Rhand LealOrganizations that have in-house knowledge for implementing the ISO 27001 standard, the leading ISO standard for information security management, are rare. This is especially true for small and mid-sized companies, so the search for market solutions for the implementation of ISO 27001 in a quick, easy, and cost-effective way is common.
As a response to this need, Advisera offers two solutions: the ISO 27001 Documentation Toolkit and the ISO 27001 compliance software, Conformio. See below a comparison, based on key features, pricing models, and technical criteria, and find out which one suits your ISO 27001 implementation project needs better.
ISO 27001 toolkit vs. software pricing model
The ISO 27001 toolkit can be purchased for a one-time fee. Conformio, on the other hand, is paid on a subscription basis, as it provides automation and other tools that bring value to the organization on a continuous basis. In the table below, you can find a more detailed comparison of the pricing models:
ISO 27001 Toolkit vs. Conformio – Comparison between pricing models
| Solution | ISO 27001 Toolkit | Conformio |
| Price | US$ 897 to US$ 2,397 (depending on the level of support) | US$ 99 to US$ 199 monthly (depending on the features) |
| Type of payment | One-time payment | Subscription |
| Additional costs | Salary and time from employee manually maintaining the ISMS | – |
| Cost when compared to a consulting service | 30% of the cost of a consultant | 10% of the cost of a consultant |
As you can see from the table above, Conformio allows you to implement and maintain your ISMS compliance in a more cost-effective and affordable way than having a dedicated person or hiring a consultant for the job (usually 10% of the cost of a consultant). Conformio is also helpful in cases when you need to increase the scale of your implementation or the number of users. So, let’s examine Conformio vs. toolkit features in more detail.
ISO 27001 toolkit vs. Conformio features
The ISO 27001 toolkit is a set of document templates covering the mandatory documents for an ISO 27001 Information Security Management System (ISMS), as well as commonly adopted non-mandatory documents.
Conformio is a Software as a Service (SaaS) solution that covers not only documentation management, but also the automation of key process for information security management (e.g., risk management, audit, etc.).
See the comparison table below for more details.
| ISO 27001 Toolkit | Conformio | |
| Company size | More than 50 employees | Less than 50 employees |
| Guidance | Exact steps for implementing ISO 27001 | Exact steps for implementing ISO 27001 + advanced step-by-step documentation wizard and resources to make implementation and training easier |
| Documentation | Documents are fully editable | Automation for filling out the documents |
| Risk management | Manual identification of risks and controls | Automatic creation of risks by connecting assets, threats, and vulnerabilities, with automatic suggestion of applicable controls |
| Statement of Applicability | Manually defining which controls are applicable | Automatically defining which controls are applicable based on risks and requirements of interested parties |
| Internal audit | Template for audit checklist needs to be manually adapted for a company | Audit checklist is automatically adapted for a company based on created documents |
| Maintenance of an ISMS | Manual | Steps are automatically suggested; automated alerts and checklists are created over time |
| Tracking of ISMS performance | Manual reporting through templates | Automatic reporting through dashboards |
| Speed of implementation | Moderate (up to 2x faster than implementing on your own) | Quick (up to 4x faster than implementing on your own) |
| Location of documents/data | On a computer, internal server, or file-sharing service | Online software (in the cloud) |
| Number of users | Unlimited within a company | Up to 10, 50, or 200, depending on the price tier |
| Expert support | Included | Included |
| Certification | Fully acceptable by certification bodies | Fully acceptable by certification bodies |
Who is it for?
Although both the documentation toolkit and Conformio can be adopted by organizations of any size, their specific characteristics make them more suitable for different situations.
Organizations with more than 50 employees usually require more flexibility related to documents to be implemented, so the ISO 27001 Documentation Toolkit is better suited for them.
Organizations of up to 50 employees normally require a lean set of documents to be implemented, and automated features are welcomed when you do not have many people, so Conformio software is a better choice for them.
What level of knowledge is needed?
People need little to no ISO 27001 knowledge to use Advisera’s toolkits or Conformio software, which makes them easy to use by less-experienced organizations. The main difference is not in level of knowledge, but in how quickly the standard is implemented.
What is the speed of ISO 27001 implementation?
The implementation using the documentation toolkit is twice as fast when compared to the implementation without any external help, whereas the implementation using Conformio is, due to automation, four times as fast when compared to implementing on your own.
What is best for my organization?
While both the Toolkit and Conformio will enable successful ISO 27001 certification for companies with no prior knowledge with this standard, Conformio will achieve this more quickly; however, the automation also means that the documentation will be less flexible when compared to the toolkit.
So, if you are looking for speed and easier maintenance, go for Conformio; if you’re looking for flexibility, go for the toolkit.
To see how to implement ISO 27001 through a step-by-step wizard, and eliminate most of the manual work through automation, sign up for a 14-day free trial of Conformio, the leading ISO 27001 compliance software.