How to Prepare for a SOC 2 Audit: The Complete Readiness Guide

At Agency, we guide dozens of companies through SOC 2 preparation every year — and the pattern we see consistently is that organizations that prepare systematically reach audit readiness in three to six months, while those that approach it reactively face delays, scope creep, and unnecessary stress. Preparing for a SOC 2 audit is a structured process, and the preparation phase is where the majority of compliance effort concentrates — once you are ready, the audit itself is relatively straightforward. Preparation involves assembling a compliance team, defining scope, conducting a gap assessment, developing policies and controls, collecting evidence, and selecting an auditor. The most common preparation mistake we see is underestimating the time required for control implementation, particularly in access management, change management, and monitoring — the three areas that produce the most audit findings. Organizations that prepare systematically and address the highest-risk control areas first have a ninety to ninety-five percent probability of receiving an unqualified (clean) opinion on their first Type II report.

This guide provides an actionable preparation framework for organizations that have committed to SOC 2 and need a practical roadmap for getting audit-ready. It covers every phase from initial planning through audit day, with realistic timelines, prioritization guidance, and common mistakes to avoid.

Preparation Timeline Overview

Phase Summary

Phase	Timeline	Key Output
1. Team assembly and project planning	Week 1-2	Compliance team defined; project plan created; executive sponsorship secured
2. Scope definition and criteria selection	Week 2-3	Trust Service Criteria selected; system boundaries defined; auditor requirements documented
3. Gap assessment	Week 3-5	Gap report identifying current state vs SOC 2 requirements; prioritized remediation list
4. Policy development	Week 4-8	Ten core policies written, reviewed, approved, distributed, and acknowledged
5. Control implementation	Week 5-14	Technical and administrative controls implemented and operational
6. Evidence collection setup	Week 10-14	Automated evidence collection running; manual evidence processes established
7. Readiness assessment	Week 12-16	Pre-audit validation confirming controls are operating and evidence is complete
8. Auditor engagement	Week 14-18	Auditor selected; engagement letter signed; observation period begins

Phases overlap — policy development begins during gap assessment, control implementation starts as gaps are identified, and evidence collection begins as controls become operational. The total elapsed time is twelve to twenty weeks for most first-time organizations using a GRC platform.

Phase 1: Assemble Your Compliance Team

Core Roles

Role	Responsibility	Time Commitment
Compliance lead	Owns the SOC 2 project; coordinates all preparation activities; primary auditor contact	20-40 hours/week during preparation
Executive sponsor	Provides organizational authority; approves policies; removes blockers; signs management assertion	2-5 hours/week
Engineering lead	Implements technical controls (access management, encryption, monitoring, change management)	10-20 hours/week during implementation phase
IT / DevOps	Configures infrastructure controls (logging, endpoint management, backup, disaster recovery)	10-15 hours/week during implementation phase
HR	Manages personnel controls (training, background checks, onboarding/offboarding procedures)	5-10 hours/week during implementation phase
Control owners	Individual team members responsible for maintaining specific controls in their domain	2-5 hours/week ongoing

Common Staffing Approaches

Company Size	Typical Approach
Under 50 employees	CTO or engineering lead acts as compliance lead; external consulting for guidance
50-200 employees	Dedicated compliance lead (may be first compliance hire); engineering lead contributes significantly
200+ employees	Compliance team with dedicated compliance lead; security team involvement; distributed control ownership

Phase 2: Define Scope and Select Criteria

Scoping Decisions

Decision	How to Decide
Which Trust Service Criteria to include	Start with Security (mandatory); add Availability if customers depend on uptime; add Confidentiality if you handle confidential data; add Privacy if you process personal information; add Processing Integrity if data accuracy matters
Which systems are in scope	All systems that support the services covered by the report — production infrastructure, identity provider, code repository, monitoring, HR system, endpoint devices
Type I or Type II	Type II is preferred by enterprise buyers; Type I is an acceptable intermediate milestone if you need a report quickly
Observation period length	Six months is most common for first-time Type II; three months is the minimum; twelve months is standard for renewal

Criteria Selection for Common Business Types

Business Type	Recommended Criteria
B2B SaaS	Security + Availability
Healthcare technology	Security + Availability + Confidentiality + Privacy
Financial technology	Security + Availability + Processing Integrity
Data analytics	Security + Processing Integrity + Confidentiality
Developer tools	Security + Availability + Confidentiality
EdTech	Security + Availability + Confidentiality + Privacy

Phase 3: Conduct a Gap Assessment

How to Assess Your Current State

A gap assessment compares your current security posture against SOC 2 Trust Service Criteria requirements. We recommend using a GRC platform for the fastest approach — platforms like Vanta, Drata, Secureframe, and Sprinto connect to your tools and automatically identify configuration gaps.

