Can GDPR provide an Opportunity for transformative change?
Will your business be able to effectively respond to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) regulatory compliance mandate by May 2018? GDPR sets a higher bar for privacy rights for security and compliance, imposing new rules on organizations offering goods and services to people in the EU, or that collect and analyze data tied to EU residents, no matter where they are located.
With approximately 160 GDPR requirements ranging from how you collect, store and use personal information, to mandating a 72-hour notification for personal data breaches, it’s clear that your digital transformation journey is a key initiative to help accelerate the path the compliance.
We have categorized the impact of the regulation in 4 main areas:
GDPR digs deeper in requirements related on how to collect, store and use personal information. Not just by identifying and securing the data but also by instituting transparent mechanisms to detect and report usage, breaches and how you train your organization.
GDPR compliance will require your organization to rethink processes, providing opportunity for transformative change
Partnering with clients in their regulatory compliance has helped us identify three best practices that can help you leverage the opportunity GDPR provides for transformation:
- Combine GDPR compliance requirements with Transformational Programs – If you’re embarking in a program to transform client experiences, create a more productive enterprise, optimize your operations or transform your products/services, an opportunity exists to align your GDPR program and embed most of its requirements. If you’re leveraging the Cloud or in the process of migrating, you have a relationship with the Office of the Chief Information Security Officer and/or any other security and regulatory area in your organization. Don’t fear discarding synergies due to concerns of prolonging your cloud efforts. Show them that you are proactively addressing regulatory compliance and that you welcome them at the table of both initiatives.
- Effectively Communicate – All transformational initiatives require clear communication. Transparency and openness is at the core of GDPR. Leverage nurtured relationships and change management mechanisms. Team up with the security and regulatory areas to spread the message of the risk of not being compliant to every line of business. Listen and assess the risk profiles to allow you to focus on the right requirements.
- Programs of change need good Governance – Instituting the right Governance framework will allow you to collaborate and effectively execute any change required due to updates in the regulatory compliance or new data insights that you learn from your organizational regulatory health state.
Complying with GDPR to help customers succeed
Microsoft is already preparing all our products and services to comply with GDPR. We leverage the same synergies mentioned above and can add value to your GDPR journey in the following areas:
Simplify Your Privacy
Our cloud services offer the most streamlined way to meet your GDPR compliance obligations, with a simplified and complete approach to the governance of data and policies. We provide threat intelligence and tools to help you leverage that intelligence. If we are currently partnering in your Transformational journey initiatives, making us part of your GDPR Journey can amplify that relationship.
Uncover Risk & Take Action
Our products and services are fully GDPR compliant, and many of them can help you today in your compliance journey. Our data solutions can help secure and clean up your data environment, reducing your exposure to risk. We are leveraging our continuous delivery approach by releasing new tools that will help you.
You are not alone – utilize experts along the way
As the GDPR deadline draws closer, we are here to partner with you to identify any synergies and/or accelerators that you can leverage to achieve effective regulatory compliance. Just like any Digital Transformation program, monitor the cost of your GDPR program in detail and continuously challenge it against the quality and effectiveness that you are receiving. Find out how ready you are for the GDPR.
