promote robust learning opportunities are
more attractive to skilled professionals,
who seek organizations that support their
career growth. Organizations must ensure
their teams are equipped to successfully
maneuver in a continuously evolving regulatory
environment. Provide employees
with access to the latest technology tools
and system upgrades, and the necessary
training to stay on top of emerging compliance
trends."
Robert Half Management Resources
highlights six professional development
options companies can offer beyond traditional
training:
1. Guest speakers: Invite experts from
within and outside the company to
share insights on key issues affecting
your team. A fresh voice also can
spark new ideas.
2. Job rotations: Role rotation
programs help staff build different
skills, better understand other parts
of the business and develop new
problem-solving strategies.
3. Mentorships: Having seasoned
professionals counsel less experienced
colleagues is a tried-and-true strategy.
But don't stop there. Also look for
opportunities for newer employees to
share expertise that can benefit more
senior staff members.
4. Cross-departmental teams: Assign
employees to project task forces to
introduce them to colleagues from
other departments and expand their
skills. When appropriate, give them
leadership positions and greater
decision-making authority.
5. Tap consultants: These professionals
can serve as mentors and assist with
training programs. In addition, when
their engagements end, coordinate
sessions where interim professionals
can pass their key learnings to your
full-time staff.
6. Volunteering: From planning to
collaboration to leadership, these
opportunities require competencies
all professionals must possess.
Support your team's volunteer
efforts. This also may include
assisting nonprofit or philanthropic
organizations with technical needs
such as compliance and budgeting.
CANADIAN BUSINESSES ARE
VULNERABLE IN A DIGITAL AGE
Consumers and employees need to feel
confident that the sensitive information
they entrust to businesses is protected.
But what if businesses don't feel confident
themselves?
The seventh annual Shred-it
Information Security Tracker Survey, conducted
by Ipsos, reveals that Canadian
businesses may not be keeping up with
the complex privacy and security risks
associated with an evolving workplace environment
– and they know they're falling
behind. Just over half of small business
owners (SBOs) and just under half of
Canadian C-suites don't feel confident
about their current secure destruction systems
for paper or electronic media.
When it comes to the use of electronic
devices in small businesses, there is a striking
gap between what SBOs perceive to be
their greatest security risk and the current
data protection policies they have in place.
Sixty per cent of SBOs perceive their biggest
information security risk in the next
five to ten years to be either online threats,
cloud computing or the paperless office
– all of which originate from electronic
media. Yet, 46 per cent of SBOs don't
have a policy in place for disposing of confidential
data found on electronic devices.
More concerning, 50 per cent of SBOs
have no policy in place at all for governing
the use of electronic devices in their business.
And for those small businesses that
have a practice for disposing of data found
on electronic devices, the majority wipe or
dispose of their electronic materials containing
confidential information in-house.
"Even if information on an electronic
device is erased, reformatted or wiped, it's
not always enough to protect confidential
information. Destroying the device's hard
drive is the only way to ensure the information
is unrecoverable," said Paul Saabas,
vice president at Shred-it.
Contrary to their small business counterparts,
a significant majority (87 per
cent) of C-suites work at organizations
that have a policy in place for the use of
electronic devices in their workplace.
However, these measures are incomplete:
44 per cent don't have a policy in place that
is strictly adhered to and known by all employees
for disposing of confidential data
found on those electronic devices. And
47 per cent don't require electronic devices
to be both encrypted and password
protected.
"Without policies governing the use
and destruction of electronic devices,
Canadian businesses put their organization
and reputations at risk by exposing
sensitive customer, employee and business
data," said Saabas. "While it's true that
small businesses face different resource
challenges than larger businesses, there are
news
“EVEN IF INFORMATION ON AN ELECTRONIC
DEVICE IS ERASED, REFORMATTED OR
WIPED, IT’S NOT ALWAYS ENOUGH TO
PROTECT CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.
DESTROYING THE DEVICE’S HARD DRIVE
IS THE ONLY WAY TO ENSURE THE
INFORMATION IS UNRECOVERABLE.”
– PAUL SAABAS
10 ❚ JULY 2017 ❚ HR PROFESSIONAL
