Management Reporting Mind Crime

Management InformationWorst management reporting mistake ever: Recently we’ve experienced consequences on management reporting not yet seen. Here is the story.

Management reporting is highly sensitive to many problems in gathering data, converting them to information and knowledge. Problems are mostly  laying in business intelligence tools environment and wrong conceptual approaches toward knowledge processing. Many of this problems exist in many companies. They are “natural” and part of companies.

But, one recent mistake made by management in one particular company outranked all current “natural” problems mostly due to lack of knowledge and insufficient analyze of consequences of their decision.

Decision was to process and gather all financial data through ERP system and to deliver information to Management Information System in bulk. Further, other part of decision was to process all non financial data in separate systems like data warehouse, business intelligence solutions and deliver information to Management Information System separately through other information flow. Intention was to process financial and non-financial data independently and then to gather them for Reporting purposes in Management Information Systems and then to publish performance indicators toward all relevant participants like Bord, Supervisory, Audit and similar.

It is simple, two separate projects will process and prepare key performance indicators separately. All seams perfectly clear. Read the rest of this entry »

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Why Information Security Risk Management Makes Sense in the Healthcare Industry

Management InformationLately I have been thinking about risk in the context of information security and the healthcare industry. I have written an article that you can find here about using risk management to help healthcare organizations manage their security, privacy and compliance programs more effectively and efficiently. For the most part using risk to manage information security is new territory for the healthcare industry. Yet it has been common practice in the financial services sector for more than ten years. Why it that the case?

In the late 90′s financial services companies in New York, London and Tokyo went through a dramatic change in the way they managed their information security programs. Risk management took over as (and remains today) the dominant paradigm for running an information security program and enabling business in the financial services sector.

Why did that happen? Well, the financial services world is about transactions. By the late 90′s the infrastructure of the internet had evolved to the point where financial transactions were realistic and could done reliably on a scalable basis. The requirements for enabling electronic transactions were (are) as follows:

• Non-reputable communications between two parties, each of whom can verify the time, value and content integrity of the message. Read the rest of this entry »

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Contemporary Security Management by John J Fay

Management InformationThe main word to notice in the title of “Contemporary Security Management” by John J. Fay is the word management. This is a college type textbook for those in security management. Please take this into consideration if you are thinking this is either a book on security, or a popular type management book. It does not fit those categories. Therefore, if that is what you are looking for, you will need to look elsewhere. However, if you are studying to be employed in security management, are enrolled in a class that is using this text, or happen to want a college style textbook on the topic for self-study because you are employed in such a position, this is a very detailed and good book on the topic.

Many large organizations, and now even smaller ones, have a security department. This text teaches security professionals how to operate an efficient security department and how to collaborate smoothly with other groups inside and outside their own organization. The book provides a comprehensive introduction to security and IT security management principles, which overlap with other management principles. So this is a management text aimed at the Chief Security Officer or others in positions in the security industry that aim for management.

Like many college textbooks, each chapter starts with a brief section on what you will learn, and ends with review questions and references. There are ample side bars, check lists, and graphs throughout. The book’s four hundred and fifty pages are divided into twenty-five chapters. These include: Historical Roots, Organizing, Managing People, Leadership and Management Skills, Strategy, Budget Management, Managing Change, Making Decisions, Managing Risks, Managing Guard Operations, Managing Physical Security, Managing Access Control, Managing Investigations, Pre-Employment Screening, Emergency Management, Business Continuity, Managing Information Security, Substance Abuse, Executive Protection, Workplace Violence, Employee Awareness Program, Vulnerability Assessment, Security Program Design, Critical Infrastructures and Key Resources, and The Terrorist Threat. The book also contains an Index at the end. Read the rest of this entry »

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