Transformation Quarterly 01_2023

by Eva Hinz

Hacker attacks, phishing and hybrid warfare have long been a reality. Cyber security is essential – but how best to get staff and managers excited about the topic? Most people are aware of how dangerous such attacks can be for a company. However, cyber security training is considered a chore by many. And who enjoys changing their passwords? It is even more challenging to establish a common understanding of security as a value that is anchored within the corporate culture. This process requires a stringent approach.

1. Protecting the Achilles’ heel

Where is your company particularly vulnerable? What is its Achilles’ heel when it comes to cyber attacks? Are there teams that work with particularly vulnerable information such as customer data? Extensive information gathering and analysis help to target communications and formulate messages further down the line. Here, it is also helpful to check to what extent IT security can be docked onto existing company programmes.

2. Putting cyber security on the agenda and raising awareness

The next step is to raise awareness among the workforce. An internal campaign or a week of security-related events can help to draw attention to the issue and stimulate discussion. Talk panels or testimonials are also suitable. Surprising formats that are serious and at the same time positive are better than negative appeals. And the relevance of the topic increases paplably when the CEO or CIO addresses staff in a video.

3. Carrying content into the company and living it

Finally, the topic must be anchored within the company. It is important to empower managers and employees and to motivate and involve them in implementation. This could include information material or competitions so that teams can practise the measures in a playful way. And of course employees themselves have many ideas on how cyber security measures can be integrated more easily into work processes.

Developing a common understanding of a security culture rather than it being a tiresome compulsory exercise can be done.

Photo: iStock.com/gorodenkoff