Make data security simple
Linda at Comet (Director of Finance) approached our team with a security issue. As a non-for-profit organisation working with multiple students and holding confidential information, the Comet team was struggling to effectively protect data, particularly the information collected from their learners through programmes as the team experienced the ebb and flows of scaling.
The Solution?
We created an internal facing security policy, and ran an interactive in-person training session to help the team understand the importance of the new data privacy policy and how to use it.
The Problem
The problems really occurred when the organisation shrank at first, and then quickly grew. Initially, I was the sole manager of data functions, but as the team scaled and we wrangled tight budgets, we were loosely sharing information, passwords and data that was sensitive. People were installing programs without a second thought and sharing information across the company.
In most companies, IT and Finance are separate units, but as we were a small organisation and I was effectively running both departments, I became quickly aware of the implications of no data security. That’s when I reached out to the Wires Uncrossed team for help.
The Approach
We had never engaged with anyone to develop a security policy for us before, so we were a little apprehensive at first. We knew we needed a team who understood a technical team and had the IT knowledge to deliver, but also a strong background in writing and comms, which is why between Eithne and Miles, Wires Uncrossed were the perfect fit.
We had an initial meeting with Eithne, followed by Miles to go through our situation and map it all out. They then went away and created a policy for us. The next step was a training session - I was actually really pleased with the engagement and turn-out from our team both in person and online (We have staff in Whakatane). More so, I was hugely impressed with how Eithne prepared us for the training session, setting clear goals, processes and expectations for what we would get out of the training. By the end of the session, our team was aware of the changes and encouraged to read and implement the policy.
The Outcome
We’ve definitely noticed an improvement from the team in terms of how they manage data and security. I think the key thing is awareness. Eithne and Miles let everyone know that we were serious, and communicated the reasoning that underpinned why data security was so crucial. The team changed their passwords fairly immediately, and are now really well across what a good password looks like and best practice. Honestly, how Eithne and Miles communicate complex ideas is impressive!
Does this ring a bell for your business?
Get in touch to talk about how wires uncrossed can help your technical experts with effective communication.
