Daniel Cherrin

Cyberattacks against the energy sector are growing in both number and sophistication Deloitte recently identified energy, and more specifically, utilities, as among the top three sectors targeted for attack in the U.S.

In the past year, more than a dozen utilities in the U.S. were targets, many located near dams, locks and other critical infrastructure. According to The Wall Street Journal, the utilities that were targeted include:

Cloverland Electric Cooperative, Michigan, which sits next to the Sault Ste. Marie Locks, a critical juncture for the transport of iron ore to U.S. steel mills

Klickitat Public Utility District in Washington state, which is near major federal dams and transmission lines that funnel hydroelectricity to California; and,

Basin Electric Power Cooperative in North Dakota, one of the few utilities that are capable of delivering electricity to both the nation’s eastern and western grids.

Wisconsin Rapids Water Works and Lighting Commission​ and Flathead Electric Cooperative, which serves members on the Montana-Wyoming border.

Some of these utilities were not even aware that they were attacked until the FBI alerted them.

According to the article, the hackers tried to get malware installed on the computers at the utility company through “phishing” emails.  These are deceiving emails made to look like it came from a reputable source to entice someone to open the door to let the hackers in. Once in, the hackers could then possible take control over the utility computers to steal information or worse, take control over the critical infrastructure including locks, dams and the electrical grid.

Smaller utilities are more vulnerable than the larger ones because they think they lack a budget to identify their risk and implement changes to make their system more secure. But budgets and personnel should never be a barrier to knowing where a company is vulnerable and taking the necessary precautions to minimize any exposure. Here are just a few quick steps utilities can take to protect themselves:

Know where you are vulnerable.

Make vigilance part of your corporate culture and work hard to educate your employees to make them aware of the risks.

Test them to see who will click on a (fake) phishing email and talk to everyone about it.

Know the laws around data breaches and when you must report them.

Prepare a crisis management playbook so that your company will be prepared when you are attacked.

Get to know the reporters who cover your industry so that you can work with them in times of crisis.

Work with your vendors in ensuring that they are in compliance and have policies in place to address data breaches.

Cyberattacks are inevitable. Every organization at some point will be required to deal with a cybersecurity breach and its consequences. The impact of the incident will vary depending on how the company responds. A decisive and coordinated response will minimize operational disruption and ensure a swift return to business as usual but this requires practice.

Cybersecurity Is A Business Risk, not an IT problem

Many executives still think that a data breach is an IT issue, however, cybersecurity is actually a business risk, such as a sexual harassment claim, environmental disaster, whistleblower misinterpreted gesture or something said that was taken out of context. If not handled well can jeopardize the company's reputation and bottom line.

Rising threats are pushing companies to try new defensive techniques and tools in 2020, which will increase cybersecurity budgets at many firms. Across industries, average spending on cybersecurity is 5% to 8% of the overall technology budget, according to research firm Gartner Inc. and reported by The Wall Street Journal.

It is time to change your company’s approach to cybersecurity and work hard at changing the company’s culture to become more vigilant, why?

Medical Practices Are Closing

A cyberattack can paralyze a healthcare practice, compromise the security of patient records and impact patient safety. In fact, last year, Brookside ENT and Hearing Center in Battle Creek, MI permanently closed its doors after hackers deleted all their data after it decided not to pay a ransom.

Data is being stolen from school districts and local governments

Cyberattacks against schools and local governments are growing in both number and sophistication. The Rockville Centre Schools (NY) paid $90,000 in ransom to hackers that had encrypted all of the district's files while an attack on Atlanta’s system paralyzed the city for days.

Small Utilities

Deloitte recently identified energy, and more specifically, utilities, as among the top three sectors targeted for attack in the U.S., with more than a dozen utilities in the U.S. were targets, many located near dams, locks and other critical infrastructure.

No Excuses

Your budget, or lack thereof, and staffing should no longer be the main barrier to becoming cyber secure. There are a number of key steps that anyone can take to protect itself from the inevitable next wave of attacks, including:

Make sure software patches are routinely applied.

If possible, only use supported operating systems and other software.

Utilize anti-malware and antivirus software tools and services.

Back up your critical data.

Know the laws affecting your industry around data breaches.

Train your employees on how to spot phishing emails.

Create a cross-functional incident response plan.

Practice responding to a cyber-attack in a tabletop exercise to be able to hit the ground running when this type of event occurs.

Establish or enhance relationships with law enforcement and other critical partners.

In the end, knowing that you are vulnerable and planning for it will protect and even enhance your reputation in the long run.

Prepare to be attacked

To help companies deal with the constant threat of data breaches, executives must make it a priority to understand where they are vulnerable and how to plan for an inevitable attack. This includes:

Identifying vulnerabilities;

Creating a guidebook to help them through a crisis;

Testing where they are vulnerable through pentests and phishing exercises;

Simulated training;

Media monitoring; and,

Crisis management planning.

Companies throughout the world are grappling with how or if they should address issues around climate change. With principles in place after the COP24 climate talks concluded last week however government leaders must work build partnerships with the business community to address climate change. This is an issue that will be on the agenda at Davos next month.

I am not sure the last time you ate at Max Burgers (130 restaurants in Sweden, Findland, Denmark, Poland, Egypt, & the U.A.E.), but recently the fast-food chain with 130 restaurants in Europe and The Middle East launched a climate positive menu to help prevent further damage caused by climate change.

They do this by (1) measuring their product emissions from the farmers' land to the guests' hand, (2) reducing their emissions, and (3) capturing at least 110% of their emissions by planting trees.

They take their role seriously in not only reducing their carbon footprint but they are covering up to reverse the damage caused by the agricultural and fast-food industry. In addition to their climate positive menu, Max Burgers :

Lists the impact each item has on the climate on their menu. 

Has set a goal that, by 2022, half of all meals it sells worldwide will be made of foods other than beef.

Has a significant menu of plant-based and lacto-ovo options,  

[Author’s note: This article was originally prepared through my work with the The Legacy Heritage OnBoard program, as a 2018 Fellow, and as Vice President of Yad Ezra, a Kosher food pantry in Oakland County, Michigan.]

KEY TAKE-A-WAYS

If philanthropy fails to adapt to new generation of givers, there is going to be a gap in giving and governance.

We need a different approach to giving and getting.

It’s time we pivot and think differently to remain relevant to avoid a gap in giving and in governance.

The Roadmap to fill the giving gap is to: Define the problem; Collect the data; and, Develop the narrative to connect with your audience.

NOW LET’S START THE CONVERSATION!

 “Over the past couple of decades, baby boomers have been the lifeblood of charitable giving in the U.S., their rock-steady giving fueling nonprofits' efforts to make a difference in the world. While aging boomers continue to play an out-sized role in charitable giving, research tells us their giving levels will start to decline over the next few years.” --Global Impact

 Philanthropy in the US is entering a new phase.

In 1911 and 1913, Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller created their own foundation to provide money and know-how in support of the social good, based on how their companies were organized.

This institutional structure has remained the predominant model for organized philanthropy for almost a century.

Ten years ago, the average American’s philanthropic activity was limited to volunteering or donating to a local nonprofit, participating in Super Sunday or a United Way Fund Drive, volunteering at the local chapter of one of the large civil-society organizations, or writing a check.  

Today, individuals can lend money to small business owners in Tanzania, rebuild schools in Haiti, or buy art supplies for a fourth-grade teacher in a rural school half a continent away.

With each passing year, more people learn about ways to contribute their dollars to various causes, not just in your local Community, but around the world, and can simply point-and-click in making their contribution without any personal connection. 

Why do we support your cause? 

In the past, donors supported organizations based on an emotional response, personal connection, and being recognized for their contribution. Today, while people may still support an organization based on emotion and connection, they want to give to make an impact.

A different approach to giving. 

