Online marketing magazine for SMEs
THE VAULT ISSUE 10 | MAR/APR 2018
DUBAI THE BUSINESS TRAVELLER
GDPR FOR SMEs WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
GAVIN WALSH ON COMPANY CULTURE
DIGITAL TRENDS
THE FAKE NEWS PHENOMENON & MUCH, MUCH MORE!
THE VAULT
THE VAULT ISSUE 10 | MAR/APR 2018 EDITORIAL Stacey Kehoe - Editor stacey@brandlective.com Rachel Akiboye- Editorial Assistant rachel@brandlective.com Zenya Smith - Content Editor zenya@brandlective.com
FROM THE EDITOR
DESIGN & PRODUCTION
Quarter 2 of 2018 already!!
Mark Rimmer mark@mrmograph.com
This year is zooming by, and if you are like me and looking to implement some exciting new things in your business, this edition of our freshly rebranded magazine, The Vault, will inspire you.
CONTRIBUTORS Alex Obertelli Lucy Gordon Rachel Akiboye Will Baxter-Hughes Zenya Smith
PHOTOGRAPHERS Kurt Rebry www.kurtrebry.com
ADVERTISING Alex Obertelli - Advert Design alex@brandlective.com If you are interested in advertising in the next edition of BrandMag, please contact us at sales@brandlective.com for more information about our advertising rates.
CONTACT BRANDLECTIVE
GDPR is a hot topic and comes into force in the UK on 25 May 2018. Will you be affected? GDPR introduces some new provisions, including enhanced accountability and new procedures for handling data breaches and subject access requests, get the low-down in our article on what you can do to ensure you are compliant. In a society where anyone can create digital trends in the media, how do we constitute what is fake, and what is real? Our feature on Fake News will provide insight into how social media giants such as Facebook will be combatting it and how it may or may not impact content marketing strategy. While on the subject of Facebook, in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica data harvesting scandal, our views on Transparency in Business is not to be missed. Finally, our cover feature with Gavin Walsh, a global entrepreneur, provides his tips on creating a great company culture no matter how diverse your team may be... Until the next edition....
STACEY KEHOE - EDITOR
Email: info@brandlective.com Phone: +44 0207-407-2672 Address: 73b Weston Street, London Bridge SE1 3RS
Disclaimer: The rights and licences for all Shutterstock imagery in this publication have been authorised and obtained.
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SOCIAL MEDIA STORIES
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THE BUSINESS TRAVELLER
THE LATEST TREND
06 A LOOK INSIDE THIS ISSUE !
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WORKPLACE TRANSPARENCY During the height of the recent Facebook and Cambridge Analytica data scandal, it was revealed that the social media giant’s executives Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg took a silent stance on the data breach information.
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GDPR
With the GDPR or General Data Protection Regulation set to be enforced on the 25th May 2018, we wanted to make sure you know exactly what the law is.
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DIGITAL TRENDS The fake news phenomenon and digital media.
SEO UPDATE First Quarter update. Are the trends and strategies forecast for 2018 living up to their desired effect?
FEATURE Giving back
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GAVIN WALSH
THE CHANGING NATURE OF COMPANY CULTURE
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DUBAI
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THE VAULT
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In an environment such as The United Kingdom, a nation with a long history of political satire, is the phenomenon and power of fake news underestimated? Alex Younger, Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service, MI6 has stated, “Fake News is a fundamental threat to our sovereignty.” In part, the battle against fake news must be down to the readers to develop a more critical mind than previous generations, to adapt and overcome obstacles that digital media presents. As the act of fake news is rapidly gaining traction in times of monumental events and political uncertainty we believe the act of moderation must in part, be the responsibility of social media outlets. The interest of the general public receiving their national and international news through their favourite social media platforms is rapidly declining. A survey via The Edelman trust barometer 2017 found that a staggering 42 percent of individuals skimmed headlines on social media but
THE FAKE NEWS PHENOMENON B
Fake News, Collins Dictionary’s word of the year, 2017 is a phrase that entered the public sphere only within the past two years, yet remains a term used by political powerhouses, the world’s royal families and even your next door neighbour. In a society where anyone can create digital trends and the media we consume, how do we constitute what is fake, and what is real? Fake News, as a term is defined as ‘propaganda that consists of deliberate misinformation or hoaxes spread via traditional print and broadcast news media or online social media.’ The phenomenon of which is becoming
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However, the question regarding fake news is focused on how to moderate, eliminate and prevent the sharing of culpable articles, yet the question remains, should we be fighting it from the source? The subsequent development or potential dwindling of fake news over the next few months and years are crucial in teaching us how to tackle the phenomenon before it can be used as unidentified political ammunition, affecting every country. Should the fight against fake news lay with the reader, AI, social media channels or manual fact checkers?
