 1. Cultivate a Security Culture
You can have the greatest systems in place, properly penetration tested and configured perfectly, but the point of failure in your cybersecurity plan will almost always be human error made at one point or another. It is important to cultivate a culture that teaches your employees how to work securely. This can be achieved with even just basic policies like not leaving laptops unlocked and open when walking away from them. 2. Phishing will Target Your Users A seemingly innocent looking email that looks like it came from Facebook asking a user to update their password can be a point of entry for someone phishing for access. Once they gain access to one password it is likely a bad actor will be able to use that information to start moving laterally within your systems to gain more access. 3. Spear Phishing will Target Your Users Even More The difference between phishing and spear phishing is in methodology. Whereas phishing is more of a “spray and pray” approach to gaining access to credentials, spear phishing uses data about the targeted systems, company, or person to actively target. For instance, sending an email disguised as one from your internal IT department or an executive within the company. 4. The Basics Are Still Important Make sure you fully use technologies like DKIM, SPF, and DMARC for your emails. DKIM validates that the sender is who the sender says they are. Spoofing authoritative or trusted domains is a common methodology when phishing and so making sure that your users are alerted, or never even see an email that comes from a spoofed trusted domain, could be the difference between a company that has credentials phished from a user and one that doesn’t. 5. Use Multifactor Authentication (MFA) Whenever Possible MFA can be most readily compared to your experience at an ATM. It requires two pieces of information to withdraw cash; Your debit card and your PIN. This prevents someone from gaining one piece of information or a credential and immediately having access. MFA will require an extra step from your users but should be used on your most sensitive systems. 6. Ransomware Attacks Are Going to Be Increasingly Common Ransomware can slow the operations of a business to a crawl. The hack that took down the largest fuel pipeline in the U.S. and led to shortages across the East Coast in 2021 was the result
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  2021 has been a big year, full of ups and downs that have dramatically changed the needs of consumers and how we all do business. If that has left you wondering how all of this change will affect the world of design trends, we are here with answers!
Movement: Movement draws the eye, which is why a gif will always be more popular online than a static image. New platforms cater to video, and this, too, makes movement more desirable. Energy: Gone is the “less is more” approach with classic shapes and colors. Having experienced a pandemic, people are ready for lots of color and innovation-like elements, including screen grabs and digital artifacts. International Flavor: So much of day-to-day work and life has moved online, it has opened the doors for collaborations from all over the world. This will give design a much more worldly and international flavor in the coming year. Eclecticism in Design: Everyone’s experience of the pandemic has been different. Some will find an appeal in nostalgia, while others are celebrating freedom and life. There are many ways that our experiences look to shape design in the coming year. 1990s Revival: Every so often, what was old becomes new again. This is one of those times. Expect to see a reimagining of 1990’s design, including bright colors and jagged edges. Bigger is Better: Maximalism is on the rise as years of streamlining and minimalism fall to the wayside. Changing Typography: As other elements of design change, so does typography. Everyone is ready for more and brighter, which shows in typography and the new trend of motion. Partnerships: Expect to see more brands use collaborations and partnerships to reach new audiences. This is an expansion of a long tried and true idea and has been seen recently with influencers. Go Green: People want to support companies that have green initiatives. But, be careful; without environmental action, you could be seen as a fraud. Be Real: Unapologetic realism is going to be appreciated this year. As everyone comes back to a more solid norm, people will look for what is new, fresh, and real. Businesses succeeding right now are doing so because they put the needs and desires of the consumer at the core of what they do. Top companies are using design thinking to drive innovation in their products, service, and marketing.  Simply put, competency assessments are any tools that can measure the behaviors which people demonstrate while carrying out a specific job or task. Such behaviors are the result of different motivations, knowledge, abilities, and skills that any individual student or employee might possess.
Using competency assessments with specific job requirements in mind can drive learning initiatives and provide consistent results. Benefits of Competency Assessments Organizations that utilize competency-based assessments can expect the following results:
Assessments should be administered across an organization in a consistent manner in order to be effective and fair. A certain competency must be first be identified and then measured according to every job. How Competency Assessments Can Boost Learning Initiatives If someone wants to understand how an employee is currently performing in their given role or what kind of skills they’ll need to fulfill the requirements of a future role, a competency assessment can do this for you. By knowing how well your employees are able to perform certain tasks, where there might be weaknesses, you can design learning initiatives that are more accurate at strengthening your employee’s knowledge and thereby helping your company achieve its goals. Establishing a benchmark to measure an employee’s performance, whether it is their current role or future responsibilities, can be an effective tool for determining how you want to develop your workforce. Assessment can also be used for understanding organizational competencies. How well your employees are able to act in a cohesive manner or have the ability to differentiate can help you compete in a crowded marketplace. To learn more about how your organization can benefit from our professional education programs contact us today.  Today there are many reasons employees are leaving their jobs, but one reason is that they see little or no opportunity for advancement. Organizations can learn to retain employees by identifying career paths in which an employee can see himself as a part of an ever-growing company.