Nonprofits need to start to look at the trends in how the different generations look at philanthropy and start planning to meet the needs and interests, not only of the people they serve but of the community they want to support their mission. 

For example, before making a gift, Generation X (those born mid 1960’s and late 1970’s) conducts more research into the organization. In addition to giving money, they want to volunteer, and use their volunteering as an opportunity to make social connections.

Millennials want to give “bigger, better and faster,” than previous generations. They want to solve bigger problems and support organizations that are working together to do it.  For example, if people are faced with food insecurity, chances are they also need jobs and homes and medical care.

The new generation of givers are not interested in Band-Aid solutions, they want to ...

Get to the root causes and solve social problems, rather than just ameliorate them.

See real outcomes backed by data, not just anecdotal stories.

Change lives or make lives better.

This new generation of givers have different priorities than previous generations. They want to support organizations that are:

High Impact | Innovation |Connected | Diversified 

In making an impact, data is driving giving.

The new donors just don’t want to write checks. They want to get involved, volunteer, sit on the board, mentor and advise nonprofit leaders, even run their own programs within the agency. They also give to organizations and causes that benefit them personally or where they have a direct relationship to the social network.

 From donors to doers in disrupting philanthropy

Today, philanthropy is better informed, more aware of complex systems, more collaborative, more personal, and more nimble.

Today, peer-supported, data-informed, passion-activated, and technology-enabled networks represent the new structural form in philanthropy, and the institutions that support them will need to be as flexible, scalable, and portable as the networks they serve.

We are moving away from the old Carnegie/Rockefeller model and now to an era of donors to doers.

 It’s time to pivot

It is time for nonprofits to pivot and think differently if it wants to remain relevant and sustainable.

To make your organization sustainable you have to recognize there will be a gap in giving and in governance between the baby boomers and the millennials. You only have a few more years where you can rely on your legacy donors and you can no longer rely on their children or grandchildren for support.

The giving gap

Nonprofits are starting to experience a giving gap where they are relying on legacy donors to support their organization and cannot find new donors to give at the levels of the legacy donors.

 Nonprofits need to become incubators and disruptors, not just service providers

Agencies should look to Silicon Valley for a road map in helping with this transition.

Silicon Valley is disrupting the philanthropic community by adopting new ways to think about their mission and purpose.  The Valley is forcing nonprofits to become incubators and disruptors, rather than just service providers.

Nonprofits need to rethink about how they sell themselves, how they measure what they do, and what programs will attract money.

The Boys & Girls Club of America of the Peninsula -- Silicon Valley

For more than a century, the Boys & Girls Club of America has had a pretty simple mission:

Providing somewhere for kids to go after school so they stay out of trouble.

 In 2018, that mission is not enough to attract local money to the Boys & Girls Clubs.

The donors and doers of Silicon Valley favor causes that use novel solutions to “disrupt” poverty, or that can employ data to show just how many problems their money solves.

Many are fans of effective altruism, a philanthropy philosophy that espouses “evidence and careful analysis to find the very best causes to work on” rather than “just doing what feels right.” 

Peter Fortenbaugh, the executive director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Peninsula (BGCP), started thinking about what his organization could do to win local support.

“Traditionally, we were a safe place to hang out, but in 2018, that’s just as important, but no longer sufficient,” he said. So he,

Started adding on educational and vocational training programs to prepare kids to work in Silicon Valley.

Launched a summer camp that emphasizes STEM learning and works with kids falling behind in reading.

Sent donors an annual “Report to Stakeholders,” with detailed data about impact and how what the club does now compares to previous years.

By observing his community and using the language of The Valley, while keeping to the original mission of his organization, Fortenbaugh changed the direction of the Boys & Girls Club from simply keeping kids busy after school, to “setting up kids for success in school and beyond.”

 Immediate needs to impact

The Giving Code was a project started to help direct giving in Silicon Valley.  It recommends not talking about “charity” and meeting immediate community needs, but instead focusing on “impact” and getting at root causes of problems.

It suggests using the language and mindsets of business, and focusing on metrics, data, and effectiveness, rather than the language of altruism and ethics. In the case of the Boys and Girls Club, “It’s not about looking for a handout, it’s about helping [donors] achieve their goals.” 

Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties

Groups like food banks provide an essential emergency service to low-income people. Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties (Est. 1974) is one of the largest food banks in the nation. Currently providing food to more than one quarter of a million people every month. Despite the immense wealth in Silicon Valley, and partly due to the high cost of living, hunger and malnutrition are pervasive in the region. The Food Bank distributes nutritious food, including more fresh produce than almost any other food bank in the country, through a network of 300 nonprofit partners at 905 sites. Second Harvest is not only pursuing innovative efforts to increase access to food resources as it seeks to feed an additional 100,000 hungry people each month, it is trying to collect more data about how many people it serves in order to measure impact. To reach more people, it connects those in need to federal nutrition programs and other food resources.  Their vision A Hungry Free Community.

 How can we begin to strategically pivot?

Let’s start by the way we talk about what we do, how we do it and the impact we are making.

Yad Ezra is the only Kosher food pantry in the state of Michigan and unlike any other in the United States. Most are closets that people can go into to get food. Yad Ezra is a warehouse where we purchase the food so we can provide healthy options for the people we serve and they are able to select what they want based on a point system. At Yad Ezra, we can certainly talk about our impact…

 Est. 1990

1,414,700 Michigan residents are food insecure (356,930 are children)

1 in 20 individuals relies on Yad Ezra for support

16,213 individuals served

3,000 individuals served every month with care and dignity

5% the percentage of the Jewish community we seve

1,300 – Number of families served each month

1.1 million pounds of free Kosher groceries distributed to families each year

20,000,000 pounds of free food groceries distributed since it was established

150 regular volunteers

7 employees

25 years – number of years our ED has worked at Yad Ezra

1000’s of generous donors

 But before we tell our story, we need to (1) define the problem we are solving and (2) collect the data to help tell it. We can then (3) use that knowledge to frame the issue and (4) inform our community and stakeholders about what we do and (5) ask them to become our partners and hold us accountable.

Finding our story

Effective brand storytelling isn’t about telling stories about the brands, it’s about bringing the audience on a journey in the context of the brand where your doers and donors are the hero not the organization. This includes:

PEOPLE - Describe the people we serve and the shared values we have. For example, trying to provide for their families, trying to get ahead, want financial security, jobs.

GOALS - What are they hoping for their lives. People are more motivated to pursue tangible benefits than abstract outcomes.

DEFINE THE PROBLEM - How do you define the problem we were created to solve.

SOLUTIONS - For maximum motivating power, show how your solutions benefit individuals and contribute to the common good.

The beginning of Yad Ezra’s narrative - Seeing a Jewish Community Without Hunger: This is our story, the only thing missing is ‘U’

For 29 years, Yad Ezra (helping hand in Hebrew) has provided free kosher groceries to vulnerable families throughout SE Michigan and SW Ontario. It started to “help ensure that no one in our community goes hungry,” with a vision to have A Jewish Community without hunger.

Since then we have distributed more than 20 million pounds of food, toiletries, and household items to more than 1,300 families (or 3,000 individuals each month). (High Impact)

In 2015 Yad Ezra created The Giving Gardens featuring a greenhouse to grow and pick fresh food to distribute every week, complete with classes, programs and additional opportunities to engage volunteers. (Innovative)

1,414,700 Michigan residents are food insecure, 356,930 of which are children. Yad Ezra serves 3,000 individuals served every month with care and dignity, and 5 percent of Detroit’s Jewish community. Since it was founded it has distributed more than 20,000,000 pounds of free groceries.

Food insecurity is a lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life.  It is a serious and growing problem among the older adult population here in Michigan. About eight to 10 million people over age 65 struggle to find, pay for, prepare, or consume a nutritious, varied, balanced diet. It’s a challenge that is expected to worsen as our population ages and socioeconomic disparities increase.