By Lucy Gordon
arack Obama, 44th President of the USA said in an interview with Prince Harry of Wales: “One of the dangers of the Internet is that people can have entirely different realities.”
more prevalent than ever before, with a variety of profile, world renowned broadcast channels, tabloid broadsheet newspapers falling victim to delivering news to the public under the misconception of real, bound news stories.
Social media giant, Facebook has stated that they have generated a new algorithm for the site that will flag suspicious news articles based on levels of engagement which will subsequently be sent to a third party of specialised fact checkers. The algorithm is still in its experimental stage with fake news articles proving to be shared faster and broader when a person of influence picks up on the report. This demonstrates a much-needed edit of the algorithm used by Facebook bosses if they wish to continue the news based aspect to the platform with consumer loyalty.
In the war against fake news, a number of outlets are turning to artificial intelligence to combat the issue, still, in its experimental phase; critics are questioning how it will develop with the advancement of AI. The current process for many websites lays in the hands of individual fact checkers through manual research as and when fake news articles come through.
DIGITAL TRENDS:
&DIGITALMEDIA
refused to follow through with reading content. A drastic change from social media’s initial inception, when news was widely shared, and consumed by users on a daily basis. The recent survey also found that an astounding 64 percent of UK respondents feel that social media outlets need more news regulation.
high and fake fact-
The term has been coined by a variety of high profile individuals of influence in the 21st century, some of which perpetuate the act under the guise of condemnation. So, in a world where news is editable and available instantly from eyewitnesses, virally via social media and our respected news sources, how can we be sure the digital news we’re consuming is fact?
“A NUMBER OF OUTLETS ARE TURNING TO ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TO COMBAT THE ISSUE” The fake news environment has at least, created more critical readers in the public sphere. Propaganda remains a genuine risk, as it always has done; yet the influence of digital and social media platforms has accelerated its audience scope. A study by Gartner has predicted that by 2022 the majority of individuals in advanced economies will see an increased amount of false news over credible news. We’re hopeful that social platforms will continue in their fight against the phenomenon and readers will look at their news with a critical mindset, engaging with a more cautious and educated mind.
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THE VAULT BRANDMAG
Are You A Social Media Storyteller?
THE VAULT BRANDMAG
What Content Should I Be Sharing In My Social Media? The ephemeral nature of content shared through social media stories provides scope to show the bones of your business. Content can be fun, and of the moment, you don’t need to get caught up in taking the perfect professional photo or obsess over editing. Audiences tuning in to social media stories expect immediate content which grants them a behind the scenes pass to your brand. Think about your stories as a casual way of inviting your audience to be part of your conversations in real time.
By Zenya Smith
Instagram, Facebook and SnapChat stories could add more value than you think to your small business marketing efforts. Read on to discover how you can leverage stories to build a more intimate brand narrative. It seems every major social media platform has jumped on the ‘stories’ bandwagon over the last few years. Some, such as Instagram have instantly triumphed, attracting over 300 million daily active users, while others have gone through various reincarnations to drive engagement. If you’re yet to experience social media stories, the function at its most basic level allows users to group photos and videos in chronological order, creating a story. Friends and followers can then view these streams; however, they are only available for 24 hours before they expire. As a business owner, you may wonder where the value lies in something that will disappear after 24 hours? Well, when used strategically, stories can help you to create an immersive and personal brand experience.
What are the benefits of stories, over social media posts? News feeds are great at organising important brand updates and creating a ‘go to’ point of contact. Unfortunately, continually evolving algorithms, most recently within Facebook are altering how this content is being consumed, by de-prioritising brand content on newsfeeds in favour of more ‘meaningful’ posts. These algorithms are making it increasingly difficult to create a consistent brand narrative. This is where social media stories come in to play. Social media stories allow small businesses to keep their engagement with followers unbroken, and because they are separate from main timelines, and followers can dip in and out, you can continually share a large volume of content without clogging up your followers feeds.