Assessment Area	What to Evaluate	Common Gaps
Access management	MFA enforcement, provisioning/deprovisioning processes, access reviews, privileged access	MFA not enforced everywhere; no formal deprovisioning timeline; access reviews not performed
Change management	Code review requirements, deployment controls, branch protection, emergency change procedures	Branch protection not configured; no documented emergency change process
Policies	Existence, currency, management approval, employee acknowledgment	Missing policies; policies not reviewed within twelve months; no management signature
Monitoring and logging	Security event logging, log retention, alerting, anomaly detection	Insufficient log retention; no alerting on security events; gaps in log coverage
Risk assessment	Formal risk assessment, risk register, annual review	No formal risk assessment completed; no risk register maintained
Vendor management	Vendor inventory, risk assessments, contractual security requirements	No vendor inventory; vendor security not assessed; BAAs missing where required
Business continuity	BCP documentation, DR plan, backup procedures, recovery testing	DR plan not documented; no backup testing; RTO/RPO not defined
Employee training	Security awareness training, policy acknowledgment, background checks	Training not completed; no training for contractors; background checks inconsistent
Encryption	Data at rest, data in transit, key management	Encryption not enabled on all storage; TLS not enforced on all endpoints
Incident response	IR plan, severity classification, communication procedures, post-incident review	No documented IR plan; no severity levels defined; no communication templates

Prioritizing Remediation

After identifying gaps, we advise prioritizing based on the combination of audit impact and implementation effort:

Priority	Gap Category	Rationale
1	Access management gaps	Produces the most audit findings; highest qualification risk
2	Missing policies	Required for every SOC 2 engagement; no policies means no audit
3	No risk assessment	Auditors check this early; absence is a clear finding
4	Change management gaps	Second most common finding area; directly testable
5	Monitoring and logging gaps	Evidence gaps here create exceptions across multiple criteria
6	Employee training gaps	Must be complete before observation period; easy to remediate but takes time for completion
7	Vendor management gaps	Requires outreach to vendors; time-dependent
8	Business continuity gaps	Important but less frequently cited in findings than access and change management

Phase 4: Develop Policies

Required Policies

Policy	What It Covers
Information Security Policy	Security program scope, governance, management commitment
Access Control Policy	Provisioning, authentication, MFA, access reviews, deprovisioning
Change Management Policy	Change authorization, code review, testing, deployment, emergency changes
Incident Response Policy	Detection, classification, response, communication, post-incident review
Risk Assessment Policy	Risk methodology, frequency, register maintenance, risk treatment
Data Classification Policy	Data categories, handling requirements, encryption, storage, disposal
Acceptable Use Policy	Employee technology use expectations, prohibited activities
Vendor Management Policy	Vendor evaluation, risk assessment, monitoring, contractual requirements
Business Continuity / DR Policy	Recovery priorities, DR procedures, testing, communication
HR Security Policy	Background checks, onboarding, training, termination procedures

Policy Development Process

Step	Action	Timeline
1	Use GRC platform templates as starting points	Day 1
2	Customize each policy to reflect your actual practices	1-2 days per policy
3	Compliance lead reviews for SOC 2 alignment	2-3 days total
4	Management approves each policy with signature and date	2-5 days (schedule early)
5	Distribute all policies to employees through GRC platform	Same day as approval
6	Track acknowledgments until 100% complete	1-2 weeks

Critical rule we emphasize with every client: Policies must match your actual practices. Do not write policies that describe aspirational processes. If you conduct access reviews quarterly, write "quarterly" — not "monthly." The auditor will verify policy-practice alignment during interviews.

Phase 5: Implement Controls

Implementation Priority

We advise addressing controls in order of audit impact:

Priority	Control Area	Implementation
1	MFA enforcement	Enable MFA on all production systems, cloud consoles, code repositories, and administrative tools through your identity provider
2	Automated deprovisioning	Configure identity provider to revoke access across all systems when employment ends
3	Branch protection and code review	Enforce branch protection on all production repositories; require at least one reviewer for all pull requests
4	Security awareness training	Deploy training platform; assign training to all employees; set completion deadline
5	Quarterly access reviews	Schedule the first access review; document the process and results
6	Centralized logging	Configure log aggregation for all production systems; set retention to at least 365 days
7	Endpoint management	Deploy MDM/endpoint management on all company devices; enforce encryption and screen lock
8	Formal risk assessment	Conduct and document the first formal risk assessment with likelihood/impact scoring
9	Vendor inventory	Build vendor inventory; conduct initial risk assessment for critical vendors
10	DR plan and testing	Document the disaster recovery plan; conduct and document the first test

Phase 6: Set Up Evidence Collection

Automated Evidence (GRC Platform)

Evidence Type	Collected By
Cloud configuration (encryption, security groups, IAM)	Cloud provider integration
MFA enforcement status	Identity provider integration
Code review completion	Code repository integration
Employee device compliance	Endpoint management integration
Employee onboarding/offboarding dates	HR platform integration
Training completion status	Training platform or GRC platform module

