Every business today is mindful of information security breaches. But, by using clever technology solutions and smart business practices, organisations can reduce their risk and ensure that their team feels supported when handling data.
In any successful business there is a plethora of data, both sensitive and insignificant, that travels through its platforms daily. Knowing this, it is essential to successfully manage the information within your organisation and have processes in place that ensure only the right people have access to the content they are viewing or modifying.
Information security is intended to keep your data secure and safe from any unauthorised access or actions, not only when it is being stored, but also when it’s being transmitted from one location to another. It includes the establishment of clear guidelines to minimise risk and ensure continuity if you have internal changes within your organisation.
Weak information security can lead to information being lost or stolen, modification of material (either accidentally or maliciously), customer data breaches and other concerns. By having a centrally managed framework you can manage, monitor, review, and improve your information security.
The team at Inform are experts. We can optimise our client’s operations, deliver best-in-class service and improve their bottom line profits, all by implementing the right information security processes and systems.
The most important objective of information security is to protect the information and assets within your business. The basic principles of information security are:
- Confidentiality
To protect information so it is only accessed by authorised individuals. - Integrity Safeguarding information from being modified without consent. This also means ensuring it is reliable, accurate and up to date.
- Availability
Making sure that the right people have access to sensitive information and confidential documents are protected.
Inform Strategic Consulting helps businesses to create a strategic information security plan, incorporating their current technologies versus their information management budget, their objectives, and the stakeholders involved with their businesses.
As with any strategic plan, the earlier you set security controls, the better off your business will be. If you already have procedures in place but believe they can be improved, talk to us. We have extensive experience providing a clear understanding of what is required to secure data, without hindering an employee’s ability to find what they need in order to do their job.
By creating user-friendly systems to organise and display your information, everyone from staff to business stakeholders will be able to access the information they need at the right times. By organising your content in a user-friendly format, staff can complete their tasks promptly. On the other hand, if your information isn’t stored correctly it can cause significant interruptions to workflow and time taken to discover the information.
Inform Strategic Consulting will work with you and your team to create the appropriate information architecture to enable users to find what they are looking for in the most efficient manner possible. Actively engaging with you, we will identify your business goals and consider your security and compliance requirements.
Information architecture (IA) can work at multiple levels in an organisation – some have platforms where the business requirements, infrastructure, applications and systems all intertwine together. Others play a smaller, more focused role and don’t require a complete overhaul. Given the volume of data increasing in the last few years, organisations have been forced to pay attention to their information architecture frameworks, which means our role has become more and more critical for more organisations.
Information architecture is easy to get wrong. Not only that; it’s hard to repair a poorly executed IA strategy. To be successful in implementation, everybody needs to be working towards the same vision; strategies that have organisation-wide buy-in is essential.
The trade-off? Doing it right will not only help your business extract maximum value from its data, but it will also put you in a better position for future growth. If you fail to modernise your information architecture at the appropriate time, this can result in future technology debt, and the potential inability to make use of emerging technologies.
Inform Strategic Consulting helps organisations to establish high-quality information architecture systems by:
- Providing them with an effective strategic approach that will evolve with the business;
- Enhancing the end-user experience of individuals both internally and externally;
- Evaluate and increase information security by ensuring people have access to the right information;
- Improve efficiency when searching for files;
- Discard information that is no longer required; and
- Organise internal information to align with business objectives.
Your information is a priceless asset, and should only be handled by experienced digital solutions experts.
get in touch today.
The data generated by organisations all over the world increases every minute of every day. And in a digital-first world where remote work and file sharing are becoming more and more prevalent, it’s crucial that businesses establish clear-cut records management processes if they want to keep up. If they don’t, they face issues with productivity, non-compliance, and security, just to begin with.
From the moment we put pen to paper, (or fingertip to keyboard), a record comes alive. What happens to it, who views it, where it is stored and how long it is stored for and how it is disposed is what we call records management.
The team at Inform Strategic Consulting help businesses set up effective records management strategies to ensure records are:
- Stored securely in a records management system;
- Available and accessible when they are needed;
- Retained for the right amount of time based on any legislation; and
Disposed of securely when no longer required.
Having the proper governance makes it easier to employ accurate management within your SharePoint and Microsoft 365 environments; ensuring content is always in its proper location, and has the correct content tags to be catalogued. It also increases security and reduces the risk of end-user mistakes.
Overall, records management can include tasks like:
- Identifying and storing records in set locations;
- Establishing and enforcing policies, standards and guidelines;
- Assigning responsibilities and roles to the relevant staff;
- Maintaining information usability;
- Internal and external access solutions; and
- Integrating records regularly as part of your organisation’s operations.
Coming up with a plan can be overwhelming, especially if organisations have been relying on manual processes for recordkeeping. But, with the ability to automatically schedule repetitive tasks such as approvals, holds and other time-consuming administrative matters, our clients benefit from better management and improved compliance. We will always consider how a solution matches client needs both in the short and long term, so any changes we recommend work to evolve our client’s businesses.
Inform often works as an extension of our client’s teams, providing them with a records management process that works to support their organisation’s future. We assess the ability of our client’s software and processes to manage and store their records, and suggest and implement new systems, if needed.
Data is the most valuable asset within your organisation, and how you manage it is critical. Your organisation’s data in the wrong hands can be catastrophic. But not only that. Proper management of a business’s data can mean that the right people have access to information at the right times. It makes everyone’s role easier.