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Where Can I Post my Stories? Facebook
Facebook stories work in much the same way as Instagram stories; allowing you to add stickers and filters to your content, and post directly from your brand page. Unlike Instagram however, Facebook makes your stories visible outside the app so that people accessing the platform through a desktop device can view your content too.
Despite Snapchat being the trailblazer of stories, it seems Instagram has taken its position as its popular older sister. Attracting a more mature audience, and being a firm favourite among businesses, Instagram’s Story function is being monopolised by global brands to encourage brand engagement and push out sponsored content. As a small business you can get in on the action too, Instagram stories offers options to add additional functions to your story content, such as polls, and date stamps to mark significant events. Creating a poll is especially relevant, as it means you can collect live data from your audience, which is fantastic for driving engagement and learning about their likes and dislikes.
One of the most exciting developments for businesses is Facebook’s launch of its collaborative stories function, which allows attendees of events organised on Facebook to share moments directly to the event page or group as they happen. For businesses the potential of this function is huge. It’s a fantastic way to create an engaged community centred around a brand event, such as a product launch or company celebration. It also showcases the best moments for those unable to attend, which simultaneously keeps them involved and sparks just enough FOMO for them not to miss out on your next event.
What’s Next For Stories? With LinkedIn and Twitter yet to experiment with stories, it looks like businesses will have to rely on Snapchat, Facebook and Instagram to get their fix. Considering Facebook’s recent focus on collaboration, and the increase in brands building a narrative through social media stories, it makes sense that 2018 will see a more significant push towards increasing the interactive functions available within story technology, to continue to close the gap between users and their audiences.
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s a global entrepreneur who has managed to carve a successful niche market for himself, recruitment Entrepreneur Gavin Walsh is adamant that in business it pays to create and promote a positive and inviting company culture. In an exclusive interview, the celebrated business mentor and CEO of Miami’s premier marketing company speaks about what sets his company apart, and why it is so important to invest in company culture both on and offline.
the globe, opening offices in the UK, Europe and America, and showcasing his aptitude for bringing winning teams together in the pursuit of industry success. In light of this continued triumph, The Vault exclusively invited Mr Walsh to share what he believes are the five foundations of a great company culture and to address how companies can sustain true camaraderie in the digital age.
For five years Gavin Walsh has been at the forefront of the outsourced sales and marketing industry. Since starting his business in 2013 Gavin has taken his expertise across
Know Your People
GAVIN WALSH
REVEALING THE CHANGING NATURE OF COMPANY CULTURE
BY ZENYA SMITH
“First and foremost, you need to know your people. The reason you need to know your people is that, in business, you will likely have a super diverse group of people, who all hold different interests and passions, they could be into sports, into music, into arts. You need to take time to learn their story as the more you know, the more chances you get to do creative things to motivate them.” Appealing to the interests of everyone in his team has been a key driver in the company’s success. “The average business will organise team building events such as drinks or a dinner, which is great but these activities don’t inspire people or get the adrenaline flowing. Knowing the interests of our team inside and out has allowed us to offer more tailored and creative team events such as kayaking or trips to art museums, also because we’re quite a sporty office we do two sports nights a month which strengthens our team dynamic outside of the office environment” highlights Gavin. These sports events have been integral to attracting the next wave of industry talent to the company too. As an
ex-professional football player sport has always been close to Gavin Walsh’s heart. This passion combined with his experience as a CEO has led him to realise that being open about your own passions and interests often allows a business owner to grow their company culture more organically. “If you look around my office everything is sports related! I collect sports memorabilia from my own sporting legends. We also promote the sports nights we organise through social media; we play football, volleyball, and hold pool nights at local pool halls, this means that as soon as someone walks through the door they get a sense of who I am, which has attracted a lot of ex-athletes to the company. People with a background in sport embody a lot of the key skills, such as teamwork and discipline that lead to success in our industry’.
