Strategic partnership allows prime contractors to accurately and rapidly identify and address supplier compliance shortcomings to compete for and win Department of War contracts

TAMPA, Fla. – (May 12, 2026) – A-LIGN, a leading cybersecurity compliance firm and C3PAO (CMMC Third-Party Assessor Organization), and Exostar, the leader in secure, compliant B2B collaboration solutions for the defense industry, today announced a strategic partnership. A-LIGN and Exostar will help defense contractors get certified under the Department of War’s Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) program and to help prime contractors manage flow down compliance risk across their global, multi-tier supply chains, providing a scalable solution to the market to meet the urgent demand accompanying the rollout of CMMC. 

With CMMC requirements now embedded in DoW contract solicitations and renewals, primes face growing risk due to limited visibility into supplier compliance readiness, putting key programs at risk when suppliers fail to achieve CMMC accreditation on time.  A single uncertified supplier can mean disqualification from contract award. Together, A-LIGN and Exostar make the path to certification for primes and their suppliers faster and more straightforward, while giving primes unprecedented confidence in the security and compliance of their supply chains.  

“The defense supply chain is only as strong as its weakest link,” said Scott Price, CEO of A-LIGN. “By pairing Exostar’s supply chain visibility capabilities with A-LIGN’s experienced CMMC teams that conduct rigorous assessments at scale, we’re giving prime contractors the confidence that every supplier in their network gets certified and compliant before affecting DoW revenue streams. The partnership will help contractors drive readiness, strengthen security at scale, and position themselves for success.” 

Exostar’s rapidly growing customer network spans more than half of the Defense Industrial Base (DIB), including long-standing relationships with prime contractors such as Lockheed Martin, RTX, L3Harris, Northrop Grumman, and Boeing. Exostar’s Supplier Management and CMMC Ready Suite provide visibility into supplier risk (including CMMC compliance status) and deliver the products and the CMMC Maturity Level 2 and FedRAMP Moderate Equivalent operating environment DIB firms need to prepare for, attain, and maintain CMMC accreditation. 

A-LIGN brings the assessment expertise to act on that intelligence and infrastructure. As one of the industry’s fastest and most trusted federal assessors, A-LIGN gets organizations to certification with speed and rigor that few can match. Together, Exostar and A-LIGN give defense contractors the visibility to identify and address supplier compliance shortcomings and the assessment capacity to confirm compliance faster than ever. 

“Our community has trusted us to deliver supply chain visibility and management and secure, compliant collaboration for over two decades. We’ve understood the importance of CMMC to the DoW and the DIB since the framework was first proposed in 2019, leading us to invest in the development of our innovative CMMC Ready Suite of products and managed services,” said Richard Addi, CEO at Exostar. “Partnering with A-LIGN complements our CMMC Ready Suite with the resources necessary to give our customers the direct, trusted accreditation assessment pathway imperative for primes and suppliers to protect and enhance their DoW revenue streams.” 

About A-LIGN 
A-LIGN is the leading cybersecurity compliance partner, trusted by over 6,400 organizations worldwide to navigate the complexities of compliance, audit, and risk. With a tech-enabled delivery model and deep domain expertise, A-LIGN has completed more than 36,000 audits. It is the #1 issuer of SOC 2 reports and a top three FedRAMP assessor. Founded in 2009, A-LIGN delivers high-quality, efficient audits across frameworks including SOC 2, ISO 27001, FedRAMP, CMMC, ISO 42001, PCI, and HITRUST. To learn more, visit: https://www.a-lign.com. 

About Exostar
The Exostar Platform supports communities exclusively within highly regulated industries where organizations securely collaborate, share information, and operate compliantly. Within these communities, we build trust. Over 200,000 companies and agencies in 175 countries trust Exostar to strengthen security, reduce expenditures, and raise productivity, helping them achieve their digital transformation initiatives. More than half of the Defense Industrial Base, including 98 of the top 100 firms, transact business over The Exostar Platform. Over 25 of the top global biopharmaceutical companies rely on The Exostar Platform to help speed new medicines and therapies to market. Exostar is a Gartner Cool Vendor. For more information, visit www.exostar.com, and follow Exostar on LinkedIn and X.