Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Securing the Brand !

A Brand is an earned identity of a business, and how its custodians care for this brand, determines its future. Employees show pride in the brand by conspicuously displaying their ID cards. They are also the first responders to report any potential misuse of the brand. Earned assets need protection too; hence, security management is not only about being aware of threats and practicing prevention, but about being ahead in the battle of wits using technology, as well.  It’s about accessing control of the future, now.
Today, as we lead hybrid lives, our traditional boundaries become more and more blurred. We complement our “real” selves with “online” personas for our audiences on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and countless other social channels. The routine nine to five working day is becoming a distant memory, thanks to smartphones and tablets, which allow us to be in constant contact, no matter where we are. And just as with work and home, our online and offline lives, increasingly overlap. Organisations are realising that their security management practices must also upgrade in order to keep up with this change, and they should think no differently than marketers to remain efficient, always.
Let's see How.

In today’s online-offline world, employees or visitors may be today or tomorrow’s customers. This means that their experience of your security management practices can have long-lasting and often unforeseen consequences for your brand and business reputation.

We all have stories to tell about our own experiences – and human nature far prefers sharing nightmares as opposed to sharing fairy tales. We talk about the entire experience, from the first ID card or a visitor pass issued, like how quick or slow a process it was, to how this ID card can be loaned or stolen for misuse by someone, whose security breach may never be acknowledged. Our experience begins as a story shared in the canteen with close friends and can often turn into a trending buzz. So, security managers have an increasingly important role to play in managing corporate security practices, as well as communicating about them. And again, this is where thinking like a marketer can help.

So first, ask yourself this simple marketer’s question: How do my employees feel about our brand after going through our security management practices? Then, ask yourself these security management questions: What are my overall security management objectives? How will this benefit employees? How can they contribute to make it effective? Do I need to reduce our cost of surveillance? Are we risking our corporate reputation because our security breach response time is too slow? Do we need to cover a wider variety of systems and tools in order to have effective security management procedures in place? Do our security operation management teams need special training or very complex skillsets in order to manage their duties? Or, is it the Security Department’s responsibility, alone, to comply?

Whatever your security management goals and priority, harnessing marketing tools and techniques, particularly in the fast-evolving era of social media, will do both your security management and your brand a favour. Read on to find out why.

You Will Grow Your Potential Customer Base. 

Large organisations with a high volume of employee transition can pro-actively build a pool of engaged prospective employees on social media. Your effectiveness and modernized technology will get people talking, sharing, and appreciating your services faster than you can imagine.
For example, the Indian hospitality giant, Club Mahindra, is a trailblazer in managing security by utilizing  the social platform of the iSOLUS elite app. According to the social buzz, over 65% of employees talk and share their experience, at least once a day., With this Club Mahindra’s webpage traffic and sales' leads are bound to increase…without increasing the advertising budget. Since potential customers are confident to enter the holidays sales outlet knowing that their personal data is safe, secure and protected. And this is all made possible because of TMW, or The Mahindra Way, and its role in utilizing outside unbiased opinions to improve the perception of security in the minds of potential clients and customers. "TMW proves that it pays to think outside the box when it comes to security," says Subhash Kelkar, CIO at Club Mahindra.
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The Mahindra Way (TMW) & Solus ID11 Securing Excellence. 
Give Your Brand Security Consciousness. 
Security threats continually invade nearly every aspect of our lives, and the area of security management is no exception. While there’s nothing new about Corporate security management, the novelty of mobile apps, which are now built into almost every employee’s mobile phone, tablet, laptop, or desktop, can give a push to corporate security practices and philosophies, as it has with Mahindra. With practically no cost and little time, security managers can now record and post security practice breaches, along with video clips or snapshots as evidence, giving them a powerful presence of security, even when they are off duty, thereby enhancing respect to the security management practices and, more importantly, the brand in the minds of employees, visitors and potential customers.

Identify and Engage Creative Contributors. 

Engaging employees in security management processes can be rewarding in many ways. And since there are no good or bad ways to manage or improve the process, we can allow the users to contribute ideas that may better the management procedures. Security management personnel can screen the ideas and suggestions with far more accuracy, thereby getting a strong insight into employees’ personalities and core skills, making it easier to find strong candidates who stand out from the crowd.

Treat Your Employees Like Your Customers. 

First, name one consumer business without a customer service department! Can you? Now, is your company in the 75 percentile ignoring unsuccessful security practices? Remember, whether you use tailgate tracking or a door –left-open-too-long system, your employees will eventually become aware of your weaknesses. The iSOLUS notification system, or even a simple Email or SMS, is an essential tool that allows employees easy access to check your security operations. A little respect earned, here, goes a long way.
If you’re still not inspired to market your security management practices, here’s a real and powerful example:

Asian Paints 

20141008_141325.jpgis known for practical and effective information security management. The image to the right shows a mirror for employees to check before accessing a door using their company's ID Cards to stop tailgating.“… been very unconventional security communication campaign towards brands respect for Information Security,” says Group CIO Mr. Manish Choksi, when asked about the addition of the mirrors at doors as their normal security practice, “Security starts with little steps like this before leaving lasting colors of a most innovative brand like Asian Paints.

As we all know, Security in any organization begins and ends with people. It is important to include them in the process by keeping them informed, alert, and connected. After all, it’s about their protection, as well. To find out how we can assist you in an employee-inclusive enterprise security solution, contact us at http://www.solus.co.in/contact or 

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