The Challenge
Operating a Distributed, Always On Environment
Hahn Automotive operates a large, geographically distributed environment spanning more than 140 locations, supporting critical business systems across ERP, point of sale, warehouse management, and financial platforms. With that scale, outages, security alerts, and false positives are unavoidable—but how quickly and confidently those situations are handled makes the difference between contained issues and business disruption.
Prior to working with Bridgehead, Hahn relied on a third party SOC provider for security monitoring. While tooling existed, leadership lacked confidence in detection and response—particularly after hours. Critical alerts were often unclear, escalations were inconsistent, and tests that should have triggered high priority incidents did not result in timely communication. From an IT leadership perspective, this created hesitation, uncertainty, and added pressure on an already lean internal team.
As Steve Baxter, CIO at Hahn Automotive, noted during the interview, the concern was not just visibility—but whether incidents would be detected, interpreted correctly, and acted on when it mattered most.
Technology Environment (High Level)
Hahn Automotive operates a complex, multi location technology environment supporting more than 140 sites. Core systems include Microsoft Sentinel and Defender for Endpoint for security monitoring, enterprise ERP and point of sale platforms, warehouse management systems, and centralized identity and endpoint security tooling used to support always on operations across the organization.
The Solution
Pairing 24/7 Monitoring with Executive Cyber Leadership
Hahn Automotive adopted Bridgehead’s combined Watchtower™ SOCaaS and Guardian™ CISOaaS model to address both operational security gaps and leadership level decision support.
Watchtower delivered continuous monitoring with clearer, more granular alerts sourced from platforms such as Microsoft Sentinel and Defender for Endpoint. Alerts were interpreted by security professionals who understood Hahn’s environment—reducing false positives and allowing the internal IT team to focus time on real issues instead of investigation churn.
Guardian complemented this with executive level cyber leadership. Rather than receiving vulnerability reports without direction, Hahn gained prioritization, remediation planning, and regular guidance. The Guardian engagement established a clear roadmap, accountability, and cadence—helping leadership understand what mattered most, what could wait, and how security initiatives aligned to business operations.
For Hahn, the value wasn’t just technical coverage—it was having experienced cybersecurity leadership available as a partner, without the cost or complexity of building an internal security team.
"Before working with Bridgehead, we had tools in place, but we didn’t have confidence that critical incidents would be detected or escalated when it mattered most."
The Results
Improved Confidence, Predictability, and Team Focus
Since implementing Guardian and Watchtower, Hahn Automotive has seen a marked shift in how cybersecurity is experienced across the organization.
Alert accuracy improved significantly, reducing the number of false positives and unnecessary investigations. When incidents do occur, response is faster, clearer, and handled collaboratively—building trust between Hahn’s internal team and Bridgehead’s security professionals.
From a leadership perspective, cybersecurity has become more predictable. Hahn now operates with a clear remediation plan, defined priorities, and regular progress tracking. While overall security spend did not materially increase, leadership reports higher confidence that they are receiving the level of coverage expected—and needed—for an always on, multi location business.
Perhaps most importantly, the engagement reduced stress. As Steve shared, knowing that incidents will be detected and addressed quickly has helped leadership and IT teams focus more energy on running the business, rather than constantly worrying about worst case scenarios.
Key Products / Services
• Watchtower™ SOCaaS (24/7 Security Operations Center)
• Guardian™ CISOaaS (Virtual CISO & Cyber Leadership)
• Threat Detection & Incident Response
• Vulnerability Management & Remediation Planning
• Security Strategy & Roadmapping
Outcome
By combining 24/7 threat monitoring with embedded cyber leadership, Hahn Automotive strengthened security visibility, reduced alert noise, and established clearer accountability across its cybersecurity program. Leadership now operates with greater confidence that incidents will be identified, interpreted, and addressed quickly—without the cost or operational burden of building a dedicated internal security team.
Explore how a combined SOC and vCISO approach can help organizations with complex, multi location environments improve security confidence and operational resilience.
