Last month, I presented at the EDUCAUSE annual conference in San Antonio, Texas, with two of my Office of Information Security (OIS) colleagues—David Puzder and Madeline Quigley. Our talk, “Encouraging Security Culture through a Participatory Policy Project” focused on the OIS’ multi-year policy revision project.
Specifically, we wanted to tell the EDUCAUSE audience about 1) taking a participatory approach to writing and revising OIS policies and standards and 2) socializing the policies and standards using a friendly, guidance-based approach. These aspects of the project were inspired by CISO Chris Shull’s vision to make information security work for the WashU Community and, above all, to “Keep Information Security Simple.”
After rehearsing a few times in the thoughtfully equipped Speaker Ready Room, we picked up the mic in our corner of “Cybersecurity Central” in EDUCAUSE Commons (the exhibit hall) and engaged our large and fluid audience in a 45-minute “Learn and Design Lab” (interactive presentation) about the OIS policy project. Initially, we were nervous that reaching our audience in the exhibit hall would be challenging. With so much activity and background noise, we wondered if anyone would notice we were there or care about what we had to say. I am thrilled to report that, contrary to our worries, people did notice and care.
We gained a lot from the experience—new professional contacts, new ideas, and a chance to join in a bigger conversation. Here are just a few takeaways from our time at EDUCAUSE:
- Everyone is talking about “security culture.” We were proud to showcase the OIS’ work in this area and eager to hear how others are approaching this topic.
- Our guidance-based approach to socializing the policies and standards was interesting to many people. We demonstrated our approach by showing off our new Policies page and the guidance we developed for each new policy. We also explained how to communicate foundational principles from our policies using an example microlearning video developed by WashU’s own Awareness, Behavior, and Culture team (below). The video was an especially big hit.
- Presenting in the exhibit hall was a great opportunity to reach people with whom we would not have otherwise connected. Passersby and nearby vendors listened to some or all of our session, and we connected with many of them afterward.
- EDUCAUSE’s collaborative spirit is energizing. People were friendly and interested in exchanging ideas.
We hope to return to EDUCAUSE with another presentation next year in Nashville, TN, preferably in the exhibit hall!
From left to right: Christina Pomianek-Smith, Madeline Quigley, David Puzder