Whenever compliance and accreditation are discussed, many of us focus on ensuring everything is okay without considering the potential benefits.
We think about the mandatory things we need to do to ensure our products and services are legally safe, that they adhere to the standards set out for them and that our teams are working in a safe, compliant environment.
We invest a lot of time and resources into ensuring those boxes are ticked; we have to, after all! However, there is also a whole range of other accreditation and certification that isn’t mandatory.
You and your business have already put in the hard work to get the compliance you need; is it worth your time to bother with anything else?
Yes, it is. It can pay off in all kinds of ways…
Gaining an edge
You don’t need me to tell you any competitive business advantage is worth grabbing with both arms. Taking compliance and accreditation to the next level is a powerful way to do that…
Boost your reputation and allow you to gain a competitive edge over others in your industry
Win you more business and empower you to bid for lucrative contracts with external agencies
Improve the inner ethos of your organisation, maximising staff morale, productivity and giving your teams a real sense of pride
Win trust and confidence in your business, which can be essential in some sectors, such as social care or the financial sector
Drive growth for small to medium-sized businesses
Accreditation can highlight legal compliance, green credentials, and an ethos of sustainability.
Investing in your business and its people
The range of accreditation out there for your business can be considerable. It ranges from ISO standards like ISO 27001 (managing information), ISO 45001 (occupational health and safety), and ISO 9001 (quality management) to industry-specific accreditation that will allow you to bid for contracts with government agencies, schools, and the NHS. For charitable organisations, accreditations such as NCVO can demonstrate their trustworthiness and win the confidence of potential donors.
On an individual level, accreditation can also have a positive impact; mental health champions, data protection, and safeguarding, to name just a few, are all precious accredited courses for key employees; they might also go some way towards gaining Investors in People accreditation, an award which any forward thinking company should be proud of.
A sign of quality that is easy to share
Showcasing your accreditation is an easy and effective way to show your qualities to the world and prove that you stand head and shoulders above your competitors. You can add them to your website’s homepage as logos, share them via your social media channels, blog about the important part they play in your company’s story, send out newsletters and even contact the local paper!
You’ve gone the extra mile, after all. Why wouldn’t you want to shout about it from the rooftops with pride and passion?
If you are working towards gaining accreditation to drive growth and demonstrate your quality, collating the right materials and information and presenting it in the correct format is essential. Failing to do so can cost you time, money, and more than a bit of frustration.
In today’s digital age, data protection is not just a legal requirement but a cornerstone of trust and reliability in business. For micro and small businesses, managing data protection alongside many other responsibilities can be overwhelming.
In the digital era, where data breaches and compliance fines are a real threat, the need to delegate data protection to a specialist becomes paramount. For small and micro businesses, navigating the complexities of data protection laws such as the Data Protection Act 2018, UK GDPR, and PECR can be daunting. This is where the significance of delegating data protection comes into play.
Here’s why a specialist is indispensable:
Expert Knowledge: Data protection specialists are well-versed in the intricacies of laws and regulations. Their expertise ensures that your business remains compliant, avoiding costly legal pitfalls.
Risk Mitigation: Specialists in data protection are adept at identifying and addressing potential security vulnerabilities, significantly reducing the risk of data breaches and the associated financial and reputational damages.
Focus on Core Business: By delegating data protection, your business can concentrate on its core competencies, which are essential for growth and sustainability.
Cost-Effectiveness: Investing in a specialist is often more cost-effective than managing data protection in-house. It saves resources spent on training and keeping up with evolving legislation.
Customer Confidence: Demonstrating a commitment to data protection through a specialist can significantly boost customer trust and loyalty, as it shows a dedication to safeguarding their personal information.
Why Choose Michelle Molyneux Business Consulting?
Choosing Michelle Molyneux Business Consulting for your data protection needs is a decision that offers both peace of mind and strategic advantage. With their deep understanding of data protection laws and a track record of effectively managing risks, they provide a service tailored to small and micro businesses’ unique needs. Their proactive approach not only ensures compliance and security but also positions your business as trustworthy and responsible in the eyes of your customers. Partnering with Michelle Molyneux Business Consulting means you’re not just meeting legal requirements; you’re elevating your business in the realms of security, trust, and professionalism.
As business owners, we are specialists in our own right. But we do not know everything – no matter how much we Google. Sometimes, it is too time-consuming to do it ourselves, too technical or just brain-numbingly boring. That is when we need to look externally for help, either as a long-term solution or as a short burst of guidance using a consultant. But getting that help can be a project in itself. How do you find the perfect fit?
