One engineer. Direct access. No layers between you and the work.
Strata is a Cleveland-based technology firm built on a simple premise: small businesses and defense contractors deserve the same engineering rigor as Fortune 500 companies â without the Fortune 500 invoice.
Founder
Eric Rihm
Founder & Principal Engineer
I started my career on the MSP side of things â managing infrastructure, troubleshooting networks, and learning firsthand what breaks when security gets treated as an afterthought. Over the years I moved deeper into cybersecurity and compliance, eventually specializing in CMMC and NIST 800-171 for defense contractors.
I started Strata because I kept seeing the same pattern: small defense businesses getting sold oversized security packages by firms that couldn't explain what the tools actually did. The gap wasn't technology â it was engineering. These companies needed someone who could design a compliant environment from scratch, implement the controls, document the evidence, and stand behind the work during assessment.
Strata is a solo operation by design, not by limitation. I build custom tooling when off-the-shelf doesn't cut it â including an AI-powered meeting assistant for CMMC consulting sessions and internal infrastructure that would make some enterprise teams uncomfortable. Every client gets the same person from scoping call to C3PAO preparation. No handoffs. No junior staff learning on your contract.
I'm based in Cleveland, Ohio and serve defense contractors and small businesses nationwide.
Credentials & Certifications
Philosophy
Engineer-first. Always.
Four principles that shape every engagement.
Privacy-First
Your data stays on your infrastructure. I don't recommend cloud services that phone home to vendors. When I built Copilot â my own AI meeting tool â I made sure audio never leaves the machine. That's not a feature. That's a minimum standard.
Right-Sized
A 15-person machine shop doesn't need the same security stack as Lockheed Martin. I scope engagements to your actual risk surface and employee count â not to a product catalog. You get exactly the controls NIST 800-171 requires, implemented for your environment.
Build Don't Buy
When existing tools fall short, I build what's needed. Strata Copilot started because no meeting tool met my standards for privacy and compliance mode support. That engineering instinct extends to every client engagement â custom scripts, tailored configurations, purpose-built monitoring.
Transparent Operations
No black-box managed services. You get documented runbooks, full access to your own systems, and plain-language explanations of every control I implement. If I leave, you can hand the documentation to any competent engineer and they'll understand the architecture.
The Elephant in the Room
Yes, Strata is one person.
That's the point. The person who designs your network is the person who maintains it. The person who writes your System Security Plan is the person who implements the controls. The person who picks up the phone is the person who can actually fix the problem.
No ticket queue. No escalation chain. No "let me check with the senior engineer." You get the senior engineer from day one.
Ready to work with an engineer, not a call center?
CMMC Phase 2 enforcement begins November 2026. If your prime hasn't asked about your compliance status yet, they will.