Have A Clear Vision Gavin is adamant that a company’s culture will only ever be robust if there is a clear direction behind it, and it is up to you as the business owner to share your vision in a way that gets people excited. “you need to know what you want your company to stand for. For me, whilst I’m not against corporate, I’m also not for corporate” the CEO explains. So how did Gavin translate this into the everyday environment of his business? “I took ideas from Google, from Twitter, from Amazon, as I feel these companies share the same outlook as me. Ultimately, I love what I do, if you don’t love what you do and you don’t work on it you’ll never be successful. I wanted to create an environment where people share this love, for me laughing and joking with the team builds more confidence and camaraderie than slamming people all the time over their performance.”
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Build Relationships Another way Gavin fosters passion among his employees is by creating a culture that they can truly be proud of, which he has done in a unique way; by creating a new brand within the firm’s brand identity. “A lot of what we do comes down to branding. In our company, we call ourselves FMC - the ‘Future Millionaires Club’. One thing we can use to tell if people are proud and engaged with the culture we have created is people will send messages to each other within the company and will add #FMC to build motivation. This ‘secondary brand’ is everything. We use FMC all around the office. it’s on mouse mats, the pool table in the lobby and the air hockey table. We also have printed canvases around the office of some of our best international business trips, such as our trips to New York and South Africa for annual industry award ceremonies, and when we went to the Bahamas earlier this year. People see this branding and they want to be part of it, they want to go to the Bahamas, they want to go to South Africa, they want to go to the UK, they want to celebrate with us.” Explains Gavin.
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Travel Travel plays a significant role in their company culture and the CEO is confident that even for smaller enterprises, getting away from the office environment is a valuable team building experience. “When people travel they experience new things, it captivates their imagination, they get to learn more and take ideas from these experiences. You always get that excitement and that buzz when you go travelling. When I take Americans to the UK everything is amazing to them, they’re like, oh my god there’s a red telephone box! And when people come here to Miami from England they’re like oh there’s a beach and blue sky! That excitement never leaves. People are just always super excited to be somewhere new”. However, to feed the travel bug Gavin is also confident you don’t necessarily have to rack up the air miles. As a small business owner, you can inspire your workforce simply by visiting somewhere new, whether this is a new city or a completely different country the aim is to open up your people to new experiences.
GAVIN’S TOP TIPS FOR CREATING A FUN WORKING ENVIRONMENT Travel This doesn’t just mean travelling to different countries. It’s just as important to travel to different cities, or even to different businesses. If you hear about an up and coming new company with a great culture, be proactive and pay them a visit to experience what the company is like first hand. Don’t be afraid to speak to the CEO and hear their visions. Learn Gavin believes ‘A good student finds the master, but a great student finds the master and exceeds the master.’ He urges business owners to always be learning from other people and listen to ideas from all levels. Ask Your People What they want Ask your people what they would like to have. “A lot of people who run a business think it’s my way or the highway” states Gavin. “The people actually making the money and working hard don’t have a voice and that’s where companies go wrong.”
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Don’t Take Yourself Overly Seriously, But Still take yourself Seriously Gavin is a big believer in attitude and is adamant that encouraging the right balance of professionalism and fun is a proponent of a winning culture. Throughout his time as a CEO, Gavin has maintained this delicate balance and promoted that while it’s important to keep your head in the game, maintaining upbeat and positive when facing challenges is the route to business success. “It’s great to laugh and joke about situations that aren’t deemed as big problems, as this helps a psychology of a business. The attitude will always be bigger than the problem, and positivity is infectious so maintaining this kind of attitude allows problems to be solved faster together as a team” Gavin confirms. With these five pillars of company culture in place, Gavin Walsh has been able to bring together a unified and focused workforce, however, he is keen to publicise that a business owner’s responsibility in building culture doesn’t begin and end in meeting these requirements. “When creating a good company culture leading by example is important. Leadership isn’t a noun, it’s a verb, it’s a moving thing. I need to be a pacesetter. Pacesetters never usually compete in the race they set the standard for everyone else to challenge. I’m a huge advocate of leading by example as this inspires people to work harder. For example, if I want to centre the company culture around sport and teamwork, it’s important for me to act the part too” Gavin clarifies. “I can’t just sit here and say I used to play professional football, I’ve got to charge myself up and be active and play sports with them.”
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o, with over five years experience as a business leader, and with a clear vision for the future of his company, has Gavin changed his approach to nurturing a positive company culture to meet the demands of today’s audience? “Everything is so social now. We used to use the internet to get away from the real world, now we use the real world to get away from the internet. People make an opinion on your business before they even apply for a job or meet you in person so how you appear on social media and Google has a huge impact “Gavin explains. “If you look at the people we’re trying to attract; millennials, they are on their phones 24 /7, that’s how they communicate. So, I initially had to change how I presented the business before people come through the door, I had to make it more visual, more easily consumable and enticing”.