In 2018, the Detroit Jewish Federation conducted Jewish population study. It found that while Detroit's Jewish Community may be stable, it has need for social welfare and mental health services in the Jewish Community. Food insecurity also is a strong predictor of chronic disease, including diabetes, heart disease, stroke and lung disease, also contribute to or worsen mental health issues like depression and anxiety. Seniors may also make trade-offs between buying nutritious food and paying for medical care or other necessities like rent or utilities.

Yad Ezra, by way of example, services multiple generations. This includes providing health meals for approximately 400 children in six local day schools. Yad Ezra clients meet certain financial criteria in order to qualify as recipients.

 The Roadmap to fill the giving gap:

 The problem. Define the problem we are solving and the impact we are making?

What is the root cause of food insecurity in the region? What are the other challenges standing in the way of people who are food insecure? How are you working to address the social and systemic problems in the region?

Data. Collect the data to help define the problem and put it in context. How do we know if we are making an impact? What should be the metrics by which we measure the health of the organization? Has demand for our services increased over the past 5 years?  Why or why not? Do we have access to high-net-worth-donor networks? Will we be able to meet the demand for services and what is that demand?  Are we financially secure? Are we finding new donors? Or by: Access, Efficiency, Effectiveness, & Satisfaction What could be the metrics for meeting the needs of our consumers? What is their age Primary language? Do they work? Do they own or rent a home? What is their primary means of transportation? Collect data from your Board … Percentage of board members who made a gift Total Board Giving: Sum of all gifts by board members Median Gift Size among the board members who made a gift Board volunteer hours

Reporting. Once we have that data Identify metrics aligned with our existing plan and goals and standardize our reporting to the funders.

Goals + Planning. Create a realistic, multi-year plan with clear goals, anticipated outcomes and stated risks. Make sure we have a plan for a clear theory of change.

The Narrative. Develop a new narrative for your organization.

Communications. Inform the community about the problem and local needs, share what we are doing to make an impact and give them a map to how we can succeed at solving the issue.

Use a multi-channel approach. As an agency we should begin to explore new mediums to share our impact and raise new funds.

Create learning opportunities. Create learning opportunities for our board and others to understand the problem and what we and others are doing to help us achieve our vison (food, job training, housing, health care, nutrition).

Become advocates. We can provide a service, but we should leverage our experience to address inequalities in the system.

Alliance-Building. A great way to grow impact without a large organization is to partner with other entities such as community groups, governments, and corporations. 

Create a sense of community. Create opportunities to meaningful engage a new generation of people on their level and on their terms, for service, support and advocacy. 

NOW LET’S START THE CONVERSATION!

SOURCES Consulted

The Atlantic Magazine, How Silicon Valley Has Disrupted Philanthropy, by  Alana Semuels, July 25 2018, https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2018/07/how-silicon-valley-has-disrupted-philanthropy/565997/

The Giving Code, The David and Lucile Packard Foundation commissioned The Giving Code to learn more about urgent community needs and the region’s nonprofit and philanthropic ecosystems. The report addresses these topics and examines the giving approach that the region’s philanthropists widely share—a code that is heavily influenced by technology and other local business sectors.

https://healthjournalism.org/blog/2018/08/food-insecurity-especially-for-older-adults-its-about-more-than-hunger/

The Fundraising Effectiveness Project released their second quarter analysis of fundraising returns for over 13,000 organizations showing a 2 percent decline in the amount given and close to a 7 percent drop in the number of donors. This trend is a continuation of declines seen in the first quarter of 2018.  

Silicon Valley’s New Philanthropy,by Alessandra Stanley, nytimes.com, October 31, 2015

"2016 Stanford Survey on Leadership and Management in the Nonprofit Sector. 10" from "Engine of Impact: Essentials of Strategic Leadership in the Nonprofit Sector" by William F. Meehan, Kim Starkey Jonker, Jim Collins, http://a.co/6E0I6DE

Global Impact, Philanthropy News Digest: Gen X and Millennial Women: Ready to Give in More Meaningful Ways, https://charity.org/press/news/philanthropy-news-digest-gen-x-and-millennial-women-ready-give-more-meaningful-ways

Organizations we looked at

Sova (Los Angeles) – not Kosher not a client choice pantry; MAZON; Leket; No Kid Hungry, Food Bank for NYC

GiveWell, a San Francisco-based charity-evaluating service that guides the philanthropica choices.

I am not sure if you subscribe to Fortune's CEO Daily. However, in today's edition, Fortune Editor Alan Murray wrote a great story about CEOs and companies speaking up and speaking out when they come "under attack" by the media. See Companies Strike Back.

When your reputation is at stake and the facts are on your side, CEOs should speak up and take a stand against news that is factually in correct. If the optics look bad they should still (respectfully) confront the story and deal with it directly. If litigation is involved or the potential of litigation and the reputation of the company or its' executives are at stake, I would still not take the advice of legal counsel and speak up. Often times your personal and or corporate reputation is more important than any legal outcome.

Murray shares the example of what Johnson & Johnson [NYSE: JNJ] CEO Alex Gorksy did after Reuters published a story claiming the company knew it had traces of asbestos in its baby powder for years. Reuters even included a link to a number of legal documents concerning this matter.

Johnson & Johnson defended its' reputation and posted a video of Gorsky denying the claim and sharing information about the issue, along with other information about the "Safety of Talc," along with other facts you may not know about their product and information on a recent court ruling on this same issue.

I do not represent Johnson & Johnson, but I work with other value-based companies that have been around for decades with a history of doing the right thing while still making a profit. According to their website, their credo challenges them "to put the needs and well-being of the people we serve first." They have a history of diversity & inclusion, focusing on empowering women, and committed to supporting our veterans. (#BeThere). While they are focused on making a profit, they are also focused on doing the "right thing".

Murray reminds of this when in 1982, it pulled all its Tylenol off of store shelves after someone injected cyanide into a few pills, killing three people in Chicago, which has been the poster-crisis for crisis management training for decades.

Murrary also wrote about a recent New York Times story about McKinsey and a story in The Wall Street Journal about GE [NYSE: GE], where the CEO's took a similar tack.

CEOs are starting to speak up and they should. They need to step out from behind the desk and become more visible and vocal on issues that matter, not just to them, but to their employees who have to go home to their spouses and children every day and tell them what they did at work, to their customers, investors, suppliers. 

Every company in every industry faces its own set of risks. Today, it is not a matter of if a something will happen, it is a question of when will it happen to me? Yet most companies are unprepared to deal with a crisis when attacked. 

To protect the health and safety of your clients, customers and staff while at the same time, protecting your company’s reputation, you can’t afford to be caught off guard. Crisis management is the process used to prepare for, respond to, and recover from emergencies in order to minimize any damage a crisis may occur to one’s reputation.

According to ADWEEK’s October 15, 2018 issue, the Hottest Magazines are:

Lifestyle: The Magnolia Journal + Bustle

Food: Bon Appetit + Tasty

Design/Photography: Popular Science

Entertainment/Celebrity: DailyMail.com + People

Business: Bloomberg Businessweek

Website of the Year: The Cut

Sports: ESPN The Magazine + Bleacher Report

Women’s Health: Women’s Health

Men’s Health: Men’s Health

Women’s Magazine: Better Homes and Gardens

Men’s Magazine: GQ + GQ Style

Fashion: Vogue

Home Magazine: HGTV

Travel: Travel + Leisure and Insider

News: Axios

Wellness/ Fitness: Self

Social Media Presence: Bloomberg TicToc

Events Business: Refinery29’s 29 Rooms

Site Launch: Them

Podcast: The New York Times’ The Daily

Branded Content: Atlantic Media

On October 16, Daniel Cherrin spoke at the Wall Street Journal PRO Cybersecurity Small Business Academy at the Monarch Beach Resort in Dana Park, California. Below is an excerpt from his remarks on Incident Response on a Budget.

