Can technology win clients?
Attracting and winning clients is a key part of a firm’s growth strategy – and, according research, it’s a number one priority for firms in 2018:
- 41 per cent of accountants say acquiring new clients is their top priority this year.
- A further 23 per cent see increasing their use of technology as a key goal.
There is clearly some synergy between these two aims. Marketing technology like email automation software and business development tools can help you find, reach and convert new clients for example. But technology has a broader role to play in client acquisition. It can help you service more clients in a scalable way and help you attract the right clients.
Financial technology sets the foundations for scaling up
Embracing technology isn’t just about moving to a cloud-based accounting platform. Using the right software will certainly increase efficiency, but tech also has a big role to play in growth.
By setting up the right systems and software, you create the foundations for scaleability and enable your firm to take on more clients without increasing staff and/or overheads.
It’s an opportunity to refine your key processes, upgrade and revitalise the underlying workflows of the practice and embrace the latest plug-in apps and fintech solutions.
- Firms with more online accounting clients grow faster and have an easier time signing up new clients, according to recent research by Xero. With all the tech now available, accounting firms are serving more clients than ever. Smaller online firms with two to four employees add more than four times as many clients as other similarly-sized practices. And in our new GoCardless Accountants Benchmarking Survey, 36 per cent of firms serviced more than 150 clients in the past 12 months (with many of these firms having only 1-5 staff).
With apps such as Receipt Bank automating client’s bookkeeping (saving about one hour per client per week), Chaser and Fluidly automating debtor tracking and GoCardless automating cash collection, the time taken to service each client is reduced – and that reduction in time allows more clients to be serviced, and larger revenues brought in.
Technology led services attract the right clients
What businesses want from their accountant has changed. Modern business owners are increasingly tech-savvy and will look for a business adviser who understands technology, knows how to set up efficient systems and can use this tech to offer the best possible advice.
Key advantages of putting tech at the heart of your services include:
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- Working in the cloud improves productivity for both you and your client – the basics of bookkeeping, bank reconciliation and accounting are all done faster, allowing your clients to focus on their business and work more closely with you and your team.
- Online working improves client communication – you and your clients have access to their key numbers at any time, making it easier to answer queries, flag up issues and deliver an increased level of client service.
- Automating payments improves cash flow for clients – using payment technology to automatically collect clients’ invoice payments improves the stability of their cash flow – providing the liquid cash they need to fund investment and growth plans.
- Deeper relationships bring increased value – with tech covering the basic compliance duties, you have more free time to spend with clients. So you know more about their business, can offer better advice and can offer value-add services more easily.
Drive your growth through smart use of tech
Adopting technology successfully is key to winning clients, and creating the basis for your firm’s growth.
Come and hear more about how technology and automation support your firm at our 'Cloud Lifestyle' panel chat – 11am, Wednesday 23 May, How To Theatre.
GoCardless will be at Accountex next week on stand 740.
How GDPR affects payroll processors
The EU’s General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), which will be implemented in the UK in May 2018, updates the provisions of the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA). The changes place greater obligations on organisations, with potential fines for breaches as high as €20 million or 4 per cent of global turnover. Organisations need to act now to prepare for the potential changes to their systems and procedures.
Fortunately, a good payroll software can help with simple and basic procedures to stay compliant:
Privacy by Design
Privacy and data security should be at the core of your software and payroll procedures. A processor might have the permission to view the data, however the default configuration of the system should be to restrict the visibility of the personal data.
The processor must make explicit request to view the data if necessary. The request can be considered, if there is a valid justification to see the confidential data, the processor should be able to lease the data from controller or data protection officer.
Moreover, logs of who viewed what confidential data and when must be logged by the software to make data leak investigation easy. This mechanism prevents the data leaks, but should it happen, these logs make it easy to investigate. Organisations will be able to prove “Privacy by Design” to investigating authority.
Masking of personal data
Masking is an intelligent way of hiding any personal data of an individual that is being processed by the processor. Processor can do the processing and use the information however he should not be able to see the data. For an example they can email the payslip to an employee of the processor however they cannot see payslip or the email address of the employee.
Data Encryption
Transfer essential information through the system by encrypting the data in such a way which can be accessed only through the decryption keys or password. Over and above encryption, the sensitive data must be automatically archived or destroyed. This reduces the risk of data loss. Personal data should also be stored in the secure or encrypted format.
Right to information. Right to be forgotten.
Employees have the right to access their information, being processed. Through the employee portal, an employee can easily view all their personal data, request for data change, view documents or even request deletion of personal information, with ease.