Manual Evidence

Evidence Type	How to Collect	Frequency
Access review documentation	Quarterly review records uploaded to GRC platform	Quarterly
Risk assessment	Annual risk assessment document and risk register	Annually
Vendor risk assessments	Individual vendor assessment documents	Annually per vendor
Incident response records	Post-incident review documentation	Per incident
DR test results	Test execution records and results	Annually at minimum
Management meeting minutes	Security committee or governance meeting records	Quarterly

Phase 7: Readiness Assessment

Pre-Audit Validation

Before engaging the auditor, we recommend validating that your program is complete:

Validation Area	What to Check
All policies approved and acknowledged	100% employee acknowledgment; all policies have management approval with date
All technical controls operational	MFA enforced; branch protection active; logging configured; endpoint management deployed
Evidence collection running	GRC platform showing evidence for all automated controls; manual evidence uploaded and current
Training complete	100% employee training completion
Risk assessment documented	Formal risk assessment with risk register; dated within the last twelve months
Access review completed	At least one quarterly access review documented before the observation period begins
Vendor inventory complete	Critical vendors identified and assessed
Incident response plan tested	At minimum, a documented tabletop exercise

Phase 8: Engage the Auditor

Auditor Selection Criteria

Factor	What to Evaluate
SOC 2 experience	Number of SOC 2 engagements per year; industry specialization
GRC platform familiarity	Experience with your specific GRC platform (Vanta, Drata, Secureframe, Sprinto)
Timeline and availability	Can the auditor begin within your required timeframe?
Pricing	Fee range for your company size and scope
Communication style	Responsiveness and willingness to answer questions during preparation
References	Customer references from similar-size organizations

Common Preparation Mistakes

Mistake	Consequence	How to Avoid
Writing policies that do not match practice	Auditor identifies policy-practice gaps during interviews	Write policies based on what you actually do; update policies when practices change
Delaying access reviews	Access review evidence is the most commonly missing evidence	Schedule the first access review immediately; complete before observation period starts
Not enforcing MFA for all access types	MFA exceptions create findings	Enforce MFA through identity provider for all production and administrative access
Starting the observation period before controls are ready	Exceptions accumulate from day one	Complete all control implementation before starting the observation period
Underestimating training completion time	100% completion takes longer than expected	Set a deadline; send reminders; escalate to managers for non-completers
Not engaging the auditor early enough	Auditor availability delays the timeline	Select and engage the auditor two to three months before your target fieldwork date

Key Takeaways

• In our experience, SOC 2 preparation takes twelve to twenty weeks for most first-time organizations using a GRC platform; three to six months for the overall process
• The preparation phases overlap — we always advise clients that policy development, control implementation, and evidence collection run in parallel, not sequentially
• We consistently recommend addressing access management first because it produces the most audit findings and carries the highest qualification risk
• Ten core policies are required; customize GRC platform templates rather than using them as-is, and ensure policies match your actual practices
• Complete all control implementation before starting the observation period to avoid carrying exceptions into your audit
• Achieve 100% employee training completion and policy acknowledgment before the observation period begins
• We advise conducting a readiness assessment (self-assessment or formal readiness review) to validate completeness before engaging the auditor
• Select and engage the auditor two to three months before your target fieldwork date to secure their availability
• What we see across our client base is that ninety to ninety-five percent of first-time organizations receive an unqualified opinion — systematic preparation makes the odds strongly in your favor

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to prepare for SOC 2 from scratch?

What we tell clients to expect is twelve to twenty weeks of preparation time before the observation period begins, assuming a GRC platform is used. Without a platform, preparation takes sixteen to twenty-eight weeks. The observation period then adds three to twelve months (six months is most common for first-time Type II). Total time from project start to a Type II report delivery is typically six to fourteen months.

Can we prepare for SOC 2 without a GRC platform?

The advice we give here is: yes, but it takes approximately forty to sixty percent longer and requires significantly more manual effort. Without a platform, you manage evidence in spreadsheets, track policy acknowledgments via email, monitor controls manually, and organize evidence for the auditor in shared folders. It is possible — many organizations did it before GRC platforms existed — but the time and effort cost typically exceeds the platform subscription cost.

What is the most common reason for audit delays?

Based on what we see across our client base, it is control implementation taking longer than planned. Specifically, access management controls (MFA enforcement, deprovisioning automation, access review process) and monitoring/logging configuration are the most common sources of delay. These controls require cross-team coordination between compliance, engineering, and IT, and they often reveal infrastructure gaps that need additional remediation.

Should we get a Type I before a Type II?

Our guidance is that a Type I is not required before Type II. Some organizations use Type I as an intermediate milestone — demonstrating control design to customers while the Type II observation period runs. Other organizations proceed directly to Type II. The decision depends on customer urgency: if you have immediate customer demand for a SOC 2 report, a Type I provides faster time-to-report (two to four months from start) while you build toward Type II.