By Blandine CORDIER-PALASSE, Revue RH&M n°63
Reconciling economic performance and organisational transformation, coordinating speed, innovation and collective efficiency; but also being able, and above all wanting, to mobilise the values of commitment, cooperation and trust to give new meaning to their professional commitment: these are the challenges of the digital age. The strategic protection professions are making a major contribution to this.
The world in which businesses operate has changed
It has become financialised. Globalised. We are constantly connected and interconnected. Uses, flows and business models are evolving faster and faster. Our relationship with time is changing. The filter between the public and private spheres is becoming increasingly blurred. Digital technology is infiltrating all corporate functions and the value chain, right down to the core business. The lines are shifting, leading companies to open up, become more agile and flexible, develop open innovation processes, and interact with all their stakeholders to co-create value. This is having a profound impact on governance and leadership.
Digital transformation is a source of opportunities to be seized and new risks to be understood and assessed
This means that companies need to rethink their strategy, organisation, business model and behaviour. In terms of management, this calls for collaborative dynamics geared towards sharing and openness, and better management of resources and information systems. Information, its management and protection, has become a key asset.
Impact on strategic protection businesses
In this changing environment, all stakeholders need to be made aware of the new risks in order to :
-understand the increasingly complex international regulatory and standards framework
-adapt internal systems and processes
-integrate the development of best practice guidelines.
There is also a strong interaction between compliance with regulatory standards and ethical behaviour. The role of lawyers, compliance officers and auditors has become essential in order to correlate the compliance policy adopted and implemented with the management of risks such as corruption, antitrust, conflicts of interest, financial transparency, data privacy, image and reputation, information system security: confidentiality, business continuity, fraud, cybercrime, cyber security. As genuine business partners, they must inform employees and managers of these risks and the associated challenges, in order to raise their awareness and make them accountable for ensuring the security of the business. To do this, in the most successful companies, they are increasingly involved upstream of projects to help management and operational staff assess the legal, compliance and extra-financial risks that have become critical in this interconnected, agile world.
New profiles emerge
In addition to technical and operational skills and a business-oriented mindset, the profiles that are now strengthening these cross-functional functions have :
-strong personal and writing skills: rigour, pragmatism, responsiveness, listening and diplomacy, analytical and organisational skills, sense of service
proven business experience to understand and align with the strategy in order to participate in its implementation, with a long-term vision, with a view to generating value
real interpersonal skills: oriented towards change and creative action, with strong self-leadership, communication skills, proactivity, team spirit, courage and a sense of risk.
Conclusion
The strategic protection thus generated is part of a collective, collaborative and empowering dynamic. It strengthens the cohesion of employees, their association and their support for the company's project, for a better value proposition. It also develops pride in belonging among employees and all the company's stakeholders.
