Lean management applied to cybersecurity

Lean management: what are we talking about?

It originated in the Japanese automotive industry, specifically at Toyota, in the early 1950s.

Simply put, lean management is a management approach (and a set of associated practices) aimed atimproving the efficiency of processes within a company and reducing costs.

It is based on five pillars:

1. identification of value;
2. identification of the value stream;
3. the creation of a continuous workflow;
4. tightening up flows to increase deliveries;
5. continuous improvement.

To be more specific, this means:

• identify and eliminate unnecessary activities;
• simplify workflows;
• actively involve employees in the improvement process.

All these methods help to make processes smoother and more efficient, while minimizing wasted resources —hence the term "lean management"("lean" meaning "thin" in English).

Lean management offers numerous tools for everyday implementation, such as the 5S method, the Kaizen method, and the Kanban method. All of these tools can be used by the CISO!

3 ways to apply lean management to cyber

Today, lean management principles are applied far beyond the manufacturing industry.

Retail, logistics, education... this approach is adopted in many sectors, including cybersecurity. And for good reason: in cyber management, process optimization and continuous improvement play a (truly) central role.

Continuous improvement of cybersecurity on a daily basis

One of the key principles of lean management is continuous improvement, or Kaizen.

In the context of cybersecurity, this means that the CISO evaluates and improves security policies and practices on a daily basis, without resting on their laurels.

Improvements may relate to:

• analysis of past incidents;
• identification of vulnerabilities;
• adjusting security policies to prevent future incidents...

Reducing waste

Reducing waste is another principle of lean management. In the context of cybersecurity, this involves eliminating redundant processes and inefficient tools.

In this scenario, the CISO identifies repetitive tasks that can be automated. Examples include:

• the collection of data on safety equipment;
• log analysis;
• report generation, etc.

Employee engagement and recognition

It cannot be said enough: cybersecurity is everyone's business —a statement that is all the more true given that cyberattacks primarily target employees.

That's why it's essential to involve all employees in the continuous improvement process! This encourages collective responsibility and even creates a strong cybersecurity culture within the company.

In this context, appointing an IT representative in each team allows best practices to be shared within the team, but also enables potential alerts to be reported to the CISO.

Lean management, cyber... and Tenacy

1. Assess and plan needs

If we follow the principles of lean management, gaining clarity in day-to-day cyber management involves:

• to conduct a comprehensive audit of existing processes in order to identify opportunities for improvement;
• to establish a detailed action plan, incorporating clear and measurable objectives with deadlines for each stage of the project.

That's good news: that's (partly) what Tenacy does! The tool guides you through your audits, generates tailored action plans, and integrates more than 40 cyber security standards, breaking them down into lists of measures to be implemented. Handy, isn't it?

2. Automate and centralize data collection

The CISO uses telemetry data collected from EDR agents or network equipment logs on a daily basis. To align with lean management principles and thus increase efficiency, it is necessary to:

• automate the reporting of information;
• centralize this data on a single platform.

Hence the added value of Tenacy, which saves considerable operational time in data collection, aggregation, and analysis.

3. Measure the progress of actions

One of the CISO's tasks is to establish key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the impact of the changes made. Periodic reviews must also be carried out to ensure that the objectives are being met.

In this context, Tenacy's added value lies in its multiple interactive dashboards, accompanied by more than 200 indicators. This facilitates continuous improvement through informed decision-making based on a set of factual data. Growth is yours for the taking!

The essentials

By applying lean management principles on a daily basis, the CISO transforms his approach by making the organization more agile and responsive, thereby improving its cybersecurity posture.

To takeyour cybersecurity processes to the next level, discover how Tenacy can help you automate and streamline your security tasks!

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