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THE VAULT BRANDMAG
THE VAULT BRANDMAG
A Guide To Dubai The Business Traveller
Getting From A to B
Where To Stay
Dubai isn’t the biggest city in the world, but you’ll find it hard to walk from place-to-place. The best option would be to jump in a taxi with the average fare being AED 6 (£1.17) per 1km. However, the Metro is a cheaper alternative featuring two classes standard and gold that operate on two lines (Red and Green) both of which are effortless to navigate.
Raffles Dubai (Average price £322 Per Night)
With the expansion of the Creek, high-speed water taxis are now a fun way to get from one side of the city to the other. For the more adventurous traveller, UberCHOPPER can help you skip the traffic and see the city from the skies.
WORDS BY WILLIAM BAXTER-HUGHES
Jumeirah Emirates Towers (£278 Per Night)
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One of the mainstays along Dubai’s Impressive skyline. The 400 room hotel situated along the world famous Sheik Zayed road is one of the best business hotels in the city being within walking distance to the Financial Centre. The hotel also boasts fantastic transport links with a metro station (red line) outside and being in the heart of the city.
once barren and inhospitable landscape, turned desert oasis and middle eastern powerhouse - The thriving metropolis of Dubai and all its grandeur welcomes over 14 million visitors a year from around the world. Dubai is considered to be the ultimate playground for the rich and famous, but things haven’t always been as ostentatious. Rewind half a century as the country was gaining its independence from British rule where pearl diving, seafaring and fishing were the mainstays of the economy before oil took over. It’s not just the economy that has seen a boom over the years; the population has grown to over nine million in 2018 compared to only 40,000 in 1960. Dubai is a fun, vibrant and distinctly unique metropolis rising out of the desert. The city boasts some of the most beautiful hotels and restaurants in the world and a seemingly endless list of activities for people to do. Whether it’s strapping yourself in and hitting the Ski slopes in 45-degree heat, or standing at the top of the worlds tallest building. One of the biggest struggles you’re going to come across when visiting the emirates is deciding on what to do.
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The 252 room five-star hotel is located only a ten-minute drive from the Dubai International Airport and on the premises of one of Dubai’s many shopping malls Wafi City (an ancient Egypt themed mall). Raffles rises out of impressive grounds in a magnificent stone and glass pyramid structure. The rooms are spaciously, and light filled with an impressive blend of Middle Eastern and Asian designs. All rooms come with an on-call Butler 24/7. The hotel boasts an impressive business centre with 12 meeting rooms as well as free wifi through the hotel. The hotel also does an impressive brunch on a Friday which is a must when in Dubai.
Where To Eat Nusr-Et Renowned as the home of internet sensation “Salt bae”. The restaurant is nestled away in the awe-inspiring complex and the Four Seasons Jumeirah. Serving some of the very best cuts of meat you’ll find anywhere, you will struggle to be disappointed, of course, unless you’re a vegetarian. Ravis A restaurant that goes entirely against everything that’s grand about Dubai. This unassuming restaurant is nothing fancy, but, what is on offer is superb, extremely affordable Pakistani Food. A massive hit within the expat community. There is something rather quaint about the plastic tablecloths and polystyrene cups, but after all, you are there for the food.
Did You Know? UAE nationals, Emiratis, make up only 10-15 percent of the Dubai population. The other 85 percent of residents are expatriates. According to the online crime index Numbeo.com , Dubai is considered one of the safest cities on earth, with a crime rate of virtually zero. 20% of the world’s total cranes are operating in Dubai in various constructions.
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THE VAULT
THE VAULT
SEO UPDATE FIRST QUARTER UPDATE
WORDS BY ALEX OBERTELLI
We’re now well into 2018, and hopefully your SEO strategies are working to their desired effect. If not, we’ve got some helpful tips that can refocus your thinking in this regard, and get you back where you should be - hitting your targets!