“I am convinced that there are only two types of companies: Those that have been hacked and those that will be. Even they are converging into one category: companies that have been hacked and will be hacked again.” Robert S. Mueller

There are steps you can take right now to minimize risk and avoid damaging your reputation from cybersecurity threats., and it won’t cost you anything. 

What are they?

Create a culture of vigilance,

Build the right team,

Know where you are vulnerable,

Prepare to be attacked and,

Get ready to respond.

I don’t want you to take it personally, but most cyberattacks are not targeted. 

They target the vulnerable and the unprotected.

It does not matter if you are a Fortune 500 company, a small business, or a lover of AI.

You and I both know it can’t happen to us.  The reality is that it will.

The complexities involved in dealing with it are enormous – so we need to really find someone who can help us, and avoid a DIY solution.

I am not sure about the costs – but really, we can’t afford not to make the investment.

While you can’t plan for everything, you must prepare for the next crisis. 

I bet, most companies are not prepared. This includes:

Google, Facebook, Under Armour, Adidas, Macy’s, Equifax, Best Buy, Delta, Panera, Sears, Uber, Anthem, DNC, Ashley Madison, JP Morgan Chase, Home Depot, eBay, Target, Adobe, Yahoo, LinkedIn, RSA, Sony

Do you remember, last year waking up to the news that with the click of an attachment in an email, all the files on affected computers became encrypted, with the attacker demanding bitcoin payments to unlock the files?

With data as the newest commodity, there has been an increase of cyber security breaches collecting credit card information, your employees W-2s and even their health insurance… and size does not matter.

Every day we read or hear about the latest data breaches and other crises we as business leaders face.

Yesterday’s cyber-breaches are warning shots sent to companies and governments that they may be next.

According to the Verizon Data Breach Investigation Report,

61% of data breaches hit smaller businesses,

Costing your company somewhere between $84,000 and $148,000.

WHAT HAVE CORPORATE VICTIMS LEARNED FROM THEIR BREACH?

I know those companies have learned a lot and we have a lot to learn from them.

Deloitte recently surveyed the executives following a breach and found that if they had a do over, they would focus more on preparation rather than perspiration.

This includes:

Knowing where you are vulnerable

Create an early warning system

Communicate better

Be prepared

Invest in prevention

Follow protocol

By not being prepared, companies are naked and exposed, remaining vulnerable to loss or destruction of data; disruption for your business, litigation, investigations, and damage to your reputation. 

A Four-Step Process to responding to a crises

You may be considered a small business, but you have to think big and protect yourself.

This includes thinking about protecting yourself in Four Stages of Crisis Management.

Readiness

Response

Reassurance

Recovery

In virtually every case, the time we start to think about crisis management is in the Second Stage – Post Breach.

But for any business, we really need to starting thinking about protecting ourselves and our customers before an attack.

So, WHAT IS STANDING IN YOUR WAY?

You know you need it, but for whatever reason, time, money, resources, we have not stepped up to do anything about it.

While most of the products on the market are for post-breach responses, you can save a lot of time and a lot money if you focus on pre-breach readiness.

Why is this so important?

UPS Capital estimates that 60% of small businesses go out of business within six months of an attack and 90 percent of those small businesses did not have cyber-insurance.

So, LETS START AT THE BEGINNING, and let’s start with how bad do you want your day to be?

To protect the health and safety of your clients, customers and staff while at the same time, protecting your company’s reputation, you can’t afford to be caught off guard.

What are you going to do next to prepare when it is your turn and when are you going to realize that you can no longer ignore the problem of being exposed.

We will never be 100 percent cybersecure, so we need to be vigilant and prepare for the attack.

A majority of companies today, do not have a crisis management plan and do not make it a part of their business strategy.

You can plan and prepare all you want for a crises but even the best plans won’t be followed if you are caught off guard, unless your company creates a culture of crisis preparedness that includes cooperation, collaboration and communication.

CREATING A CULTURE OF CRISIS PREPAREDNESS

Every team member must be on guard for potential threats.

We all need to know what to do if something bad happens and how to minimize the damage.

While we cannot stop the threats, with proper training and a business culture, focused on vigilance and prevention we can limit the action and mitigate any damage should one occur.

How?

Talk about it….A lot. Talk about the latest breach you heard about, ask if it can happen to us and seek input from your staff.

Know the laws and make sure your team knows them too.

Through ongoing communications with key stakeholders you can be pro-active and responsive to issues before they become a crisis.

In monitoring the media, the competition and others in the industry, not just in the US, but globally, you can be better informed.

Before anything happens we should know the right people in government, law, finance, IT and the media.  This includes knowing our customers and having solid strategic relationships with them, while building goodwill with others.

Training and knowing where your reputation is at risk, where you are vulnerable and how you can work to minimize your risk and exposure.

By recognizing the work of your employees, you can highlight the importance of being vigilant and value those that take the necessary steps to protect our customers and our company….Why is this so important?

Our employees are our weakest link

A recent report from Intel stated that 43% of network security breaches were a result of an internal actor. Half were intentional and half were accidental.

Update your policies and procedures

Knowing now that you are at risk, it is important to have the policies and protocols in place to help guide the rest of your company in becoming just as vigilant as you.

Therefore, you should update your company’s policies and practices, host trainings and find other ways to engage your staff in being your eyes and ears looking out for issues of concern.

Policies to update or create include:

Social media policy

Incident reporting

Safe browser use

Acceptable use

Conflict of interest

Data protection

Password policy

Privacy

Travel Policy

You need to also revisit your insurance policy related to cybersecurity and other breaches, including when that policy requires you to notify others of a potential breach, and whether or not they have the consultants to support you. 

They may even have the resources to come into your company and train your employees or help revise these policies.

THE TEAM, THE TEAM, THE TEAM 

Creating the culture starts at the top, with your company’s executive leadership team, reinforcing a culture of vigilance, preparedness and responsiveness.

So, start to assemble the team to help think of areas where you are most vulnerable, so you can start to prepare for the inevitable crisis.

It important to bring together the right people who can respond, quickly and strategically. 

So, who is that?

Internally, that could be your: CEO, CFO, COO, CISO, CLO, CMO, department heads, outside legal counsel and an outside PR or crisis management firm.

If you do not have a CIO, CMO or CSO, or even a lawyer on staff, you need to find the outside consultants who can fill those gaps.

Having a team of professionals, skilled in key disciplines, coupled with the right relationships, with the ability to remove themselves from the chaos and offer their unbiased advice is crucial in any crisis.

If you can imagine it, they can do it. If you can’t think about it, they are already working on it. 

With your team in place it’s time you prepare for the next crisis.

Convene the crisis management team to brainstorm all possible scenarios for which you may need to respond.

To help jump start that conversation, start with a few hypothetical questions. You may want to bring in a consultant to lead the discussion and ask uncomfortable questions to see where you are exposed.  

Pare down the list of potential issues by identifying those most likely to occur with the largest impact to the company’s brand or bottom line or for which the organization most needs to be prepared.

“As I learned during my time as Homeland Security Secretary, planning, equipping training and exercising are what will prepare you to face unexpected threats.” Michael Chertoff, Former Secretary of Homeland Security

Then let’s test what we learned about ourselves.

The Internet is the new battlefield and just like in battle, you need to practice and prepare to see if your plan works.

Table top exercise and simulations provide the perfect opportunity to test your systems and response, given the crisis.

They will highlight your vulnerabilities and potential gaps in policies, protocols and communications.

While you can find various free scenarios on line, such as on FEMA.gov, there are also affordable options that could be more tailored to specific scenarios, led by a trained facilitator, including the Response Readiness Training offered by The Wall Street Journal.

This is something I am working on with the Wall Street Journal and leading their network of facilitators, to walk through the various scenarios and ask questions at the conclusion of the training, such as:

What worked well or did not work well?

