Our Story
A problem we knew too well
In 2023, our founders were on opposite sides of the same frustrating process. Sarah was running third-party risk at a financial institution, managing a growing vendor portfolio with spreadsheets, shared drives, and weekly status meetings that rarely moved anything forward. Marcus was building security tools and watching his customers struggle with the same manual intake workflows his product was supposed to simplify.
The problem was not a lack of effort or expertise. Security teams knew what questions to ask. Procurement teams understood the approval criteria. But the process itself — collecting questionnaires, routing reviews, tracking status, maintaining audit trails — was scattered across tools that were never designed for vendor intake.
Vendor Lantern Cloud started as an internal project to solve that specific workflow gap. After seeing the impact on cycle times, audit consistency, and cross-team visibility, we realized this was a problem hundreds of organizations face. We built the platform to give security and procurement teams the structured, repeatable process they deserve — without the overhead of a full GRC suite.
Our Values
What guides our work
Four principles that shape every product decision, customer conversation, and line of code we write.
Transparency
We believe security and procurement teams deserve clear, honest tools. No hidden complexity, no surprise limitations. Every feature we build is designed to make vendor risk visible and manageable.
Security-first thinking
Security is not a feature we add — it is how we think. Every design decision, every data flow, every access control starts with the question: would a CISO trust this with their vendor records?
Operational rigor
We build for teams that run on process. Vendor Lantern Cloud replaces ad-hoc spreadsheets and email chains with structured, repeatable workflows that hold up under audit scrutiny.
Customer partnership
Our roadmap is shaped by the teams who use Vendor Lantern Cloud every day. When a customer identifies a gap in their vendor workflow, we treat it as a product requirement — not a feature request.
FAQ
Common questions
Why was Vendor Lantern Cloud founded?
Our founders experienced the same problem from different sides of the table — one running vendor risk programs, the other building security tools. Both saw teams drowning in spreadsheets, repeating the same reviews, and losing visibility into vendor status. Vendor Lantern Cloud was built to give security and procurement teams a structured, repeatable alternative.
Who is Vendor Lantern Cloud built for?
Vendor Lantern Cloud is built for security, compliance, and procurement teams at regulated mid-market companies — typically organizations with 200 to 5,000 employees that manage 50 or more vendor relationships. Our customers include financial services firms, healthcare systems, technology companies, and professional services firms.
How is Vendor Lantern Cloud different from GRC platforms?
Most GRC platforms are broad risk management suites that include vendor management as one module among many. Vendor Lantern Cloud focuses exclusively on vendor intake and third-party risk assessment. This narrower focus means faster implementation, simpler workflows, and a product that actually matches how security and procurement teams work day to day.
Is Vendor Lantern Cloud suitable for smaller organizations?
Yes. Our Starter plan is designed for teams that are beginning to formalize their vendor intake process. Even organizations with fewer than 50 vendors benefit from structured questionnaires, clear approval workflows, and an audit trail. As your vendor portfolio grows, the platform scales with you.
How do I learn more about the team or request a security review?
You can request a walkthrough through our contact page. For security-specific questions, including SOC 2 report requests, our team will connect you with the right person. We are transparent about our security practices and happy to share documentation with prospective customers.