SEARCH QUERIES The first thing to consider is in your writing. Search engines this year have gotten even better at solving the searcher’s query. This means that your writing will need to be optimised for solving the searcher’s problem. Think about what people are searching for online, and the phrases they’re using. Content that is geared towards such a yardstick will be rewarded highly in the results pages.
ENGAGEMENT METRICS User experience design, commonly referred to as UX, is also a key SEO theme of 2018. This is largely due to new engagement metrics called Rank Brain that detect how readable and pleasing on the eye your piece of writing is. Have you split your content into subheadings and neat paragraphs? Well, you should do, as Google and Bing have their eyes on it, and a couple of minutes spent formatting can now make all the difference. Rank Brain even measures the ‘dwell time’ of visitors on your content. Yikes.
MOBILE FIRST INDEX Today, 60% of all Google searches come from a mobile device - a figure that’s only increasing with every week that goes by. Back in 2017, Google announced plans of a future switch to a mobile-first index. Well, it’s coming any day now. This means that Google will consider the mobile version of your site the ‘real’ version - even if someone searches from their laptop or desktop. Be prepared, and ensure all your website’s content reads well and functions smoothly from mobile devices.
RISING TREND:
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
WORDS BY STACEY KEHOE
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ichard Branson. Bill Gates. Mark Zuckerberg. Sergey Brin. Mark Cuban. Michael Bloomberg. Each of these Entrepreneurs are successful in business, and each and every one of these people is also known for their emphasis on philanthropy. Giving back is on the rise. And not only from huge billion dollar organisations. Today, millions of SME’s have also embraced the philanthropic movement and are making an impact around the world. Humans are “hard-wired to be generous”. It’s in our DNA. So it makes sense that as humans running successful businesses, we have an urge to give through charity projects. Research conducted by Dr. Jordan Grafman, a neuroscientist and director of brain injury research at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, found that “when people made the decision to donate to what they felt was a worthy organisation, parts of the midbrain lit up–the same region that controls cravings for food and sex.” As entrepreneurs, charitable acts are often performed without any expectation of direct financial gain. However, being socially conscious can offer countless rewards for business.
Here are just three ways philanthropic activities could benefit your business:
Define Your Value Proposition Through choosing a unique position as a company and doing things differently than your competitors, it helps your business stand out. Social responsibility is no different. Getting clear on what is important to your business and the sort of charitable giving you want to get involved with can help to define your value proposition. For example, a property development company that choose to donate bricks to help build schools in a 3rd world country show their clients their commitment to sustainability. It is an industry that receives unfortunate bad press for generating ‘money-hungry investors’ millions in revenue. This is somewhat unfortunate considering the contribution they make to the housing crisis in the UK, so aligning their business with a charitable cause can help to define their value proposition as a force for good. Likewise, a cosmetic brand who commits to cruelty-free products and regularly contributes to animalwelfare charities can enhance the view of their brand through their alignment with charitable causes.
OPTIMISE YOUR VIDEOS Last but not least - video. YouTube brought in almost 4,950,000,000 daily video views back in 2017, and in 2018 this type of media is going from strength to strength. If you’re not creating video content for your brand now, then it’s highly likely your missing out on great social media engagement and SEO opportunities. Optimise your YouTube videos and you’ll also take up more space in the search results for the video topic, your niche and brand name.
OUR TIP: Embed your YouTube videos into your blog posts to give your content a significant engagement boost in the eyes of Rank Brain and its dwell time metrics!
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90% of MBAs from business schools in Europe and North America prefer working for organisations committed to social responsibility
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Give Back To Accelerate Business Growth Committing to a giving initiative can propel small businesses into the limelight. Business brands who contribute to causes-for-good regularly gain attention from traditional media and are viewed by today’s consumers as more trustworthy. Issues such as environmentally conscious manufacturing processes, human trafficking, equal pay, prevention of counterfeit goods, responsible farming practices and overproduction of goods are all at the forefront of consumers’ minds when making purchase decisions. Millennials, people born between the 1980s to the early 2000s, make up one of the largest portions of the consumer market today. Not only do they value great products and services, but they also look into a business’ ethical standards. Understanding the importance of this as a business is paramount - aligning with a charitable cause is attractive to your customers, so don’t be afraid to give and this can have a positive impact on business growth. Where to begin? On September 25th, 2015, countries adopted a set of goals to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all as part of a new sustainable development agenda. Named, The 2030 United Nations Global Sustainability Goals, each goal has specific targets to be achieved. For the goals to be reached, everyone needs to do their part: governments, the private sector, civil society and people like you. To find a list of actions that you can take in your everyday life to contribute to a sustainable future visit: http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/ takeaction/
Build On Company Culture Many business owners go through the daily motions without considering how to build greater employee cohesion, job satisfaction or employee happiness. Working for a company that gives back to important causes can actually improve those issues. Focusing on making the company a positive force in the community, can improve employees’ regard for their corporate leaders, which can only make a positive impact on business morale, am I right? The daily grind is difficult. Good morale is essential to a successful business, and giving to projects that individuals in the team are passionate about can be a great way to bolster it.