Which areas require improvement?

What types of gaps in the response process did we discover?

What are the team dynamics? Were there any communication failures?

Were stated processes and procedures followed or do new ones need to be created?

What was the level of knowledge participants had on the issues?

What are the next steps in terms of identifying and filling needs?

In creating a culture of vigilance and putting your crisis management team in place, along with creating your crisis management plan, there are other steps that you can and should take now to minimize and monitor and otherwise protect your company that do not cost a lot of money.

For example,

Outside the companies exhibiting here today offer a suite of options to protect you, including monitoring, alert sys., and options to backup and recover data.

There are plenty of tools such as free websites to review questionable documents or monitor traffic and software to detect threats.  However, I am not a technology expert and so I defer to a CIO or IT person to tell you which ones work best.

You can consult CISO networks or consulting firms like Deloitte or Earnst & Young and their Cyber Risk Division to help establish the best controls to defend against emerging threats.

Some trade associations may also offer cybersecurity packages. For example, the Small Business Association of Michigan, of which I am a board member of, offers pre-breach services, including cyber security insurance.

Your insurance agent will also know if your policy extends to cyber and if not what you need to do to get the best policy given your industry.

THE MIDDLE DRAWER STATEMENT

 Another easy thing to do that could save you time later on, is to develop a Middle Drawer Statement.

These are facts sheets on areas where an organization is vulnerable, for you to refer to quickly, found in the middle drawer, in times of a crises, that lays out a specific response to a specific issue. It is meant to act as a quick guide to responding to an area where you are vulnerable.

 MESSAGING

 The Middle Drawer Statement will help you know what to say when your security is breached.

If there is one thing we can learn from past breaches, we know that they provide us with a roadmap of how to respond to the next one.

For example, In 2017, the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC)  was attacked and they provided companies the script for what to say if their data is breached.

“Even the most diligent cybersecurity efforts will not address all cyber risks that enterprises face.” SEC

Those words are certain to be cited back to the SEC by any company, when questions are raised about their cybersecurity efforts.

In the hours following a data breach you can alert your stakeholders with a simple message:

There has been a breach;

We are investigating the source; and,

Here is what we are doing about it

You are letting people know what happened and what you are doing about it. You will then need to be prepared to respond to inquiries until the situation is resolved.

I received a similar letter from Michigan State University. I thought its informative, empathetic and forward-looking.

IS YOUR WEBSITE UP-TO-DATE?

Your website also provides a crucial media channel to communicate with your stakeholders.

Your website needs to be up-to-date and you need to have an active social media presence, if not actively posting, you should have someone actively monitoring it for you.

They will be the first place a reporter looks to find the latest information on your company and the issues you are involved in.

It also remains the best place for you to update key stakeholders on the issue.

Just make sure to keep it update and refer people there.

THE CRISIS BAROMETER]

Creating a culture of vigilance, putting the team in place, identifying your vulnerabilities and working now to minimize any damage is vital to protecting your reputation.

You will be judged by how you respond to an issue becoming a problem.

In making this evaluation, it is important for your company to have a barometer to help gauge or determine the severity of an issue.

Every company should create their own barometer as part of their crisis planning.

KNOW THE LAW(S)

 There are also an abundance of laws, regulations, guidelines, standard operating procedures, and best practices that must be understood and implemented in order to deal with emerging threats and disasters.

This includes when and how you must disclose a breach.

From the hodgepodge of US privacy and security laws, government directives, US Attorney General Opinions, and every state having their own notification law – All in conflict with each other, you need to know when and how to respond given the crises.

Depending on your industry there may also be specific rules and/or regulations that dictate how you disclose a breach or other crisis, not to mention the laws in other countries such as the EU with GDPR, Canada and others you may do business in or with.

Crises know no borders, and ones that impact data will require diligent monitoring and disclosure.

As a result, it is vital that you know the laws where you conduct business and where your customers are.

Failing to disclose a breach or other crisis will seriously impact a company’s value and reputation, in a matter of days.

Wait too long to make full disclosure and you will be ripe for Page One fodder in the morning news and a topic de jure on social media.

This is a key area we would explore in a table top exercise and one that you should consult your legal counsel.

 The 5-Finger Response

Knowing when to disclose something will help formulate your response.

A response should focus on the following areas:

Financial + Legal + Operations + Reputation + Human

It does not matter if it is an employee-error; high profile litigation, government investigation, or industrial accident, if something happens a response needs to be immediate, decisive, and strategic.

 SO WHO RESPONDS? Leadership needs to own the issue, but who responds depends on the situation.

That is why you need to be prepared. I am surprised by the number of company presidents and CEOs that do not want to get in front of a TV camera or microphone.

But strong leaders need to own the situation and seize the moment to protect their company’s reputation and their own.

 KEEP YOUR CUSTOMERS TRUST OR WORK HARD TO WIN IT BACK

The third and fourth phase of crisis management is all about working quick and hard to ensure your customers do not lose their trust in you.

Following the initial response, effective crisis management requires conducting an investigation and developing an action plan that seeks to rectify the situation or at least explain what happened, why it happened, and what you are doing to make sure it does not happen again.

Here it is important to reassure your stakeholders that their needs are being adequately addressed by communicating all of the pertinent details.

This includes demonstrating your commitment to transparency and letting the public know that your organization is on top of this issue.

 EVERY CRISIS COMES TO AN END

While we each have bad days, some have it worse than others. The good news is that you can survive any crisis if you are prepared.

Just last week, I shopped at Target and Home Depot. Each remain trusted brands despite going through a data breach a few years ago.

And during the break, I posted an update on Facebook.

The attacks on our companies and in our industry, will grow more persistent, diverse and frequent. It is time to prepare, so that that you are not caught OFF GUARD — Be proactive!

Watch what is happening in other industries and operate under the assumption that you are next — Prepare for it.

Conduct regular tests and trainings. Test your vulnerabilities and remain vigilant. And please buy insurance.

Companies are challenged today in how to communicate a breach or other crisis.

We are all vulnerable, but it is difficult for a company to own the problem.

Ignore it or let it linger, hoping it will go away will only make it worse.

Blame someone or minimize the impact and it becomes much worse.

Tell me what you know when you know it. You don't have to tell me everything but just give me something.

Based on our discussion today, I hope you are more prepared to deal with issues so you are now onguard and will not be caught offguard.

I hope you never have to use it! If you do, know that despite the bad days and difficult times, tomorrow brings a new day.

In 2015, 193 countries committed to making the world more prosperous, resilient and sustainable by adopting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A number of businesses took the same pledge and accepted the responsibility to do their part.

This includes MAX Burgers, IKEA and MEVO.

This summer MAX Burgers (Sweden) announced that all its burgers are now climate positive.

Any meal eaten at any one of its 130 restaurants across Europe and the Middle East will result in the removal of carbon dioxide from the air, reversing the negative impacts of climate change meal.

“To meet the two-degree climate goal set out in the Paris Agreement, the world needs to work harder at cutting emissions and start the work of clearing greenhouse gases that have already been emitted into the atmosphere. Just going carbon-neutral is not enough anymore. We know that we are part of the problem and together with our guests, we can now be part of the solution.” Richard Bergfors, CEO

How is Max Burgers creating a new climate positive menu?

By measuring their product emissions, including all emissions from the farmer’s land to the guest’s hand, in addition to the handling of waste generated from each meal.

By reducing their emissions and adding new approaches to continue making reductions in their process and products.

For example, since 2008, the company has only used electricity from wind power plants in Sweden.

In 2016, they quintupled their range of Green Family burgers, a collection of vegan and Lacto-ovo vegetarian burgers with a much smaller carbon footprint than a beef burger.

Sales of these Green-Family meals have increased by 900% over the last two years, causing MAX’s total climate impact to be reduced by 13 % per earned dollar over the same period.

