Lavender's Journey to Compliance Automation with Drata

Introduction to Lavender

Lavender is a leading email intelligence company that enhances email copywriting and improves results. Lavender sought out to achieve SOC 2 compliance in just one year, onboarding a partner that provided more roadblocks than solutions. 

Lessons Learned in Compliance Partnerships 

The initial compliance automation platform Lavender adopted posed significant challenges in their compliance journey. They sought a turnkey solution to streamline compliance efforts, with a particular focus on achieving SOC 2 compliance within a year. However, despite high expectations, the process proved less smooth than anticipated, and the partnership fell short. 

Lavender faced hurdles such as persistent upselling including inability to access controls that would have solved some of their challenges and a lack of transparency around total cost, resulting in paying more than they had initially budgeted. In addition, the policies solution had gaps making it appear that they were compliant when in reality there were policy gaps with new employees. 

This initial vendor proved not to be the expert partner they were looking for for a smooth audit, and as a result Lavender experienced an 8-month delay in SOC 2 attainment. The absence of comprehensive support and guidance left them feeling adrift in their compliance endeavors, particularly during their inaugural SOC 2 audit.

The Pursuit of Seamless Compliance

Feeling let down by their previous experience, Lavender began exploring alternative solutions and found Drata. The decision to switch to Drata was driven by the more user-friendly and comprehensive compliance solution, coupled with robust support and transparent pricing. 

Drata's onboarding process was exceptional, offering white-glove support and guidance that ensured a smooth and efficient transition from their previous vendor. Lavender's team invested just 20 hours over the course of a month, making the switch both swift and seamless. Lavender was able to go to Drata’s compliance support team and get immediate guidance on compliance questions.

In addition, Lavender appreciated the flexibility to exclude items that weren’t in scope, allowing for more efficient compliance maintenance. Thanks to Drata, Lavender ditched those old basic templates and upgraded to detailed, compliant policies, drastically boosting their compliance game.