Trade secret

“Data privacy. Yeah, yeah, yeah, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. We’ll tag something on at the end, around about the time we decide where we’re going for the Done-it Drinks and Disco.”

No. That’s a widely held view of when to handle data privacy in a transformation, but a risky one. Instead, I’d always recommend considering your approach on data privacy right from the outset. This enables you to build a privacy framework within your operations: and in turn, begin to embed privacy awareness within your culture.

My five good reasons for starting early on data privacy are:

 1: Privacy professionals are your friends. Make time to talk to an expert. Don’t view these people as The Fun Police; Chief Creativity Crushers; or Computer-Says-No types. A good privacy expert will work with you to understand what you want to achieve with your data and help you access maximum - legal - flexibility with it.

2: The rules are not always the rules. Not all privacy rules apply to all businesses.  A privacy professional will help you understand which privacy laws and regulations apply to your business. Taking time to investigate may reveal your situation is more relaxed than you think.

3: Education, education, education. The biggest risk under privacy law for most firms is an accidental breach by a misguided – or misled – employee. By starting privacy design and culture change early, you have time to educate your employees of their and your organisation’s obligations for protecting personal information.

4: Developing open partnerships with suppliers. You need honest communication with your vendors and clear oversight of what they are doing because – eeek! – their mistakes are your responsibility. If someone provides services on your behalf, you are also responsible for how they collect and use your consumers’ personal information. Again, that level of transparency will take time and so needs an early start.

5: How would YOU feel?  You are a Data Subject. So am I. Take time to look at what you are doing with the personal data and think "If I were the Data Subject, would I be happy about that?" It often gives you the right answer....