that you can see clearly and move forward with intention.
Before You Begin
What you need. What to expect.
The assessment is designed to be completed by one or two people with a broad view of how the organization operates day to day. Technical expertise is not required. What matters is an honest working knowledge of how your team uses email, files, devices, and the tools that keep the mission running.
Executive directors, operations managers, and office administrators tend to be the right people in the room. Not because they have all the answers, but because they know how the organization actually works, not just how it is supposed to work.
Time Required
30 to 60 minutes, depending on how many questions prompt a conversation worth having.
No Technical Background Needed
Plain-language questions across fourteen domains. You answer based on how things actually work, not how they are supposed to.
Who Should Be Involved
One person who can speak to daily operations. A second is welcome but not necessary.
When You Are Unsure
Select "Not sure." Uncertainty is useful information. It tells us where visibility is limited — and that is itself something worth knowing.
You can complete the assessment on any device. A laptop or desktop will be most comfortable for a session of this length. Choose a time when you can work without interruption.
What the Assessment Covers
Fourteen domains. Three categories.
The assessment evaluates your organization across fourteen areas, grouped into three categories. None of the questions assume technical expertise. They are designed to be answered by the people who know how things actually work.
People & Oversight
Systems & Devices
Data & Protection
Finance, Public Systems & External Partners
Emerging Tools
What Happens After You Submit
The report. The conversation. The path forward.
Once you submit your responses, Cyberwise reviews and interprets the full picture: strengths, gaps, areas with limited visibility, and overall risk patterns. That analysis becomes two documents and one conversation.
The Foundations Report
A clear, narrative-style summary of your digital environment across all fourteen domains. Written in plain language, designed for leaders, board members, and non-technical staff. Not a score. Not a verdict. A picture.
The Action Plan
A prioritized list of practical next steps, organized into immediate, short-term, and long-term recommendations. Sized to fit the realities of small teams. The goal is a plan you can actually use, not one that sits in a folder.
The Review Conversation
A guided conversation to walk through your results, answer questions, and clarify what comes next. You will not be handed a document and left to interpret it on your own. The conversation is where the report becomes usable.
On what comes next
At the end of the review conversation, you will have a clear action plan and two options. You can implement it independently, at your own pace, with everything you need to move forward. Or you can work with Cyberwise for structured support: regular check-ins, help with vendor and tool decisions, and accountability when things get busy. There is no pressure in either direction. The right path is the one that fits your organization. We will talk through the options together.
A Note from Encouragement
A word before you begin.
Every organization that has gone through this process found something they did not know was there. Sometimes it was a gap. Sometimes it was a strength they had never thought to name. Usually it was both.
Neither is a reason for alarm. Both are reasons to have done this.
The point is not to have perfect answers. The point is to have an honest picture. That picture is the foundation for every practical step that follows. And in our experience, it is almost always less frightening than the uncertainty that came before it.
Protecting the trust you've earned