Protect vital documents
A system, where essential documents should be password protected and auto destroyed after it has served its purpose. Processor/controller should be able to upload any documents and store the information only for the required period and later destroy automatically. Employee can view essential documents sent by the employer without getting the processor in-between. The controller can control what information can be shared with the processors and the processors can release data which they no longer need.
Restrict rights
In order to maintain privacy, processors should be restricted to view any confidential data. There should be a granular roles and permissions. Means everyone sees what they need to see, without compromising the data security and confidentiality. For an example timesheet processor does not need to see payroll data. A software with such roles and permission feature can reduce the data breach risks at the source.
Capture information transparently
A software should be able to capture a starter’s information electronically from controller and/or employees. This increases GDPR compliance because processor only sees the relevant data and at the same time the payroll processing errors are reduced.
Brain Payroll will be at Accountex on stand 131 on 23-24 May.
Budget solution provides real-time visibility and spend control
Oxford Economics says strong profitability and revenue growth are tied to effective cost control. However, managing spend is increasingly complicated. In the past 15 years, travel spend alone has doubled to more than $1.2 trillion. Employee-initiated spend is today the second-largest expense in many organisations.
These are spending categories, ranging from entertainment, consulting, mobile roaming charges, home office expenses, and more, shifting to employee control. When this spend data is incomplete, inaccurate or late, budgets mean little more than a number. Managers can’t be held accountable and poor visibility inevitably leads to poor business decisions, including the dreaded company-wide “budget freeze.”
To help budget owners effectively manage resources and make better decisions, SAP Concur has launched Budget, a new solution that makes budget data visible, near real-time, and actionable. Budget connects data from SAP Concur solutions including Expense, Invoice, Purchase Request and Travel Request, creating a comprehensive dashboard for spend – before and after it occurs. As a result, finance leaders, sales leaders, and project managers alike can see spending events unfold. Collectively, each employee making better decisions leads to better overall financials and strengthens the bottom line.
Anticipate risks around the corner
Budget empowers everyone to see what’s happening, anticipate risks around the corner, and take action – before it’s too late. It allows companies to move beyond one-size-fits all, after-the-fact monthly budget spreadsheets. It’s holistic and flexible, whether companies map budgets to employee hierarchies or to projects. Employees can finally be held accountable to eliminate overspending, while gaining autonomy to proactively adjust spend to seize unexpected opportunities. Key features include:
- Easy-to-consume data: Regular budgetary discipline is easy when you can see performance dashboards on both mobile and web, and budget insights embedded directly at the point of expense or invoice approval.
- Tailored to individual employee needs: For example, set your own predetermined limits on budget buckets, or auto-email alerts when budget thresholds are reached. Set up personalized budget sub-categories to track more granularly.
- Gain corporate control: Customisable budget approval workflows, user permissions, and audit rules help maintain policy decisions across the organisation.
- Connect deeper into the organisation by integrating with financial systems via a public API.
Gartner reckons CFOs need better technology to facilitate timely analysis and decision making, monitor performance, and inform business decisions using quality data. Traditional budget solutions lack the flexibility, organisational scale, and ease-of-use necessary to meet these business needs. These solutions focus solely on planning, doing little to help finance leaders empower budget owners to make informed decisions based on quality data in near real-time. With Budget, line managers now have access to timely, actionable insights that were traditionally available only to the C-suite. Appropriate for companies large and small, optimising budgets is a universal opportunity.
For more information, visit SAP Concur's Budget Management page.
SAP Concur will be on stand 240 at Accountex.
Carillion demise may spark Big Four break-up
Good morning everyone ... but not so good, I suspect, if you are involved with the Big Four/Carillion/financial regulation.
MPs are not happy with the UK's leading auditors. At all. In fact, our representatives at Westminster say the top accounting dogs are a “cosy club incapable of providing the degree of independent challenge needed”.
They want to see Deloitte, KPMG, PwC and EY broken up after the spectacular and alarming demise of government contractor Carillion.
Failing in their responsibilities
The latest criticism follows a 100-page report on Carillion’s failure by two parliamentary committees. It accuses the government, regulators and Carillion's board of failing in their responsibilities. It says they acted “entirely in line with their own personal incentives”.
Carillion went belly up in January with liabilities of £7billion and only £29million in cash. The report said it was a “a giant and unsustainable time bomb”.
Systemic flaws in corporate Britain
The collapse showed systemic flaws in corporate Britain and revealed regulators to be toothless and “feeble”.
