Ontinue, an award-winning provider of AI-powered Managed Extended Detection and Response (MXDR) services, continues to be the cybersecurity partner of choice for ACR, a leader in the food service and hospitality supply sector. Over a five-year partnership, Ontinue has supported ACR’s security operations through a decade of rapid acquisitions—ten since 2016—while enabling secure, scalable growth.

With a product catalog of over 6,000 items and a complex, expanding digital infrastructure, ACR’s security demands have grown significantly. Through this period of aggressive mergers and acquisitions (M&A), the organization has treated cybersecurity as a business enabler, not just a technical requirement. Under the leadership of Thai Vong, Vice President of Technology and Acting CIO, ACR has embedded cybersecurity into its entire enterprise—from M&A strategy to supply chain resilience and innovation initiatives.

“Ontinue has helped us build a secure foundation that protects our environment around the clock,” said Vong. “Their team feels like an extension of ours—proactive, responsive, and deeply embedded. That trust allows us to focus on integrating acquisitions and driving business growth without distraction.”

Tom Boyles Jr., Director of Infrastructure and Security at ACR, emphasized the operational impact: “Ontinue’s 24/7 monitoring, AI-driven capabilities, and tight integration with Microsoft Defender and Sentinel keep our systems secure while freeing our internal teams to focus on high-value projects.”

Managed SecOps Built to Scale

Ontinue’s ION MXDR service elevates traditional managed detection and response (MDR) by investigating and resolving incidents independently, minimizing customer involvement. Key innovations include:

  • Real-time collaboration via Microsoft Teams with Ontinue’s Cyber Defense Center
  • Smart Response with customizable automation and escalation protocols
  • Agentic AI-powered autonomous investigations through ION IQ

ION IQ uses advanced AI to autonomously investigate every security incident—gathering contextual intelligence, forming hypotheses, executing plans, and delivering summaries for human validation. This model has halved ACR’s mean time to investigate (MTTI), even as its IT environment has become more complex.

“AI is a force multiplier,” said Ontinue CEO Geoff Haydon. “With agentic AI, we combine machine speed with human reasoning to deliver modern security at scale. It’s what legacy MDR providers can’t match—and it’s why we’re proud to support ACR’s secure growth.”

Improved Security Posture and Measurable Results

Using Ontinue’s Security Posture Improvement Framework, ACR has improved its Microsoft Secure Score by 28%, reaching 68—70% higher than the industry average. Their dedicated Cyber Advisor collaborates with internal teams to systematically reduce risk, streamline security controls, and onboard newly acquired businesses—often within two months.

“We’ve prioritized building a unified security architecture that adapts in real time,” Vong said. “Ontinue’s Managed SOC extends Defender and Sentinel across our infrastructure, providing centralized visibility and standardized controls across all business units.”

Boyles added, “With Ontinue, we improved our CIS benchmarks, began our NIST AI Risk Management Framework journey, and strengthened business continuity planning—while avoiding burnout and unnecessary tool sprawl.”

Operational Efficiencies and Trust-Driven Collaboration

ACR chose not to build an internal SOC, instead relying on Ontinue’s 24/7 Cyber Defense Center to scale its operations securely. This decision delivered tangible benefits:

  • 30 hours of analyst time saved in the last 90 days
  • 50% reduction in MTTI
  • 28% boost in Microsoft Secure Score (from 53 to 68)
  • Zero security breaches in 2024
  • Five years of trusted partnership

Ontinue’s Microsoft Teams integration ensures real-time communication and fast decision-making during incidents. Their high-touch support model deepens transparency and helps ACR align security practices with broader enterprise risk management goals.

“Cybersecurity isn’t just about defense anymore,” Vong explained. “It enables business momentum. With Ontinue, we’ve embedded security into our operating model, enabling us to grow faster and safer.”

Security as a Foundation for Digital Transformation

As ACR continues to pursue digital transformation and expansion, Ontinue remains a strategic partner. Their support ensures that each acquisition and system change is underpinned by a scalable and resilient security framework.

“Cybersecurity is foundational to how we grow,” said Vong. “It’s not an afterthought—it’s built into every digital move we make. Ontinue gives us the clarity and confidence to innovate securely at scale.”

With a future-focused approach that blends AI, automation, and strategic leadership, ACR and Ontinue demonstrate how deep partnership and modern MXDR can deliver security that keeps pace with business ambition.