By capturing the equivalent of at least 110 % of their remaining emissions by planting trees.

In New Zealand, Climate Positive carshare company Mevo charges its fleet of hybrid electric cars on New Zealand’s 80% renewable grid and offsets anything else its fleet emits by 120%. 

Meanwhile, IKEA recently committed to running its entire business off renewables by 2020, by 2030 it will be both Climate Positive and regenerative in terms of materials – in essence restoring more of the natural world than it uses for its own raw materials.

To help share their story and encourage other companies to create climate positive products, MAX created CLIPOP.org to help people find more climate positive products (CLIPOP).

Finally, I want to put an event on your calendar for June 3-6, 2019. Sustainable Brands is the premier organization for purpose-driven brands, Detroit will host their 2019 annual event.   

As businesses, we need to think about the impact we are having, not just on the bottom line, but on the footprint, we will leave on this world.

Ten years ago tonight (September 18), effective at midnight, Kwame Kilpatrick resigned his position as Mayor and later went to prison for perjury and obstruction of justice.

To ensure the continuity of government, Ken Cockrel, Jr. was sworn in as Mayor on September 17, 2008. While he may not have been elected mayor or was able to finish the work he began as interim mayor, he set the wheels in motion for Detroit's recovery, and set a path for Mayor’s Bing and Duggan to finish the work he began.

Walk into a Starbuck's or local coffee shop such a Commonwealth, Café Con Leche or Great Lakes Coffee, or a co-working space like Bamboo or WeWork, and you will see the engines of a new labor force churning to power Michigan’s independent economy.  These workers sacrifice a steady paycheck, a 401K match, health insurance, sick pay, and vacation for setting their own hours and flexibility in how they spend their day.

“Alternative" workers, which include independent contractors, the self-employed, consultants, contract employees, temps, freelancers, and on-demand workers accounted for 10.1% of the workforce in 2017, according to the Department of Labor. Michigan's independent economy is comprised of, PR consultants, artists, graphic designers, homeowners.  They are consultants like me, artist that promote their work on Etsy, the homeowner that leases out their cottage on Airbnb, even the drivers for Lyft and Uber or the person giving my daughter guitar lessons.  Many of these independent workers have their own companies and pay taxes, including unemployment.

Labor policy, however, has not kept up with the changing workforce and the economic realities over how companies engage the new worker.  There is a need to redefine who an employee is and how a worker or independent contract are protected while “on the job,” both physically, financially and with any intellectual capital. This includes revisiting the tax code and laws for determining unemployment compensation and workers' compensation benefits.

Each state in the U.S. has their own individual laws as to when a company must report a data breach. In addition, there are federal laws and EU laws that likewise dictate when companies need to disclose. 

On September 1, 2018, Colorado will enact the toughest law yet, giving companies 30 days to provide notice of a breach involving personal information belonging to Colorado residents. Most states mandate 45 or 60 days. 

According to The Wall Street Journal, "Colorado also expanded the definition of personal information to include biometric data, driver’s license numbers, passwords and other items. In other state laws, personal information is often limited to a first name or initial and last name in combination with an identifier, such as a Social Security number."

Just this week, Air Canada discovered a breach and responded within days of discovering it. You can see their response below to the people who they believe were affected. It timely and clearly explains:

What happened;

The steps the company took to limit the breach; and,

What they need their customers do to further protect themselves. 

Your system will be breached. It is not a matter of IF, it will be a matter of WHEN. To prepare your company needs to create the protocols to MONITOR your systems and develop the PLANS to respond. This includes creating the TEAM and creating SIMULATED responses. 

In 2017, a data breach compromised the personal information of 147.9 million Equifax customers. The company was not prepared for the breach and failed in their response, leaving peoples personal data exposed. 

if the law in your state or for your industry is unclear, company's in the U.S. should use  the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which went into effect in May, as guidance which requires companies to disclose a breach within 72 hours of discovering it. Companies, both large and small, should now put the plans in place and prepare for the next attack. 

AIR CANADA EMAIL RE. DATA BREACH 28 AUGUST 2018 We recently detected unusual log‑in behaviour with Air Canada’s mobile App between Aug. 22‑24, 2018. We immediately took action to block these attempts and implemented additional protocols to protect against further unauthorized attempts. As an additional security precaution, we have locked all Air Canada mobile App accounts to protect our customers’ data.  Am I affected?  As a result of our analysis, we are confident your account was not affected by these unauthorized attempts. As an additional security precaution however, we have locked all Air Canada mobile App accounts to further protect customer data. To reactivate your Air Canada mobile App account, please see the instructions below or follow the prompts the next time you log into your Air Canada mobile App.  Your privacy and the protection of your data are extremely important to Air Canada. Our security is multi‑layered, and we work with leading industry experts to continuously improve our practices as technology and security procedures evolve.  Reset your password  Please reset your password to resume using Air Canada’s mobile App and mobile products with confidence.  Your new password must be a minimum of 10 characters. Here are some helpful tips in creating your new password:  • Minimum of 10 characters which must contain at least 1 uppercase letter, 1 number, 1 symbol/special character, 1 lowercase letter • Do not use your old password • Do not use your name or something easily associated with you • Do not use your Air Canada mobile App password with other accounts You can reset your password by following the prompts when you next log‑in to your Air Canada mobile App, or you may reset your password now or you may also go to https://services.aircanada.com/portal-web/mobile/profile?action=resetpwd&locale=en  For more information  We regret any inconvenience this has caused. If you have questions, please refer to additional information posted on aircanada.com  Sincerely,

Mental health issues permeate the headlines. Instead of discussing solutions, the news is covering the results of not resolving the issues. I work with a number of mental health providers and have their stories to share. 

Preparing kids with autism to go back to school and enjoying the end of summer. This is Christian's Story Back-to-school can be a difficult time for anyone, be it a student, parent, or teacher. It can be especially difficult for kids with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), which in turn can magnify the difficulty for those closest to them. There are strategies parents can work on now with their child, to get them ready and excited to start school ready to learn.  This is Christian's Story I want to invite you into Christian's home, a six-year-old kid from Allen Park who is quiet, but very smart. He also has autism. Now he's building his confidence and shining brighter than ever. Here is Christian's story and Christian's Board Certified Behavioral Analyst can provide parents with tools and tips to prepare their child to go back to school.     

Children's voices finally return to Corktown and The Corner Ballpark, where kids with autism are gaining the confidence and skill to become athletes Summer camp and playing sports is something that many families take for granted. For children with autism, very few programs exist. The Autism Sports Academy, presented byCentria Autism Services & Detroit PAL, provide children with special needs, a final taste of summer and the opportunity to enjoy a day of FREE family fun. This Friday, August 31, the voices of children playing returns to the Corner Ballpark, where 600+ kids with autism are expected to gather for a free autism activity day to mark the end of summer.  This includes sports stations, led by Detroit PAL coaches to teach the basics of soccer, football, kickball, and tee ball. To help parents find the resources they need to help their children succeed, Centria Autism will also have their trained behavioral health specialists on site to answer questions and guide them through the maze of questions and requirements related to accessing autism services and get other families ready to go back to school.  WHEN:  Friday, August 31, 2018, from 9 AM - 12 PM WHERE: The Corner Ballpark presented by Adient, 1680 Michigan Ave, Detroit, Michigan 48216  

The media has a big role to play in suicide prevention - September is National Suicide Prevention Month The recent deaths of Anthony Bourdain and Kate Spade have put suicide in the spotlight and a new report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows an increase in suicide rates in every state but Nevada.  In Michigan, the suicide rate increased by 32.9 percent. Those who choose to end their life generally never show the signs. Those contemplating suicide need to know who to call in a crisis and friends and family need to know how they can help.  Where to go for help and how you can help others I want to bring you to Common Ground in Pontiac and into the crisis center to field the calls and show how trained experts are chatting and texting with people to help them and support them, perhaps help share some survivor stories. Then on Sept 15-16, 150+ artists will gather in Shain Park, in downtown Birmingham, for Common Ground's 44th Annual Birmingham Street Art Fair. Proceeds from an art auction will directly benefit Common Ground's suicide prevention and text and chat line and keep it running in the evening and on weekends, when people, generally children, need them the most. /  

Employing people with developmental disabilities,  National Disability Employment Awareness Month starts in October.  Adults with a developmental disability struggle to find a job where they feel comfortable and valued, and where their abilities are well used. Services to Enhance Potential, (STEP) is a Wayne County-based not-for-profit that works with companies such as BASF, Quality Inn, Bottling Crew, Gentleman's Box and others to train adults with developmental disabilities for various jobs. DTE and Ford Motor Company also have committed to hiring people with a developmental disability.

