USING GDPR TO BENEFIT YOUR BUSINESS.

The new guidelines surrounding the treatment of data in business have now been law for almost a whole year. Since compliance of the new rules is an essential requirement, it makes sense for businesses to look at the benefits of GDPR, using it to improve and streamline their administrative processes.The General Data Protection Regulation became law throughout Europe in May 2018. Regardless of the outcome of Brexit, the UK has elected to adopt the same principles when we leave the EU. One thing that the politicians have agreed on is that the GDPR benefits are well worth implementing in our own businesses, especially as any trade deals with European companies will need to comply with the various points within the regulation. Here we outline five of the positive effects that GDPR could have on your business.

GDPR Benefits Number 1: Security

Keeping data safe and secure for clients is one of the most important benefits of GDPR. The majority of security breaches have been caused as a result of human error, making them difficult to defend in case of compliance fees, brand reputation and angry customers. Having a clear and concise policy in place, with strict rules as to how data should be handled, reduces the risk of employees accidentally revealing information they shouldn’t, while also helping to minimise the cost should a breach occur. One of the stipulations of GDPR is that anyone dealing with data can now be prosecuted in the event of unlawful disclosure, so that full responsibility is not placed solely on the person in charge of the data. This makes external document storage a far safer option, using a company like Flexible Storage Solutions, so long as the company can prove GDPR compliance.

GDPR Benefits Number 2: Transparency and Organisation

GDPR guidelines insist that data is organised in a way that ensures it is easy to access sensitive information quickly. The GDPR business benefits of this stipulation are obvious, with a neat and tidy system that means that client requests for data are always easy to comply with, preventing employees wasting time searching for information and also reducing the chances of that data becoming ‘lost’ in the system. Even if a company has gone through several structural changes, with mergers and takeovers that have meant the accumulation of data from several sources, GDPR indexing suggestions should ensure important information is always to hand.

GDPR Benefits Number 3: Customer Confidence

Advertising your compliance with GDPR is sure to increase customer confidence in your brand, since they will know that their data is being handled in a way that is reliable and responsible. With GDPR principles in place, data breaches will become few and far between, so that company reputation is kept in place and customer loyalty is rewarded with safe and secure data.

GDPR Benefits Number 4: Cost-Effective Storage

One of the rules that businesses must abide by is that all personal data held must be relevant and up-to-date. This encourages companies to have a clear-out of all old records, enabling them to improve the efficiency of daily operations. This helps reduce maintenance costs, especially if your business rents additional space on your work premises. Time is money and as documents become easier to access and manage, employee time will be better spent on their core activities, rather than searching through piles of unnecessary paperwork.

GDPR Benefits Number 5: Efficient Use of Data

When making decisions in business, companies are now required to ensure human intervention helps to streamline the process. Removing the automated part of the decision-making procedure means that there is less room for error, so that data is used in a more effective and efficient way. The fact that documents are better consolidated and easier to access with an online file management system means that the decision-making process is far less daunting for an employee.There are many benefits of GDPR and since it is now a mandatory requirement for all businesses within Europe, as well as those that intend to deal with European companies, it makes sense for businesses to embrace these new rules and use them to their advantage.At Flexible Storage, our document storage services are fully compliant with the GDPR regulations, so you know your documents will be in the safest possible hands. Get in touch with one of our professional storage consultants here to get a quote!