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Marco Leijnse

Partner

  • Global
  • Partner
  • Digital Risks
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Marco is a Partner and Head of Global Digital Risk Assurance at Control Risks, where he leads the firm’s digital risk assurance services for clients worldwide. With a specialised focus on ensuring compliance with industry frameworks, regulations, and best practices, Marco and his team help organisations assess, enhance, and validate their digital security programs. He enables them to mitigate digital risks, including those stemming from third-party relationships while ensuring the highest levels of regulatory compliance and security.

Marco’s expertise extends beyond digital risk to include his prior focus on physical security, allowing him to offer a holistic approach to risk management. He helps organisations not only address digital vulnerabilities but also manage the intersections between physical and cyber risks. This integrated approach enables clients to secure their entire operational environment—both digital and physical—while maintaining compliance with relevant regulations and standards.

With a broad background across industries such as retail, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, financial services, and energy, Marco has a proven track record of delivering Control Risks’ services, including both cybersecurity and physical security assessments.

Recent tasks that Marco has worked on include:

  • Leading global digital security audits, providing assurance on the effectiveness of security controls, policies, and governance structures, while ensuring compliance with industry frameworks.
  • Leading digital risk vulnerability assessments, including penetration testing to ensure compliance with regulatory standards and industry best practices.
  • Overseeing third-party risk assessments, helping clients evaluate and manage the security posture of external vendors, contractors, and business partners to mitigate third-party digital risks and ensure compliance with relevant frameworks and regulations.
  • Advising clients on the integration of physical and digital security programs, including the development of holistic risk management strategies that address both physical security vulnerabilities and digital threats.
  • Leading large-scale physical security vulnerability assessments for global retail, manufacturing and technology organisations. This included physical security reviews and penetration testing of key facilities to assess the ability to manage and respond to several threat scenarios (in particular workplace violence-related events).
  • Leading global security program reviews and benchmarking exercises of security practices for rapidly growing organisations from biotechnology firms to major energy companies. Developing strategies and roadmaps to help organisations close identified gaps and advance their security organisations, programs and practices.

Prior to working for Control Risks, Marco worked in the financial services sector implementing key strategic initiatives with senior executives. He also worked for a global management consultancy firm where he developed and implemented management structures and operational solutions for oil and gas, mining and energy clients.

Marco holds a master’s degree in management studies from the University of New South Wales in Australia and a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering and management science from the TUE in the Netherlands. Marco is a qualified program and project management professional and is certified as a governance, risk and compliance professional. He is fluent in English and Dutch.

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