Deloitte was Carillion’s internal auditor, but all three of the other Big Four did work for Carillion. KPMG was external auditor, EY gave advice, as did PwC.
KPMG is being probed by the UK’s accountancy regulator for its role.
“It is a parasitical relationship which sees the auditors prosper, regardless of what happens to the companies, employees and investors who rely on their scrutiny,” says chair of the business select committee Rachel Reeves.
Intuit QuickBooks guide to going digital, plus Accountex 2018
The folks at Intuit QuickBooks have produced a handy eight-point checklist for navigating the digital landscape. It's well worth a look if you think you are in that sizeable cohort that's a bit behind the tech curve.
As would a trip to Accountex, the two-day accounting extravaganza at London's ExCeL next Wednesday and Thursday 23-24 May. And good news if you still don't know if you're going to the event. The team has produced the 2018 Accountex show guide, which details the exhibitors, the speakers, the round table discussions.... and much more. Check it out here.
'Life’s too short, so do something you enjoy, both in your career and personal life'
As it's Mental Health Awareness Week, we're delighted to catch up with Kath Haines, CEO of CABA, the charity that focuses on wellbeing for accountants. She talks about her career, life and Accountex with Accounting Insight News Editor Ian Moss...
The here and now….
What are your favourite early career memories, Kath?
To be asked to buy a calculator during my first auditing job. I was so used to solving problems by mental arithmetic!
How did you get into this business?
I have always had a passion for numbers, and was delighted to land a temporary holiday job at the Inland Revenue where I worked for an accountant. This sparked my interest into the profession and I have never looked back.
What can accountants and finance professionals learn from you, in a nutshell!?
The importance of wellbeing and looking after yourself. Life’s too short, so do something you enjoy, both in your career and personal life.
What’s on the horizon for you and the sector?
The technological changes I referred to above are likely to have a huge impact on the ways in which accountants work in the future. For us at CABA it’s about us being there for those who struggle with these changes, making sure that we have the help and advice to both prepare and support them.
As an influential voice, what impact do you want to have on the industry this year and in the long run?
To continue to encourage good mental health and removing the remaining stigma associated with it. I would also like to focus on growing the awareness around the importance of wellbeing, and how it can make an employee more productive and engaged. Our whitepaper scratched the surface of how looking at wellbeing holistically can provide great business benefit, so I want to help forge a strong understanding of how wellbeing positively impacts an employee’s performance, to help deliver a true wellbeing ROI.
What are your expectations for Accountex 2018?
To be part of an informative event and keep abreast of changes in the industry. I am hoping that we can generate a buzz at the event. We have a stand where we will be offering lots of advice on how to look after your own wellbeing.
Early Days
Where did you grow up?
Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire.
Were you any good at maths at school?
I always had a passion for maths and was proud to achieve a Combined Science degree (BSc) from Leicester University, where maths was a key part. I came from a family of teachers so it was presumed that I would do that, but I wanted to do something different.
Rebecca Benneyworth's Accountex debut is sure to hit the MTD target
The Accountex team is thrilled that Rebecca Benneyworth will be delivering her debut Keynote session at this year's show at ExCeL next week (that's right!).
Accountant/writer/lecturer/tax expert Rebecca is always a popular figure at any event connected with accounting and finance. Next Thursday (24 May) she'll be in the Keynote A theatre at 2pm talking about a subject close to her heart, Making Tax Digital Work For You.
And, what with HMRC delaying and suspending MTD-connected projects left, right and centre because of "Brexit redeployment issues",
Rebecca's 2018 takes on
extra-special relevance.
We should applaud HMRC
Unsurprisingly, Rebecca has plenty to say about the recent manoeuvres by HMRC. And she is convinced accountants should press on with digitising their businesses.
She believes the big challenge of MTD is not the requirement to file quarterly submissions, but getting clients to keep HMRC compatible digital records and to ditch the carrier bag of receipts.
“It takes time to get things right and we should applaud HMRC for listening to representations from the ICAEW and other bodies and opting to do just
that. Now MTD won’t hap
In fact she herself has moved all her clients on to cloud-based accounting. “That will allow me to reap the benefits,” she says. “When MTD comes, I will be ready because I will have access to all my clients’ records.”
Rebecca is also taking part in the VAT pilot element of the MTD transformation, which is due to be rolled out next April.
She's bound to be updating on this and plenty of other aspects of MTD, so be sure to check out Rebecca's session, if you can, next week at Accountex.