Ready & Able to Hire: I want to invite you into the training centers, warehouses, offices, and hotels and meet the people overcoming challenges to not only make a significant impact on the company but making a huge difference in the lives of their co-workers. You can talk with the employees with disabilities and their co-workers along with STEP trainers and help highlight and celebrate local companies that employ people with disabilities. Perhaps you can help someone find a job. 

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who passed away Saturday from brain cancer, wrote a farewell message to the country that was delivered by his friend and former top aide, Rick Davis.

The full text is below.

My fellow Americans, whom I have gratefully served for sixty years, and especially my fellow Arizonans,

Thank you for the privilege of serving you and for the rewarding life that service in uniform and in public office has allowed me to lead. I have tried to serve our country honorably. I have made mistakes, but I hope my love for America will be weighed favorably against them.

I have often observed that I am the luckiest person on earth. I feel that way even now as I prepare for the end of my life. I have loved my life, all of it. I have had experiences, adventures and friendships enough for ten satisfying lives, and I am so thankful. Like most people, I have regrets. But I would not trade a day of my life, in good or bad times, for the best day of anyone else’s.

I owe that satisfaction to the love of my family. No man ever had a more loving wife or children he was prouder of than I am of mine. And I owe it to America. To be connected to America’s causes — liberty, equal justice, respect for the dignity of all people — brings happiness more sublime than life’s fleeting pleasures. Our identities and sense of worth are not circumscribed but enlarged by serving good causes bigger than ourselves.

'Fellow Americans' — that association has meant more to me than any other. I lived and died a proud American. We are citizens of the world’s greatest republic, a nation of ideals, not blood and soil. We are blessed and are a blessing to humanity when we uphold and advance those ideals at home and in the world. We have helped liberate more people from tyranny and poverty than ever before in history. We have acquired great wealth and power in the process.

We weaken our greatness when we confuse our patriotism with tribal rivalries that have sown resentment and hatred and violence in all the corners of the globe. We weaken it when we hide behind walls, rather than tear them down, when we doubt the power of our ideals, rather than trust them to be the great force for change they have always been.

We are three-hundred-and-twenty-five million opinionated, vociferous individuals. We argue and compete and sometimes even vilify each other in our raucous public debates. But we have always had so much more in common with each other than in disagreement. If only we remember that and give each other the benefit of the presumption that we all love our country we will get through these challenging times. We will come through them stronger than before. We always do.

Ten years ago, I had the privilege to concede defeat in the election for president. I want to end my farewell to you with the heartfelt faith in Americans that I felt so powerfully that evening.

I feel it powerfully still.

Do not despair of our present difficulties but believe always in the promise and greatness of America, because nothing is inevitable here. Americans never quit. We never surrender. We never hide from history. We make history.

Farewell, fellow Americans. God bless you, and God bless America.

Before the primary, The Detroit Free Press asked the gubernatorial candidates for their “new idea” (Does anyone running for governor have a new idea? We asked the candidates, July 6, 2018). With that election behind us, the people interested in leading our state should now bring us ideas that are bolder than creating a state-operated Internet service provider or appointing a school reading czar. We need ideas that are badass, not elementary such as leveraging videos in social studies classes to encourage students to pursue alternative careers. It’s time we ask the voters, what their new ideas are.

For example, given the recent failure of the Regional Transit Authority to approve a millage on this year’s ballot, and the Michigan Supreme Court determining whether we should be allowed to vote on a constitutional amendment that would change how legislative districts are drawn, we need to a create a process by which complex and politically-divisive disputes are resolved, so that we can move forward as a state and onto the next challenge. 

We have all seen how public policy disputes have the potential of polarizing communities, with the effect of delaying important decisions on vital issues of public policy.  This often results in diluted policies or no action at all. While conflict among lawmakers and regulators is inevitable, policymakers tend to avoid controversial issues or postpone crucial decisions hoping to avoid conflict.  It is frustrating to sit on the sidelines and watch good ideas from Democrats and Republicans get bogged down with one’s personal agenda the political rhetoric of the day.

While policymakers and community leaders may agree on what the problem is, there is often uncertainty as to how to resolve it.  Trained non-partisan facilitators, familiar with the people and politics of an issue can create the process to help resolve the toughest disputes and provide the forum by which to bring the stakeholders together.

While Governor Snyder may call for civility in public discourse, the next Governor and incoming legislature should create a collaborative that provides a system and process for problem solving, using collaborative governance as a method of public decision-making in which government leaders involve stakeholders, including community members, businesses, other government agencies and non-profit organizations in making decisions that affect how people are governed or how public resources are used. When difficult issues emerge, the state would engage the collaborative to mediate and resolve the conflict.

Oregon and Salt Lake City provide examples for what we can do here in Michigan. The Oregon Legislature continues to fund a program run through Portland State University that works to resolve difficult issues, while Salt Lake City created a city department to solve community problems by cultivating inclusive collaborations of public and private support. Giving politically charged issues to a neutral organization that can create the process to resolve them takes the burden off the elected officials to avoid politically charged issues.

We do not have a process by which to resolve these disputes. Our next governor should create a collaborative structure, by Executive Order, through legislative appropriations, support from foundations, or in partnership with statewide associations, to train people to resolve difficult disputes and create the process by which to resolve them.

Officials from the U.S Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and other federal agencies have been meeting with election service providers to ensure the integrity of the voting process for months. As a result of those the meetings, the Sector Coordinating Council was created in partnership with the Election Association Commission to ensure the integrity of the machines we use to vote, with companies such as Dominion Voting Sys., Hart Intercivic, VOTEM, VOTEC, VOATZ and others. The National Association of Secretaries of State also have made cybersecurity a priority. 

But have you? We know we are all vulnerable to attack. Our passwords, credit card numbers and even our social security numbers have all been compromised. Just last year, more than 147 million Americans were affected following the data breach at Equifax Inc. in 2017.

When you are attacked, (1) what is your communications protocol; (2) when will you respond; (3) what will be your message; (4) do you have the right contacts with reporters to help you get the word out; (5) are your executives trained to respond and deal with the crises?

To prepare for any crisis, no matter how big or small your company is, you need to monitor your reputation so you know when an issue becomes a crisis. You also need a field guide to help you  respond. Then you need to prepare and practice that response, by having simulations or table top exercises with your CEO, CISO, CSO, CMO, and CLO. The experience will show you were you are vulnerable and how to properly plan for the next data breach, #METOO moment or other crisis.

The election systems in twenty-one states were compromised by Russian-backed hackers, which led DHS to designate election infrastructure as "critical infrastructure." Earlier this year, a bipartisan coalition introduced the "Secure Elections Act," (SAFE ACT) which not only includes language for additional funding for voting machines, it includes language facilitating communication among the federal, state and local levels of government on cyber threats to elections. 

You cannot wait for Congress to act in protecting your industry or for handing you the communications protocols in dealing with the next crisis. You cannot wait for the moment you are attacked and caught off guard without having a blueprint in place to monitor your company and respond when necessary. 

