Audit Firms as Competitors and Partners
Secureframe
The core strategic point is that Secureframe is not replacing auditors, it is turning them into a software distribution channel. SOC 2 still ends with a licensed CPA firm issuing the report, so the winning workflow is to automate the evidence collection, control checks, and remediation work before the auditor steps in. That makes legacy firms weaker as stand alone providers, but more valuable as partners that can process more audits in less time.
-
In the old model, a startup might spend $50,000 to $100,000 and wait months or more than a year while auditors gathered screenshots, policies, and employee records by hand. Secureframe compresses that prep work by connecting to cloud, HR, and identity systems, then organizing evidence continuously.
-
That creates a natural partnership model. Audit firms keep the regulated signing role, while automation platforms feed them cleaner records and mapped controls. Vanta described working with process driven auditors that accept lower prices per audit because they can finish more audits and raise throughput.
-
The main strategic fork in the market is partner led software versus vertically integrated audit plus software. Secureframe, Vanta, and Laika lean on auditor networks, while Thoropass has built in house audit capacity. That changes margin profile, service intensity, and how much of the customer spend each company can capture.
Going forward, the category is likely to split between platforms that become the system of record for many outside auditors, and platforms that pull audit work in house. Secureframe benefits if more legacy firms decide that modernizing with software is faster than defending a manual process that is getting standardized away.