About The VM Playbook
About The VM Playbook
The VM Playbook is a practical guide to running vulnerability management in the real world — not in theory.
Most vulnerability blogs focus on CVEs, exploits, or tools. This one focuses on the processes, people, and decisions behind successful patching, risk reduction, and operational security.
Why This Exists
Vulnerability management sounds simple on paper: scan, patch, repeat.
But in reality, it's full of challenges:
No one owns the asset
The patch breaks things
The SLA was missed
The dashboard's unreadable
The board wants a risk score
The goal of this blog is to help you build a calm, repeatable, effective VM function that works under pressure — whether you're in IT, security, or risk.
What You'll Find Here
Playbooks – Real-world workflows and guidance for backlog clean-up, SLA reporting, KEV tracking, and more
Briefings – High-level summaries of major CVEs and what actually matters for decision-makers
Fundamentals – Plain-English explanations of key concepts like ownership models, risk prioritization, and reporting
Resources – Checklists, templates, and examples to save you time
Who It's For
This site is designed for:
CISOs, security managers, and patch owners who need clarity
New VM analysts who want a practical onboarding shortcut
IT ops teams tired of chasing spreadsheets
Auditors, assessors, and risk leads trying to understand "good enough"
Who’s Behind It
The VM Playbook is written by a vulnerability manager working in a complex enterprise environment, with experience coordinating across infrastructure, cloud, GRC, threat intel, and security operations.
This blog is independent and platform-agnostic — it's based on lived experience, not vendor marketing.
Get in Touch
If you have feedback, ideas, or want to chat about vulnerability management challenges, feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn or subscribe for updates.
Thanks for reading!