Employees want to know they have a place in a company’s future. By defining career ladders, specific roles, and identifying a clear career path, companies can retain quality employees and achieve steady growth. Creating Career Paths A career path is a solid foundation of concrete steps and instructions on how your employees can achieve their optimum role at your organization. One of HR’s central functions is to collaborate with the employee so that you both may identify the interests, experiences, and skills that can allow the employee to achieve their full potential. Creating a career path involves identifying benchmarks so employees know when they have achieved certain short and long-term goals. If the employee is able to achieve these landmarks then the organization can determine if they are right for advancement. Developing Career Ladders Career ladders describe certain roles within your company that an employee will perform as he progresses along the career path. For instance, an employee might advance from an assistant manager to an area manager and then to a senior manager. There are several steps that can be utilized when developing career ladders:
 Success is rarely a matter of chance and knowing how to manage your career is essential. Being proactive in managing your career will better help you realize your ambitions. Although it seems like a logical thing to do, many don’t know what career management is, or assume their employer will provide it for them.
In order to better understand how to manage your career, you’ve got to first identify your goals, your interests, and the kind of skills you possess that can bring it all to fruition. Ask yourself the following questions:
Career Development Planning There are several steps you can take to map out how to develop a career:
New technology is constantly affecting everyone’s lives and influencing just about every industry. You’re going to need to be able to adapt to these innovations to keep current your knowledge and skills. In addition, and this has always been true, you’re going to need to invest a certain amount of time learning about what is currently affecting your industry. Whether that means obtaining certain credentials, joining committees, reading trade magazines, attending conferences, or taking professional education courses, it’s essential for you to grow as your career grows. To learn more about how you or your organization can benefit from our professional education programs contact us today!   One of the many reasons you should consider serving as an executive education advisor is because it will give you so many wonderful opportunities for networking.
Here are some of the best ways to capitalize on the advantages being an executive education advisor gives you in networking. Attend Meetings Regularly - As an executive education advisor, you should be attending regularly scheduled meetings. This enhances your reputation because you are seen as involved and dependable. No one wants to be that person that everyone knows never shows up. These meetings also allow you to meet new people and nurture relationships with the people you already know. Chair a Committee - Another great networking opportunity comes from offering to chair committees or run initiatives. This allows you to connect with others and work with them in settings and projects that will help you learn from them and build relationships too. Also, these types of activities are great for enhancing your reputation and building your resume. Present at Advisory Meetings - Offer to present at advisory meetings. Presenting is a great opportunity because it introduces you to many people at one time. Not only that, but afterward you have an automatic icebreaker, because you are now seen as knowledgeable and trusted about the subject you presented. Share Case Studies - Sharing case studies within any industry is valuable because it is one of the best ways to spread new information throughout a specific community. However, you may not have realized that sharing case studies gives you a great chance to network and discuss other areas of common ground with other professionals in your industry. Build Connections and Contacts - Serving as an executive education advisor gives you a treasure trove of opportunities for better networking, so make sure that you take advantage of them! This position not only provides ample opportunity to network, but can help advance your career as well.   Serving as an Advisor for an Executive Education Program means that you will be lending your knowledge and insight to the development of an Executive Education Program. However, you should keep in mind that doing this will have many added benefits for you.
Some of those benefits of advising these programs include: Knowledge - Anytime you are working in or around furthering executive education, it will increase your knowledge, and in some cases, serve as a refresher of what you already knew, but hadn’t thought about in a while. Skills & Tools - In an executive’s world, skills are always changing. The more up-to-date you are, the more marketable you are. Being a part of an Executive Education Program in any facet will likely enhance your skills. Networking - There is nothing more powerful in the world of business than networking. Serving as an Advisor for an Executive Education Program will give you a chance to meet with other people on many different levels of your industry that you would not have met otherwise. Improving Performance - When you serve as an Advisor for an Executive Education Program, you will look at things from a different point of view and dissect problems differently. This is a huge advantage. Also, through networking and discussion, you will likely learn new methods that may also make you more effective. Career Boost - Serving as an Advisor for an Executive Education Program can give your career a boost in many ways, from networking to enhancing your knowledge and skills. The fact is, that it also has serious CV-boosting benefits. Summary Working as an Advisor for an Executive Education Program has great benefits that will enhance your professional reputation as well as knowledge and skills. In addition, taking this path provides new and unique opportunities that will benefit your career as a whole.   When you agree to serve as an advisor to an executive education program, one of the benefits is your ability to inspire and affect change on a company-wide and even industry-wide level. In this position, there are a myriad of ways that you can inspire and motivate your team.
Here are a few direct ways that you, as an executive education advisor, can effectively inspire change.
  LinkedIn has come a long way from a simple job networking site. Today, it serves as a comprehensive professional development platform, where over 740 million users showcase what they have to offer. There’s no doubt that LinkedIn has the reach to help you develop a powerful personal brand, and taking advantage of online social trends can propel you to the top in the age where digital marketing is king.
As the potential end of the pandemic saunters into view, here are some forward-thinking insights to take with you into 2022.
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