Source supports another engaging roundtable discussion as a Strategic Partner for the NED Network last Thursday, 4 May at our Sydney office.

The NED Network’s vision is to be a community of NEDs (Non-Executive Directors), including emerging NEDs from a cross-section of the Australian business landscape. The network will create opportunities to engage in discussion and debate on a range of topics and issues critical to the sustainability of a company and societal leadership.

Source supports alongside fellow strategic partners FTI Consulting, Perennial Partners and Hamilton Locke and met with NED Network members for an engaging roundtable.

This roundtable welcomed longstanding and new NED Network members with attendees participating in a live cyber-attack board response simulation. The event included a panel insights discussion with cyber security expert Wouter Veugelen (FTI Consulting), crisis management expert Ben Hamilton (FTI Consulting) and Intellectual Property and Technology Partner Sophie Bradshaw (Hamilton Locke).

Hamilton Locke Partner Jo Ruitenberg joined as the MC and HPX Group’s Peter Whitehead moderated the roundtable.

Some of the key learnings from the session:

• Companies need to prepare for cyber-attacks– the first time the crisis communications playbook is tested shouldn’t be in a live incident.
• ISO22361 provides a solid base to assess crisis preparedness – you should consider a benchmark against this standard.
• In a crisis, companies need to tell their own worst story first, or else someone else will do it for them. Take control of the narrative early.
• The clear message from the Australian Information Commissioner and Privacy Commissioner is that organisations should consider themselves on notice as to what personal information they hold and are not keeping personal information no longer needed. Companies should invest now in data governance and other processes to meet this expectation.
• Companies should perform frequent tests replicating real-life cyber-attacks to ensure their infrastructure is resilient against common cyber threats.

If you are interested in participating in future roundtables and joining the NED Network community, please contact Peter Whitehead or Jo Ruitenberg.