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Building a Security-First Culture: How Codigi Partnered with Copla to Achieve ISO 27001

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Certificates

ISO 27001

Building a Security-First Culture: How Codigi Partnered with Copla to Achieve ISO 27001

The Context: Scaling with Confidence

By mid-2025, Codigi had grown to a 50-person software development firm serving clients in the banking, finance, and public sectors across Finland, Lithuania, and the US. As the business matured, so did the expectations of its clients. Enterprise-grade security governance was no longer a nice-to-have, but a natural next step for a company operating at Codigi’s level.

Rather than building a full in-house security function prematurely, CEO Vaidas Mileikis sought a different approach: experienced, embedded security leadership that matched Codigi’s stage of growth.

The Solution: The “CISO-as-a-Service” Model

Mileikis turned to Copla, drawn by their reputation in the tech community. Rather than simply handing over templates, Copla allocated a dedicated CISO to work directly within Codigi’s operations.

The partnership was defined by pragmatic, hands-on execution:

  • Process Building: Copla worked alongside the team to build security processes that genuinely fit Codigi’s agile workflow, not generic frameworks bolted on from the outside.
  • Education: Every security control was explained in the context of real development work, ensuring the team understood the “why,” not just the “how.”
  • Simulation: Copla ran advanced phishing simulations — realistic enough to challenge even senior developers — to strengthen their human firewall in a meaningful way.

The Outcome: Certified and Scalable

Codigi achieved ISO 27001 certification, completing a thorough and properly executed process that reflected genuine organisational readiness. The certification has since supported Codigi’s positioning in competitive sales conversations, reinforcing the trust their banking and public sector clients expect.

Today, the relationship has evolved from implementation to continuous improvement. Codigi draws on Copla’s CISO expertise on-demand — handling client security audits, infrastructure decisions, and policy updates at a fraction of the cost of a full-time executive hire.

“As a young team, we felt a responsibility to deliver banking-grade security. Copla gave us the expertise we needed without the overhead. We get enterprise-level guidance that fits our size and our budget.”

Vaidas Mileikis, CEO, Codigi

Key Outcomes

Rigorous Compliance: Achieved ISO 27001 certification through a thorough, properly structured process.

Cost Efficiency: Secured expert security leadership at significantly lower cost than a full-time CISO hire.

Stronger Market Position: ISO 27001 certification supports Codigi's credibility with enterprise banking and public sector clients.

Future Readiness: Established a scalable security framework, with ISO 9001 certification on the roadmap.