Technology and the shifting European VAT landscape
HMRC's vision to digitalise the UK tax system is well under way. Making Tax Digital (MTD) was announced by the government in 2015 as an initiative to improve the UK tax system, and reduce its complexity.
Following a delay it is now scheduled to be introduced in April 2019 for mandatory VAT reporting by all VAT registered businesses with turnover above the UK VAT threshold of £85,000. Then, but no earlier than April 2020, it will be phased in to apply to other taxes, notably corporation tax and income tax.
It is not only the UK where digitalisation is gathering pace. Many countries have now introduced - notable examples being the Czech Republic, Poland, Portugal and Spain - or will be introducing - Hungary and Italy are imminent - voluntary and mandatory transaction reporting submissions.
One of the most popular formats
The timing varies from inclusion with monthly/quarterly VAT returns through to real-time reporting to the tax authorities at the time of an invoice being raised. One of the more popular formats is Standard Audit File for Tax (‘SAF-T’) which was developed for global use by the OECD.
This is a scheme for the exchange of information between tax authorities and businesses that can be consistently applied in all countries. However, as you might expect, countries have introduced a number of variations to fit their own circumstances.
This digitalisation is primarily focused on VAT and the major motivation behind it is the desire to reduce the VAT gap, the difference between expected and actual VAT revenues. VAT fraud and evasion, which are major components of the gap, cost government budgets billions of euros per annum across the EU.
Tackling VAT non-compliance is therefore one of both the Commission's and the Member States’ top priorities. Hence the European Commission have proposed a far-reaching reform of the EU VAT system, while Member States have been working to tighten up their VAT collections and recapture the losses in revenue.
What are the practical implications?
That is the background. What might the practical implications be?
In the long term, digitalisation should make life simpler by providing the dual advantages of eliminating both paper transactions and data errors within your accounts system.
On the other hand no new system is ever introduced flawlessly and teething problems can be expected. A good example of this is that the data required by national tax offices will need to be in a specified format. For example, on the HMRC website if there is a space left in the data formatting in certain fields you are unable to input. Additionally, tax offices in different countries sharing and transferring data means more errors (even if unintentional) will be identified, potentially leading to disruptive audits and fines. In extreme cases individuals could also be found personally liable.
All-important compliance checks
But countering this is the positive news that the VAT industry and technology companies are coming up with technological solutions which will ultimately provide ease of data handling, simplicity of use and all-important compliance checks.
As such we are delighted to have developed VIVAT - a cloud based automated VAT tool - which provides a low cost option with a flexible pricing policy. There is no real competition for the product unless a company is prepared to purchase and download expensive software or pay for an expensive service contract for a professional to undertake the work.
We believe that, while in the short-term technology can create and provide issues, companies should not hesitate to embrace it to deal with their VAT obligations as in the long-term there will be many advantages.
Is it time to tap into Generation Z?
Accountancy is an industry that has faced a lot of changes over the past few years, both in terms of how roles have changed and also what customers now expect. In order to continue competing in this market, it’s important to keep ahead of any changes in customer behaviour.
One way accountants have had to do this so far is by adapting to a growing number of younger entrepreneurs who have hugely different expectations compared with previous generations.
Millennials and Generation Z
Millennials and Generation Z are changing the way businesses market their services and communicate with clients and accountancy is no different. While many can’t agree on the exact age ranges, millennials are typically thought of as those born between 1981-1996, aged between 22 and 37. Generation Z were born between the mid-90s and the mid-2000s.
We’ve all heard a lot about millennials changing the workforce and the business world. On the other hand, relatively little has been said about Generation Z in the same way so far. Part of the reason for this is that a lot of them are still children, but they won’t be children for long. Soon enough they’ll become a new generation of entrepreneurs with modern business needs and expectations.
As digital natives, Generation Z will build on the expectations that millennials already have. Having a solid digital presence, embracing mobile technology and new communication methods will become essential to target these clients.
Communication methods
People nowadays like the option to pick the communication method that best suits their needs. Many will still rely on email and phone calls but others will prefer live chats, instant messaging and Skype calls. To offer more than one method of communication puts your clients first and also helps you to appeal to younger clients.
A study last year from technology company LivePerson, showed that 74.4 per cent of millennials and Generation Z prefer digital interaction over traditional communication methods. 69.4% would choose to use a messaging app over phoning someone.
Social media
One of these methods of communication considered essential for businesses nowadays is social media.
