Defense Compliance Practice

CMMC READINESS
FOR THE DEFENSE
SUPPLY CHAIN

Structured NIST 800-171 & CMMC Level 1/2 compliance preparation for DoD subcontractors, aerospace manufacturers, engineering firms, and professional services organizations handling CUI. Not IT support. Not generic cybersecurity. Not certification. Compliance readiness work built around your specific contract obligations.

110

Defense suppliers advised across the DIB.

L1 / L2

Focused on CMMC 2.0 Level 1 and Level 2 readiness.

20 min

To understand your current CMMC risk posture.

Know where you stand in 20 minutes.

Whether CMMC requirements apply to your organization at all
Whether how you handle government data (CUI) places you in Level 1 or Level 2 scope
Your current contract exposure and how it maps to compliance deadlines
Whether a formal readiness assessment is required, and when

A focused session to understand your current position, identify gaps, and define next steps toward CMMC compliance.

✔ CMMC Registered Practitioner Organization (RPO)

✔ Real-world implementation experience

Recognized by the Cyber AB as a CMMC Registered Practitioner Organization

Not ready to book a session yet?

Join the CMMC Hot Mic – Live Q&A for Defense Contractors
https://defense.nerdstogo.com/cmmc-hot-mic

Join the CMMC Hot Mic –

Live Q&A for Defense Contractors
https://defense.nerdstogo.com/cmmc-hot-mic

REGULATORY CONTEXT

What you need to know before your next contract.

If your company works with the Department of Defense, whether directly or through a prime contractor, federal law now requires you to meet specific cybersecurity standards. Here's what those rules mean in plain terms, and why they matter for your business.

what it is

CMMC 2.0

CMMC stands for Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification. It's the DoD's official framework for making sure companies that handle government information have the security controls in place to protect it.

Think of it as a formal security checklist, with real consequences. Unlike older honor-system approaches, CMMC requires you to prove your security practices are real, documented, and working. It applies to all companies in the defense supply chain, including subcontractors that never deal with the DoD directly.

The legal basics

32 CFR Part 170

This is the federal regulation that made CMMC official law. Before 32 CFR Part 170, CMMC was DoD policy. Now it's codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which means it carries the full weight of federal enforcement.

The practical impact: checking a compliance box yourself is no longer enough at Level 2. A certified, independent third-party assessor (called a C3PAO) now has to verify your controls. You can't self-certify your way through Level 2.

THE THRESHOLD

Level 1 vs Level 2

CMMC 2.0 has three levels. Most defense contractors fall into Level 1 or Level 2, and which applies to you depends entirely on the type of government information you handle.

THE COST OF DELAY

Why waiting costs you contracts.

CMMC requirements are now being written directly into DoD contract solicitations. If you can't demonstrate compliance when a contract comes up for renewal, or when you're bidding on new work, you will be disqualified. This isn't a future risk. It's already happening in active competitions.

The problem is that getting compliant isn't fast. Getting to a clean compliance posture typically takes 12 to 18 months of structured work. Certified assessors have limited availability and are booking out. Organizations that started a year ago are positioned. The ones starting now are cutting it close. The ones still waiting are at risk of missing entire contract cycles.

Who This Is For

Defense contractors handling or expecting CUI
Organizations preparing for CMMC Level 2
Teams without a clear compliance roadmap
Businesses that need help operationalizing NIST SP 800-171

WHO WE SERVE

Not every organization needs this. Yours might.

CMMC compliance obligations don't fall on one type of organization. They follow the flow of government data. wherever Controlled Unclassified Information travels in the defense supply chain, compliance requirements follow. We work with the full range of organizations that find themselves inside that perimeter.

DOD Subcontractors

Organizations with active relationships to a DoD prime, receiving flow-down contract clauses, including DFARS 252.204-7012, that impose NIST 800-171 and CMMC compliance obligations.

Aerospace Manufacturers

Production and R&D organizations in the aerospace and defense sector that generate, receive, or work with CUI, including technical drawings, specs, and export-controlled data.

Engineering Firms

Civil, mechanical, systems, and electrical engineering firms engaged on DoD projects where technical data, design files, or program information qualifies as Controlled Unclassified Information.

Professional Services Supporting DoD Primes

Legal, logistics, staffing, consulting, and administrative organizations that support DoD prime contractors and, in doing so, access or handle CUI as part of their service delivery.

