Edify, a nearshore software development firm serving the edtech industry, differentiates itself in a crowded Latin American market by offering more than staffing. Rather than simply placing developers, Edify embeds deeply into customer systems — handling sensitive student and family data in highly regulated environments.

To compete on value rather than price, Edify invested in SOC 2 compliance with Strike Graph. That decision has since influenced 50% of the company’s revenue, delivered $30,000 in direct cost savings, and reduced annual compliance time by 40%.

Moving beyond staffing to become a trusted software partner

Edify operates in a competitive market where many providers differentiate on cost alone. Edify intentionally chose a different path.

As their General Manager, Michael Burke explained: "We want to move away from being compared with cheap nearshore/offshore staffing agencies and really showcase our value as a thought partner in the software development industry, which has different expectations from the customer and gets us into a value-added conversation."

Because Edify's teams access customer systems and manage sensitive student data, enterprise buyers increasingly require security assurances, documented controls, and formal compliance frameworks. Rather than waiting to be asked, Edify got ahead of it.

"Not only are customers asking for it, but we are actively offering it as a differentiator. That's truly something valuable right now."

SOC 2 became central to Edify's positioning in the edtech sector — where protecting student data isn't optional.

The financial impact: $30K saved, 50% of revenue influenced

Maintaining compliance has delivered measurable financial results across two fronts.

First, insurance. Because Edify had an active SOC 2 report in place, they qualified for lower cybersecurity insurance premiums — resulting in $30,000 in annual savings. For a services organization with a lean vendor footprint, that's significant: their largest vendor cost had been the insurance policy itself.

Second, revenue. When asked how much of their business SOC 2 has influenced, the General Manager was direct: "Our certification has been involved in at least 50% of the revenue that we generate as a company."

In many cases, SOC 2 was a hard requirement to close the deal. In others, it reduced friction during procurement and security reviews. Either way, it shifted conversations away from price:

"Once we start showing our value-add and showcase security compliance, that price conversation starts to create less friction."

40% reduction in compliance time, year over year

With three SOC 2 audits completed, Edify has built meaningful operational efficiency by using Strike Graph to implement controls and gather evidence. 

What once required significant team bandwidth now runs lean — audit-related time has dropped approximately 40% year over year as controls become more familiar and Strike Graph's automation does more of the heavy lifting.

Audit quality has improved alongside efficiency. Minor findings fell from roughly 20 in earlier audits to just three or four in the most recent cycle.

"Every audit is becoming easier and faster because we're getting more used to the platform and the controls. We're also getting proactive guidance from our customer success manager."

Building a stronger security posture from the ground up

SOC 2 implementation wasn't just an audit exercise — it fundamentally improved Edify's internal processes.

"It was not just a matter of auditing our existing processes. We created processes because of the framework."

Through Strike Graph's automation platform and trained AI compliance guidance, Edify formalized controls that previously didn't exist, strengthening both their security posture and operational maturity.

Responsive support from Strike Graph has also played a role in maintaining our security posture and keeping audits on track. Over five years of partnership, the team notes that issues get resolved in under a day.

“Every audit cycle, the whole process gets a little faster and a little smoother."

What's next: expanding frameworks in 2026

As Edify broadens its service offerings, compliance will scale alongside growth. The team is evaluating HIPAA and additional quality-focused standards to support new customer segments and verticals — part of what they're calling a year of transformation.

"2026 is a year of transformation for us, where we are expanding the services we have available. There will definitely be more frameworks implemented."

With Strike Graph's multi-framework capabilities and automation-first approach, Edify is positioned to scale compliance as the business grows.

The impact at a glance

• $30,000 saved on cybersecurity insurance
• 50% of revenue influenced by SOC 2 certification
• 40% reduction in compliance time year over year
• 3 successful SOC 2 audits completed
• Minor audit findings reduced from ~20 to 3–4