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72% of Generation Z are willing to pay more for products and services that come from companies that are committed to positive social and environmental impact 19
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BUSINESS OWNERS SHARE THEIR THOUGHTS ON TRANSPARENCY
NATHAN SIMMONS
“I think transparency is essential to creating honesty and integrity within a business. People can tell when you are trying to hide something from them, it’s written on your face. Once you lie the business relationship is broken. For me when it comes to clients, transparency is being very ‘black and white’. There should be all your cards on the table whether it’s good or bad. With regards to my workforce, I’ve seen instances when one person hasn’t been as transparent as they could have been to another member of the team. This sort of thing definitely damages the culture. I can’t emphasise enough how important it is to lay your cards on the table from the offset when you are creating a business.Hiding things will only come around to bite you, which will only ever have a negative impact on the success of your business”
WORKPLACE TRANSPARENCY WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR BUSINESS OWNERS?
MATT WASSELL
AUTHOR:RACHELAKIBOYE
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uring the height of the recent Facebook and Cambridge Analytica data scandal, it was revealed that the social media giant’s executives Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg took a silence stance when members of the public and Facebook employees called for them to speak out on the data breach. With the #DeleteFacebook fallout trending on Twitter for days after the scandal broke, it eventually took Zuckerberg five whole days to make a public statement and issue an apology to Facebook users. It was also widely reported that it was actually Facebook lawyers, who were given the heavy responsibility of informing and updating the employers on the firm’s strategy in the immediate moments after the scandal become public knowledge. Zuckerburg’s silence and the way he handled the situation with his employees and valued Facebook users got us thinking about the topic of transparency in the workplace. Business owners that take an open
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and honest approach when things go wrong make great strides in helping build trust and loyalty for their consumers and employees. In a study conducted by Label Insight in 2017, nearly 94 percent of consumers surveyed revealed that they were more likely to be loyal to a brand that they felt operated in a fully transparent manner. In addition to this, a further 73 percent said that they would be willing to pay more for a product that offers full transparency. It’s clear from these stats that transparency means a lot to consumers, but how do business owners feel about having to reveal all to their clients and staff? We asked some of the UK’s up and coming entrepreneurs to share the reasons why they insist on full transparency when running their business.
“Transparency is as simple as letting everyone know the plan. Working together for the main goal that would benefit everyone.Being open about the business, letting people know how you’re getting on and what they should be aware of or excited about.”
GAVIN WALSH
“As a business owner, I always aim to be as transparent as possible with my employees. It’s amazing to see how being open and honest can lay great foundations for a good company culture. I think whether things are going well or not, it’s important to make sure everyone in the company stays informed and understands their place and contributions to the company.”
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GDPR FOR SMALL BUSINESS
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW By Rachel Akiboye
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s the Managing Director of the international software development firm, Neso, it’s William Watson’s job to understand industry standards and development practices. His role at Neso has become particularly pertinent during this current time where UK businesses are on the cusp of having to embrace the new GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation), which is set to be enforced on the 25th May 2018. These changes are expected to regulate the way businesses handle their clients and customers data outside of the EU and are intended to give citizens more control over corporations use of their personal data. William and his team have spent the last 18 months, rolling out the necessary tools to help his clients stay compliant and ensure their systems are prepared for the upcoming changes. In this article, Mr Watson spoke to The Vault Magazine about what the new law will outline, what these changes mean and how it will impact the UK business landscape. With companies that fail to comply potentially set to face a minimum fine of €10 million, we thought it was important to highlight just how the new GDPR regulations will affect your business. While some businesses may choose to ignore the policy altogether, we know that any companies that collect their client’s or customer’s information need to take notice of this law or face the consequences. Mr Watson said “Finding and gathering information used to be difficult, but now in the digital age, we suffer from data overload. Whether it’s a like on Facebook, a search on Google or something you click on, there’s always data captured during those interactions. Therefore as businesses, we will need more defined rules to protect people, not just from governments but private interests as well.”