What We'll Cover

Where you stand against NIST SP 800-171
What level of CMMC applies to your organization
Key gaps that could impact your ability to win contracts
A clear path forward

If your organization touches, stores, transmits, or processes government data tied to a DoD contract in any capacity, you likely have a CMMC obligation. The First-Touch Assessment determines whether and at what level that applies to you.

first touch assessment

Know your obligation. Then decide.

A lot of defense contractors don't know whether CMMC fully applies to them, which level they fall under, or what their contract exposure actually looks like. The First-Touch Assessment answers those questions directly, in a focused 20-minute executive conversation, before any larger commitment is made.

01 • Do CMMC Requirements Apply to You?
Not every company that does business with the government has a CMMC obligation. We start here. reviewing your contracts, flow-down clauses, and prime relationships to determine whether CMMC requirements actually apply to your organization, and to what extent.

02 • Level 1 or Level 2?
Your CMMC level is determined by the type of government information you handle. If your work involves Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), such as technical data, engineering specs, and export-controlled materials, you're likely operating under Level 2 obligations. We clarify this based on what you actually handle, not assumptions.

03 • Contract Exposure & Timelines
We map your current contracts against CMMC compliance deadlines, including re-compete dates, DFARS clause applicability, and any existing self-attestation commitments. This gives you a clear picture of when you need to be compliant and what the business consequences are if you aren't.

04 • Do You Need a Formal Assessment?
Level 1 organizations can self-attest annually. Level 2 requires an independent, third-party assessment by a certified C3PAO. We determine which path applies to you, and if a formal assessment is required, we give you an honest read on how far you are from being ready for one.

FIRST-TOUCH ASSESSMENT

Book your first-touch assessment.

A focused, no-cost executive review for defense contractors who need to know whether CMMC applies to them, what level they fall under, and what they need to do next.

20-minute executive format
No cost. No commitment.
For decision-makers, not IT staff
Covers applicability, level, exposure, and next steps

A focused session to understand your current position, identify gaps, and define next steps toward CMMC compliance.

◈ What We Are

A Defense Compliance Practice.
Not a Certifying Body.

Our work is preparing organizations to meet CMMC requirements. The certification itself is conducted by an accredited C3PAO, a third-party assessment organization approved through the CMMC Accreditation Body.

We get you ready. They assess you. Those are two distinct roles, and we only do one of them. No compliance practice can legally issue CMMC certification, and anyone suggesting otherwise is misrepresenting how the process works.

We're Not the Right Fit If:

We're selective because we only take on engagements where we can deliver a real, documentable result. Here's what falls outside our scope.

Generic Cybersecurity Consulting

We don't provide broad IT security services, managed security operations, or general risk assessments not tied directly to CMMC and DFARS contract obligations.

We Don't Certify, C3PAOs Do

CMMC certification is conducted exclusively by accredited C3PAO organizations. We prepare you for that assessment; we don't conduct it, and no compliance practice legally can.

Paperwork-Only Compliance

We don't create security plans or action documents that don't reflect what's actually in place in your environment. Assessors verify everything. Documentation that doesn't match reality will fail.

Track Record & Resources

Defense Industrial Base
Experience

Case Study (Anonymized)

Aerospace Manufacturer: Assessment-Ready in 14 Months

A 60-person aerospace subcontractor handling CUI across three facilities had no documented security plan and multiple shared login environments. Through structured implementation, they reached assessment-ready status 14 months later, ahead of their contract re-compete window.

Outcome: Passed C3PAO assessment. Contract renewed.

Case Study (Anonymized)

Engineering Firm: Cutting Compliance Scope by 60%

A professional engineering firm supporting a DoD prime had unknowingly let sensitive government data spread across personal devices and consumer cloud storage. By cleaning up and redefining their scope boundary, they reduced the compliance surface by 60%, cutting both cost and timeline significantly.

Outcome: Smaller scope. Faster, lower-cost path to assessment-ready status.

DIB Community Engagement

Defense Industrial Base Speaking & Education

Our practice actively participates in DoD procurement community events, CMMC educational sessions, and regional defense contractor associations. We stay current on regulatory changes as they affect subcontractor timelines and contract requirements.

Speaking inquiries welcome via contact form.

Next Step

Your Contract Window
Is Not Unlimited

Remediation takes 12 to 18 months on average. Certified assessors are booking out. The organizations that move now will be positioned when contract renewals come around. The ones that wait will be scrambling.

CMMC requirements are becoming a condition of contract eligibility. Organizations that prepare early are in a stronger position to compete.