It is always worth bearing in mind that, whether we are aware of the fact or not, the data which our businesses rely on builds up over time. It becomes a sort of inventory even if we don’t plan for it so that inventory has to be organised.
We don’t just do this to achieve GDPR compliance. There’s a whole range of other tangible benefits, too; a good data policy also aids productivity and efficiency, earns customer trust, and allows you to market your services and products in much more focused and effective ways.
It might seem counterintuitive, but those end goals are also an ideal starting point. If you begin building any new data inventory with those goals in mind, it will allow you to form the important questions you need to ask to get it right. Similarly, if you are data mapping existing processes where you feel improvement is needed, it can really help too.
A useful, if unusual guide…
The ‘five bums and a rugby post’ method, despite the unusual name, is a great formula for helping you ask the big questions when it comes to data, and if nothing else, it will certainly stick in your mind.
Imagine five rugby players sitting on the bar of a Rugby post. That’s five ‘w’ shapes and one large ‘H’. Those bums represent five important questions; Who, What, Where, When and Why?
The rugby post itself (the large ‘H’) represents the final question; How.
How does this apply to data inventory? Let’s look a little closer…
Who?
In the context of GDPR, this simply asks whose data you process. It might be clients, patients, employees, and business partners; it’s an important and logical first step.
What data to include in the inventory?
You guessed it, what kinds of data do you hold; is it personal data, for example, or is it sensitive data, it might be anything from information on a fitness device, and search engine queries to bank details and medical records, each is different, and those differences are vital.
Where?
Where is your data stored? It might be remotely, you might not realise it could even be outside the EU, or it could be held in email inboxes, filing cabinets or local hard drives. Is it structured in a database, or is it harder to locate?
When?
This is time-based; ask yourself when you or your business collects data, how long you can hold it for, and the time constraints you must work to when dealing with data-related requests.
Why?
Why do you hold the data you do? For some, this will be to pay employees and contractors. It will be for marketing, and others, it will be to comply with the law. It may even be a mixed answer.
The answers to all these questions will help you to establish HOW to build and maintain a structured and compliant data inventory, and I can help.
As a Certified Data Protection Officer, I help organisations of every size and scope achieve compliance, improve efficiency, and enjoy the many other benefits of a good data inventory practice. These questions inform important aspects of my work with them.
If you would like to learn more, book a quick chat here.
It is a sobering thought that every one of us has a long, intricate trail of data in the wider world.
Personal data, including email addresses, names, where we live, our families, friends, employment records, IP addresses… Each trail is specific to us; its contents can identify us.
However, another trail running parallel to the first with much more sensitive data that, in the wrong hands, could be used to target us, such as our medical histories, sexuality and our gender, race and religion.
-All that, and we haven’t even started to mention Social Media profiles…
Cutting through the confusion
Information about your clients, suppliers, employees and other associates or stakeholders is your responsibility. Knowing exactly what that data is, where it is held (off-site, in the cloud or the filing cabinet, for example,) and the lengths of time you are obliged to keep it for are all important legal requirements.
If you run a business, you will handle data just like that listed above and doing so is more of a responsibility than ever before.
It’s a worthwhile task to undertake, for legal compliance obviously, but for other reasons too:
Upholding people’s rights
Acting fast to address issues such as data breaches and cybercrime
Plan more focused, effective marketing strategies
Your customer relationships and reputation will lift you above the competition
You get a secure, organised and data-accurate business
Those are just some of the benefits of handling data correctly, but how on earth do you get to that point?
Don’t panic! Help is out there
If you are confused or concerned by issues surrounding the data you hold, don’t worry. You are not the first and are certainly not alone in feeling that way. The first step, the only step that matters at the beginning of that journey towards data handling compliance and peace of mind, is this-
Establishing exactly what data you hold
I can’t stress this enough, every data audit and every conversation with a GDPR specialist such as myself begins with a long, careful look at exactly what data you handle. It is THE most important job on day one…
We can then follow the legal framework and guidelines to ensure it is handled safely and correctly.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is another valuable resource offering the help, and support businesses need to ensure data privacy. Their website provides simple-to-understand guides about data protection aimed at SMEs and even checklists and self-assessment tools such as this one.
If your business handles personal data, you should already be familiar with the ICO and the annual data protection fee unless exempt. You can check if the fee applies to you here.
The ICO is a supervisory body that goes the extra mile to offer help and advice to individuals and organisations.
Lastly, but by no means least, there is me! As a certified Data Protection Officer, I can offer the help and support you need to ensure you ‘know your data’ and handle it perfectly.
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