When talking about information governance we focus on all data created within a business; from employee files to accounting records, websites, client data, emails, social media posts and more. Data also incorporates any policies, procedures, structures and processes that organisations must comply with when creating, managing and sharing information both internally and externally.
Data governance is getting more and more difficult for organisations. Privacy demands are getting more complex and the threat of cybercrime becomes more pronounced every year. Proper data governance can help you determine which records should be kept, how long they should be kept for, and where they should be stored. It is essential that, as a business, you regularly monitor any procedures in place to make sure they address all types of information held within your company.
Inform Strategic Consulting helps our clients achieve maximum protection by organising and safeguarding their critical business data.
Each organisation is unique. That means that each organisation will have unique business goals and encounter different challenges. Therefore, in our vast experience, we have found that there is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to creating an effective governance program.
With the world undertaking a massive digital transformation, we see this as an opportunity for businesses to reform – the right way. . We recognise that, with every client, compliance starts with an understanding of each company’s information governance and responsibilities. If there are no clear retention guidelines established, you run the risk of falling short of compliance obligations.
Without an effective plan you could be opening yourself up to unnecessary risks. Inform Strategic Consulting can help support your data governance by:
- Finding more efficient ways to store data and reduce the overall volume of data stored;
- Establishing processes and responsibilities to ensure the quality of the data your business uses; and
- Defining roles within your organisation to govern who looks after what information, and how.
Inform Strategic Consulting has a wealth of experience creating solutions for different situations and organisations. Whether a client needs a multi-year governance strategy or a plan for an entirely new management system, our team has the expertise to help.
We can assist organisations who are just at the beginning of developing a governance strategy as well as those who are re-evaluating their current procedures. Either way,it’s important you are seeking expert advice to maximise your organisation’s performance.
You need to make sure that your information is easily accessible and useful at any point throughout the content life cycle. By having the right Enterprise Content Management (ECM) system, you will be able to automate processes, increase productivity, and encourage collaboration right across your business.
Content is everywhere. Every day we are creating documents, drafting emails, populating spreadsheets, developing presentations and creating other forms of content at a faster rate than ever before. And, as more people work together, the sharing of accurate information is critical. In order to streamline this collaboration, shared access to files and other resources is essential.
With the rise in remote work environments, much of the content produced is stored in emails, on our hard drive or just saved wherever an individual leaves it. As this unstructured content filing grows, businesses have to commit to managing and storing it all. So, the premise behind an ECM is simple; give everyone easy access to the information they need to make decisions, complete projects, work efficiently, and help keep your electronic files organised.
The ECM process spans the lifecycle of your content – from creation right through to publishing and archiving. It also includes deleting the files after the required holding period, freeing up valuable space and resources.
An effective ECM solution organises existing information into the appropriate technology and makes content available to the right people at the right time.
An effective ECM strategy plays a vital role in your organisation. Inform Strategic Consulting has created countless ECM strategies to simplify business activities and reduce the amount of duplicate files and outdated information within our client’s systems. A comprehensive ECM strategy also gives you peace of mind that data is protected and not circulating somewhere it shouldn’t.
We can audit your business structure and provide stability for your business operations, often using platforms you have already invested in. Or, if you haven’t already invested in software, our experienced team can offer advice and recommendations on the right software to help you achieve your goals.
With a unified platform and the right processes in place, your team will be well on their way to working more productively, and operating in a more orderly environment.
your organisation
and improving
user experience.
Whatever your ambition is – from embracing newly purchased technology to launching an entirely new digital venture – we help businesses to unlock strategic value and improve productivity.
Digital transformation begins with a clearly defined strategy, as well as investment in innovative tools and technologies that help that transformation happen.
Without a comprehensive assessment and a clearly defined digital roadmap, your organisation will lack the focus and direction needed to achieve its goals.
Our goal is to determine the level of digital maturity within your organisation and assess your strengths and weaknesses, including your position in comparison with the competition. Working across the people, processes and technology available, Inform Strategic Consulting identifies opportunities and flag any risks to help drive your business forward. We create a clear, yet detailed roadmap to help that happen.
It is our goal to combine our experience with your digital skills, tools and technologies to accelerate your business’s efficiency.
We provide the right combination of technology infrastructure and expertise to ensure your ongoing success. Working beside you in your digital transformation journey, we take the time to understand the core functionalities that you want to achieve and whether or not you currently have the right technologies in place to do so. From there, using the right combination of tools, we can establish a strategy that ensures you will achieve your business goals and objectives swiftly.
By implementing the correct digital strategy you can reduce your overall costs, improve effectiveness and increase your footprint within your industry. You can also enable growth by consolidating information and integrating systems; saving time and improving workplace performance.
Our team is committed to:
- Integrity
Our high standards mean we will never compromise on quality or service. - Teamwork
Our team will always work closely with you to find the
best solution possible. - Passion
Our passion for excellence ensures that we’ll always be committed to
your success. - Innovation
We see every situation as a new opportunity to innovate.
The team at Inform are confident in both our technical experience and knowledge, allowing us to fully comprehend the current digital state within an organisation.
This allows us to design and develop robust digital systems, prepare the infrastructure and integrate the latest technology into business processes as required.
Whether it’s an integration or implementation, the team at Inform Strategic Consulting are experienced in developing Information Management solutions that fit into your business needs. We collaborate closely with your organisation to provide the insights, tools and support relevant to your overall organisation objectives both now and in the future.
Acknowledgement of Country
Inform acknowledges the traditional custodians of Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We pay our respects to the people, the cultures and the elders past, present and emerging.
