Pirkka Rannikko
November 26 2020
To stand out in the global competition, wholesale and retail companies need to tap into process and customer data and think about the value they can extract from analytics.
For manufacturers, true digital transformation starts by envisioning where in the value chain can data be applied to make a difference.
All public sector services should be designed to serve citizens first. Digital solutions and applications must be easy to use, despite physical and cognitive disabilities.
Digital processes and data-led services help energy and utility sector companies develop a stable energy offering with transparent, customer-centric services.
Shared platforms offer fast entry to new markets, cost-efficiently and scalably. But lasting value add comes from cross-industry collaboration and linking products with complimentary services.
Digitally disrupted, the companies in the banking, finance and insurance sector must actively innovate new approaches to build omnichannel customer experiences that fully utilize data.
While medical device software is strictly regulated, there's room for innovations that make life easier for patients and caregivers. Stable and secure data flow is a must.
November 26 2020
In this follow up to part one, I introduce a couple of different canvases (see e.g. Lean Canvas), that can help you to start developing your information security in a human-centered way. The first canvas is suitable for the initial mapping of a project and defining its objective and current status. The second canvas aims to bring attention to the individual in the middle of all the ISM development. What’s the weakest link like this time and how could it be strengthened?
All projects must start with definitions. What is the objective or effect we’re aiming for? How is it measured? What’s the framework we’re working in, how do we frame the project? What do we know about the subject already, and what do we need more information on? The list goes on.
After the definitions, the project can proceed by following the steps below, for example. Later – with some relevant adjustments – it can even be used to create a continuous development process that takes place alongside normal business.
Good questions are a designer’s most important tool (along with the ability to challenge prevailing conditions). However, asking questions about the initial set-up during different types of discussions with different people at different levels of the organization soon creates a need for memory aids and ways of arranging and distributing information. Whether the discussions are held privately or in a bigger group (in a workshop, for example), canvases can provide a great help for the needs mentioned. In essence, they’re like a floor plan, showing you where you are and where you should go next.
The following canvas may help with the initial mapping of a project. It can be used as an interview structure to facilitate discussions, or it can be filled out during a workshop group exercise. The biggest benefit will be gained if the canvas is afterwards put on display in a place like the office wall or the homepage of a digital workspace where many people can see it and where it can inspire further thoughts and actions.
All designers and product developers know that coming up with a useful solution that the user needs and that becomes part of their everyday life is challenging. It’s particularly difficult if we don’t know the end user and have no idea about their needs or the context in which the solution is going to be used. Here’s where good questions will come in handy again. They will enable us to collect information about the users’ work and its security aspects. Empathy mapping can offer a great tool that can be used to support interviews and distribute subsequent insights.
Based on the idea of empathy mapping, I outlined another canvas that aims at paying attention to the role of an individual caught in the middle of information security management. Ask yourself this: What is the weakest link like this time? How could it be strengthened?
Use the canvas as an interview support. You can collect the information on one role or position onto the canvas, for example, and discuss the findings together in a workshop. It’s a good idea to return to this empathy mapping again and again, as you learn more about the people and when you need to remind yourselves of the individuals whose work your management method or information security solution is going to affect.
Sadly, I haven’t yet managed to test the canvases in practice. If you happen to try them out, I’d be grateful if you shared your experiences and sent me some feedback. Did they help you with your thinking, interactions and joint development?
If you’re someone working in digital services, I hope these thoughts have given you some food for thought. If you want to delve deeper into human-centered ISM, here are some thought-provoking works that I would recommend:
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