But before we delve into the importance of complying to the new regulations and the potential repercussions businesses could face if they do not, Mr Watson outlines exactly what GDPR is by sharing the two key principles that it is built around: 1) Giving citizens more control of their data 2) Simplifying the regulations for businesses with a unifying regulation that stands across the European Union.
Mr Watson explains that in order to impose these principles, the new law states that: 1) Businesses who regularly monitor the data of subjects on a large scale, or involve processing large volumes of client data must employ a Data Protection Officer. Their role will be to make sure the business complies with the obligations of the GDPR. 2) The GDPR applies to any business processing the personal data of EU citizens, including those with fewer than 250 employees.
business for the upcoming change in the EU law, this checklist is guaranteed to help you handle data more responsibly and without any hefty financial repercussions.
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Do you know your data? Your business will have to be able to demonstrate that you understand exactly what types of personal data you hold. Where they are coming from, where the data is going and how you will be using that data. How well do you know your data? Do you have an opt in process? From May onward, all data captured online will need a clear opt in process that outlines exactly how their data will be used by the business. The GDPR outlines that consent is always needed when collecting data and needs to be EXPLICIT, CLEAR and SPECIFIC. Is your opt in process clear enough? Is your data encrypted? Take a look at your security measures and policies. Try utilising broad encryption to reduce the likely hood of their being a breach in your data. (give online options) Have you created clear processing notices? Under the GDPR, you will need to provide your clients/customers with regular updates on what you are doing with their data if anything changes. Do you have the software in place to communicate this? Is your business prepared to meet access requests within a One Month Time Frame? Under the GDPR citizens have the right to access all of their personal data and rectify anything that is not accurate, OR completely erase all their information. Each of these request must be done within a month. Do you have the process in place to ensure you can address any changes within a month?
3) Severe breaches of data security MUST be reported to the EU regulator or Information Commissioners Office within 24 hours, or at least 72 hours. 4) Individuals now have the right to control how a company uses their data. For instance, they have the right to be forgotten. A company now has to remove a customer/clients information if they have no legal grounds to keep it if that individual requests the removal. 5) Finally and most importantly, failure to comply with these rules will result in harsh penalties. The ICO will be able to fine up to £500,000 but the GDPR can fine up to €20 million or four percent of the companies annual turnover. Mr Watson was also keen to emphasise that even though the UK is currently under the impending cut of Brexit, this law will apply to any UK business dealing with EU clients. More importantly, the UK government has also recently outlined a new Data Protection Policy that will mirror the GDPR. So, there is no escaping.
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Here at The Vault Magazine, we are investing our time in making sure SMEs stay in the know with regards to the digital world, and we don’t want any business to get caught out come May 2018. With this in mind, we have created a GDPR Checklist. In his closing line, Mr Watson said “having good privacy means having good security”, so if UK businesses want to adequately prepare their
Useful Resources • The ICO website is a good source of information: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr • The regulations themselves can be found at: https://www.eugdpr.org • This is useful guidance in the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) which governs electronic marketing activities and cookies (useful in determining whether you need consent for your communications as you don’t always): https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-pecr/what-are-pecr/ • We have also found the following book useful and offers good practical information on the GDPR without the hype: https://www.itgovernance.co.uk/shop/product/eu-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr-an-implementation-and-compliance-guide • For those with more practical responsibilities for implementation, you may find this course useful: https://www.qa.com/hot-topics/cyber-security/cyber- compliance/certified-gdpr-foundation-and-practitioner# • Some useful information about legitimate interest with some practical examples: https://www.econsultancy.com/blog/69303-gdpr-for-marketers-five-examples-of-legitimate-interests • This is the guidance on which the above article is based but the network is also useful for finding more practical advice on data protection issues: https://www.dpnetwork.org.uk/dpn-legitimate-interests-guidance/ • The ICO guidance in relation to profiling and automatic decision making can be found here: http://ec.europa.eu/newsroom/document.cfm?doc_id=47742
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