It’ll come as no shock that younger generations are using social media more than those before them. People like using it because they can quickly gather information, look up companies, keep up to date with offers and comment on businesses they’ve had experiences with (both good and bad).
This infographic from marketing platform Ambassador shows how important social media is to any business. 71 per cent of people who have had a positive interaction with a brand on social media were likely to recommend them to a friend. 70 per cent of those helped by a brand through social media will return as a customer in the future.
This means that accountancy firms have something to gain from having a presence on social media. It gives you a direct line of communication with the very entrepreneurs that you’re trying to turn into clients.
Mobile expectations
Mobile use is on its way to taking over desktop computer and laptop use. A piece of research from Think with Google found that in Generation Z, 78% use smartphones, 68% use laptops and 52% use tablets. This shows that the younger generation values the ability to take their data on the move.
This doesn’t just apply to millennials and Generation Z. Look at how much we all rely on our smartphones now. We use them for communication, to ease boredom, to fill in gaps in knowledge and catch up on the news.
For those in business, smartphones are essential for communication, customer service and marketing. So why should this be any different for tasks like bookkeeping?
As service providers, accountants can tap into mobile expectations. This means at the very least making sure your website is mobile friendly and functions well across smartphones and tablets. If appropriate, a mobile app can further develop your business and keep it ahead of the competition. However, if you’re looking for a quicker and simpler way of appealing to younger generations, heading into the cloud is the answer.
Cloud accounting
Cloud accounting can help your accountancy firm meet the needs of a mobile-loving generation of entrepreneurs. Being busy people on the move, it’s not always possible to sit at the same computer every day to update financial records and manage accounts.
This is why using the cloud is so popular. Having everything readily available in your pocket on your smartphone with the ability to sync information across devices, is so much more convenient.
While people still use spreadsheets to do bookkeeping (which they can do on the move thanks to Google Sheets), bookkeeping software takes this one step further and makes the entire process a lot easier. Software can link with bank accounts, send invoice reminders, help users correct errors and cut down on tedious data entry.
Moving accounting to the cloud addresses two needs: simple bookkeeping and mobile capabilities.
Machine learning and automation
Everyone’s busy, too busy for tedious tasks. In this fast moving world, people want something that’s going to make their lives easier and give them the breathing space to focus on what they’re really passionate about, their business.
This is where machine learning and automation come in. They can help to make our everyday lives easier by cutting down on tedious tasks that software can take care of instead.
With bookkeeping software, a lot of processes can be automated. For example, linking bank accounts can automatically pull over transactions into the software. This cuts down on time and errors caused by manually inputting information.
Embracing automation
We realised early on that clients have completely different expectations of us as accountants and bookkeeping software developers. People want simple software, with remote capabilities and the chance to communicate how they want. We believe bookkeeping should be as simple as possible so it’s not a daunting task for our users, especially for those without experience. This is why machine learning and automation have been important to us from the start.
We’ve used automation to cut down on tedious data entry by linking with bank accounts to automatically load transactions. We’ve made working with multiple currencies simpler by creating automatic sub-accounts for each currency rather than users having to manually set up a separate bank feed. We also send out automatic reminders for unpaid invoices to help our users manage cash flow, and allow users to automatically send out invoices to groups of clients with ease.
Messaging centre
Client collaboration is essential to efficient accounting. To help keep communication open between accountants and clients we’re developing a messaging system within Pandle so that all correspondence is kept in one place. With our Pandle Notes feature, users and accountants can attach notes to transactions and tag each other to keep important information right where it’s needed, within the software itself.
Partnering options
If you’re currently looking for bookkeeping software that’s simple to use and uses innovative new tech solutions, then take a look at our Pandle partnering options. Our Pandle Partner option means accountancy firms can use our software to manage all their clients’ accounts with ease.
Our second option is Brandle. With Brandle you can use our software but you’ll get the added benefit of having all Pandle mentions replaced with your own company branding. It’ll give you and your clients the benefits of having your very own software but without the hassle and expense of having to develop it yourself. This can help you become competitive in the industry as having your own software can be used as a selling point when you market to clients.
Pandle are exhibiting at Accountex, stand 873.
'Free up time with automated working practices'
A common theme we see at FibreCRM (when speaking to partners of practices of all sizes) is that they want to "spend less time chasing clients". I am sure this resonates with pretty much every reader of this blog!
Whether it`s chasing for information to complete a tax return or reminders to pay taxes - this is un-billed time and eats into profit margins. The larger the practice the more time that is lost, and if one day (per partner) each month is lost chasing clients - the cost (both £ and time) can be staggering. For example, if a practice has 10 partners, that’s 10 un-billable days per month (120 un-billed days per year, or 960 hours).
