The Bellwether Group, Inc.

Situation

A government defense contractor wanted to establish an integrated Executive Dashboard for its Security Operations, in order to gain better insight into security issues facing the Company overall and better manage their security solution from a holistic point of view. Complicating matters within the Company, the project backlog of the IT department and other priorities were causing operational delays and hindering dashboard development progress internally. Bellwether was asked to guide the Company through the process of developing and deploying a working security dashboard within a 6 month timeframe.  

 
Approach

Bellwether designed and managed a series of facilitated sessions that enabled a widely separated group of stakeholders to arrive at consensus and achieve buy-in and support for the project. The sessions sought to identify metrics and KPIs that would provide a holistic snapshot, agree normal ranges and tolerances and set alert levels. The data was integrated into a single database that could be readily updated and converted into a visually appealing graphical display. Bellwether designed the dashboard so that it would be easy to modify and swap information in, and out of, to continuously improve it over time.

Analysis & Results

We met with client representatives to discuss the types of metrics executives would need to see each month to review the company’s security status. Lists of data fields already being captured from multiple sources were gathered, reviewed and prioritized. After reaching consensus on desirable metrics, Bellwether consolidated and analyzed several years of historical data to determine “normal” ranges and “target” levels for each metric selected. The analysis enabled rapid consensus on the levels at which alert flags would be automatically raised in the dashboard. Each metric was displayed in an appropriate context and its need for normalization determined.

Benefits to Client

The company gained an effective management tool and concise way to better understand its security status each month. This integrated tool helped get different department heads together on the same page and provided a common language and presentation through which to ascertain security needs. Unfavorable trends and events could be identified more effectively and more quickly than before thus enabling resources to be optimally deployed on a more timely and efficient basis. Executives were able to assess the situation more quickly in less time, as well as more frequently.