Success stories

A new COO needs help setting priorities in her new role

A political think tank and educational charity approached Build Secure Thinking to review their data infrastructure, governance and cybersecurity posture ahead of the arrival of a new COO. The goal was to provide them with an overview of the current position and recommend priorities for their first 100 days on the job.

We reviewed existing governance and policy documentation, conducted stakeholder intereviews and follow-up queries before making an assessment of the organisation's current status. A Gap Analysis report listed key priorities including improved board level ownership, increasing staff knowledge and understanding of the risks they faced, and a more formal approach to key areas including identity and access management. We also provided additional support via learning sessions for staff and materials for new starters.

"Alison has done a fantastic job of demystifying cyber risk for our organisation. Her commitment to simplifying complex issues shines through in her approach and she has built our confidence and capacity to understand and effectively respond to cyber risk."

Supporting charity confidence and risk awareness in challenging times

Two charities focussed on supporting young refugees came together to seek support with challenges and a lack of certainty that they were doing the right thing regarding data governance, information sharing and client privacy in a challenging political climate.

We were able to recommend improvements to the use of existing security controls and the policies and processes supporting them, without any additional costs to infrastructure or outsourcing of IT. Bespoke learning and an "Ask Me Anything" session for staff and volunteers enabled everyone to feel more confident in their skills and less intimidated by the tasks at hand.

"Thank you again for today’s workshop. We packed in a lot of very useful guidance and thinking together and this was down to your planning. Feedback was positive with the team saying how useful and empowering it was (and not overwhelming)."