Based on an hourly rate of £100 (conservative, I know) a practice could be absorbing £96,000 of unbilled work, every year. In that context, this is an issue well worth seeking a solution for. Time IS money, after all.
Look no further - because more and more accountancy practices are discovering that the solution lies in a (practice management/integrated) CRM (client relationship management) system.
What's integration?
It sounds obvious, but in fact there are varying views of what integration is or looks like. I like the definition, “linking together of different systems and processes to act as a coordinated whole.”
What does integration achieve? An integrated system promotes efficiency and reduces costs, and is now a key focus for businesses across the world as their catalyst for growth. Integration allows organisations to leverage their existing processes, technology, people, and data - to stay ahead of the competition. Their individual, standalone processes become stronger and more efficient as a result.
As Daniel H. Wilson quoted, “Things grow stronger when you integrate”. So, where does CRM fit into this picture?
While CRM is traditionally seen as a system for managing relationships (which it does extremely well, along with other key benefits), it is increasingly becoming seen by businesses as the “hub” for consolidating all their existing standalone systems. CRM delivers a solution so that staff can manage (efficiently) all those activities from within one system. This is being evidenced more than ever right now, by businesses who have identified CRM as the best solution for managing their GDPR compliance process.
CRM is the key to integration in accountancy practices
CRM is the key to integration in accountancy practices, as it enhances practice management. It finds those job stages that stall due to manual (internal or external) information flows - and sorts them out. CRM sends automated email alerts directly to the client (without interrupting staff and partners) and immediately removes those expensive lost hours chasing clients. In short, it pays for itself (and then some).
Job turnround subsequently speeds up, and invoices get sent (and paid!) sooner - resulting in improved cashflow and a healthier bottom line for your practice.
The key is identifying what standalone processes your practice currently operates, and discovering that CRM can integrate and bring them all together.
Another Daniel H. Wilson quote sums this blog up perfectly: “The true knowledge is not in the things, but in finding the connections between the things.”
FibreCRM will be on Stand 955 at Accountex 2018.
Will 2018 be a new dawn for data encryption?
The impending GDPR deadline, and most particularly it’s regime of fines for data breaches, has placed security at the top of the agenda at many organisations. There is now a compelling reason for the use of data encryption after it has laid dormant for decades.
It is a shame that encryption is still so misunderstood as it is just a tool like any other. Below are the three key approaches to encryption in use today and, as you will see, your own IT team is key...
Machine level encryption - preventing external theft
If you are a small business you may be simply wanting to know your data is safe from physical theft. Low-level hard drive encryption secures a machines data so that even if it is stolen, data cannot be accessed by prying eyes. Microsoft BitLocker, for example, provides that blanket protection without your users or applications needing to know or care.
This can also be applied to mobile working. However, the risk of inappropriate access remains: Where someone inside the business – a staff member or consultant perhaps –can access all users’ data that is still "in the clear" on a hard drive, unless further or more targeted steps are taken:
Directory or Database level encryption – preventing internal theft
A larger business may be looking at securing their systems to ensure the safety of sensitive PII data from theft by either normal users or departmental IT staff who may still need to support those systems. Typically this data is accessed only via the business applications which control access at a user level. What is important is that the raw data of those systems cannot be read if accessed directly or stolen?
Here you can use Microsoft EFS (encrypted file system) or Microsoft SQL server transparent encryption for databases to prevent readability of these raw assets from users on your network.
Again, applications should not need to know that this encryption is in place. It is something that the IT team can implement and these are configurations that software vendors should willingly support. With the above two approaches, we have already covered encryption needs for 95 per cent of businesses.
In some cases, it is necessary to have a mix of encrypted data and data in clear in the same business application – rather like a password protected attachment in an email. This is where applications themselves offer specific support and functionality for data security.
Document, Application or fine-grained encryption – preventing in-application theft
Working at this level requires the application itself to be aware of encryption and is a more complex and expensive topic. For most situations, it is not needed, but it can be important if it is the only way to use a system for both common and sensitive data at the same time. If this is your requirement then it is critical you discuss it in detail with your software vendor. If you can avoid it - do so.
Enabling encryption for most business data is actually really quick and painless.
Don’t let yourself be bamboozled by the technical terms, just focus on your key threats and obligations – and get that encryption done!
Invu Services will be on stand 146 at Accountex 2018