Corporate boards, chief executives and cybersecurity specialists should be reassessing how they handle sensitive information and respond to potential cybersecurity incidents. With the widespread hardware vulnerabilities, such as Spectre and Meltdown, companies should also re-evaluate their relationships with vendors and add that to its crisis planning. 

[VANCOUVER, CANADA -- Max Burgers (MAX) may not be well-known outside of Sweden or its’ growing collection of restaurants in Europe and the Middle East, but it has found a way to create a menu for their 130 restaurants that actually removes carbon dioxides from the atmosphere. On June 5th, at the Sustainable Brands event in Vancouver, Canada, MAX officially launches their climate positive burgers. From June 14th every single bite of a MAX burger helps our climate. [Link to news release.]

To meet the 2-degree climate goal of The Paris Agreement, the world needs to both work harder at cutting emissions and to start to remove some of the greenhouse gases that have already been emitted to the atmosphere. Going neutral is not enough anymore.

With Climate Positive Burgers MAX hopes to inspire more companies to follow suit. The dream is that one day we will be able to buy climate positive cars, computers and clothes.

MAX was founded in 1968 in Sweden, above the Arctic Circle. This family-run business is the oldest burger chain in Europe and is more profitable than McDonald’s and Burger King in Sweden. MAX was named one of the world’s 10 most innovative Companies in Food 2011 by Fast Company and their Carbon labeling of the menu in 2008 met a lot of international publicity. By introducing climate positive burgers they take a new bold step.

With climate positive burgers they remove some of the carbon dioxides that have already been emitted to the atmosphere is reduced. MAX makes this possible by planting trees that absorb more carbon than their products total emissions. The results are net positive. The process looks like this: 

1. The company measures 100% of its product emissions, including all emissions from the farmer's hand to their guest’s hand, including travel to and from their restaurants and waste generated from a meal.

2. They work hard to reduce emissions and add new approaches to continue to make reductions in their process and products.

3. Finally, they capture at least 110% of emissions by planting trees. That means they go beyond the world’s only independent standard for carbon neutrality – ISO 140021.

MAX is one of Sweden’s greenest brands. A few highlights connected to climate change:

In 2008, MAX was the first restaurant in the world to introduced carbon foot-printing on the menu so guests can make informed decisions.  

They have offset their greenhouse gas emissions since 2008. Today 1,5 million trees have been planted in Africa. With climate-positive burgers, tree plantations are expanded.  

That same year, 100 percent of used electricity by MAX restaurants in Sweden was wind-generated.  

In 2016, they quintupled their range of Green Family burgers, a collection of vegan and Lacto-ovo vegetarian burgers with a much smaller carbon footprint than a beef burger. The sales of green-family meals have increased by 900% the last two years (from 2 to 18 % of sales). As a result, MAX total climate impact has been reduced by 13 % per earned dollar the last two years.  

MAX goals are that during 2022 every second sold meal should be made by something else than beef. If that goal is reached, it will have probably have reduced their emissions by 30 percent in just seven years.

To help share their story and encourage other companies to create climate positive products, MAX created CLIPOP.org to help people find more climate positive products (CLIPOP).

MAX is launching their climate positive menu on June 5, and brothers Richard (President) and Christoffer (Vice President) Bergfors and their father Curt Bergfors, founder and chairman of the board, want other companies to join them in this effort.

Quotes:

“The 14th of June, MAX turns 50. We feel the best thing we can do to honor our past is to secure the future. Not just our own, but the whole worlds. Our world’s climate is out of control and we need to work together to stabilize it. So, on our birthday, we’re launching something we hope the whole world can celebrate – the first ever climate positive burger. From now on, every single bite of a MAX burger helps the climate.” Richard Bergfors, President, MAX.

“We can no longer reach the Paris climate change goal to limit global temperatures rise to 2°C by 2100 just by reducing emissions. To achieve this we also need to remove some of the carbon dioxide already emitted into the atmosphere. With our climate positive burgers, we hope to inspire others to change the story of climate change. If a small burger chain from Sweden can do it most companies can.” Kaj Török, Chief Sustainability Officer, MAX.

“If you are a part of the problem, you need to be a part of the solution," says Richard Bergfors.

“MAX mission is to make the world a little better. We do it by serving the best tasting burgers and by being a good force in society and for the world.” Richard Bergfors

KEY FACTS ABOUT MAX.

Est. 1968 by Curt Bergfors and Britta Andersson and remains a family run business.

Celebrates 50 years, June 14, 2018.

Sweden’s by far greenest burger brand according to industry benchmarks.

Was the first restaurant in the world to put climate on the menu (2008).

The most profitable restaurant chain in Sweden, outperforming McDonald’s and Burger King in Sweden on preference and profitability.

Employing 5 000 people, with 130 restaurants in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Poland, Egypt and the UAE (131 restaurants in May, 134 restaurants by the end of June)

ASSOCIATED LINKS.

Media Kit, Link to the Google Drive (images, infographic, report, bios, news release)

MAX, http://www.MAXburgers.com/

Sustainable Brands® recently unveiled the full programming and schedule for the Activation Hub at SB’18 Vancouver, running June 4-7 at the Vancouver Convention Centre (West) in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Activation Hub is the central hub of the Vancouver conference, an area where attendees gather to hear from solution-providers, to collaborate and co-create on market sector innovations, and to network with current and future partners.

This year’s Activation Hub will host pavilions dedicated to 12 different market sectors: Good Food, Good Fashion, Good Technology, Good Materials & Packaging and others. Each pavilion will feature scheduled programming, business leader meet-n-greets, and Innovation Labs facilitated by subject matter experts from Forum for the Future, Futerra, Sustainability, Elevator, University of British Columbiaand others.

Pavilion highlights include:

·        P&G will host the ‘Good Growth’ pavilion and explore how large, growing brands can inspire and promote responsible consumerism while still growing their business.  P&G will also be hosting a youth summit, inviting local youth to discuss the issues of oceans plastics, in preparation of World Ocean Day.  The pavilion will also feature American Forests , World Scouts , Carrot NewYork , The Embedding Project, The Ocean Project, The Recycling Partnership, Arbor Day Foundation, and Makersite .

·        Braskem will serve as anchor host for the ‘Good Materials & Packaging’ pavilion, focusing on how brands are reducing packaging and incorporating circular economy practices into their everyday products. The pavilion will also feature Billerud Korsnäs , Vinyl Business Sustainability Council (VSBC) , Boothster, Keurig Green Mountain , and Recycle BC .

·        A ‘Good Cities’ pavilion, hosted by PwC , will discuss how to make cities healthier places to live as they continue to grow. The pavilion will also include Vancouver Economic Commission , who launched a Startup City: Impact program to connect attendees from SB’18 Vancouver with up-and-coming social and environmental entrepreneurs from Vancouver.

·        A ‘Good Travel & Leisure’, hosted by Living Elements, will explore how the travel industry can incorporate sustainable practices. The pavilion will feature SoulBuffalo, who will bring their glamping tents onsite for attendees to collaborate in.

·        A ‘Good Earth’ pavilion will explore how brands are helping reduce their impact on the environment, focusing on oceans and forests, featuring The Plastic Bank, One Tree Planted, EREMA Plastic Recycling Systems, The Earth Group, Canadian Council of Foresters, Alive & Awake, World Tree and News Deeply as Media Partner.

·        A ‘Good Fashion’ pavilion, featuring UNIFI, Inc., Savers | Value Village , Bank & Vogue , Green Story, Looptworks, S’well and Biji Biji Ethical Fashion . UNIFI will bring back their popular Repreve truck to the Activation Hub, an interactive, walk-through truck that showcases how peat is turned into recycled materials while giving attendees the chance to win upcycled clothing. S’well will be distributing free water bottles to all conference attendees.  

·        A ‘Good Food’ pavilion, focused on shifting tides in our food system, will feature Clif Bar, Nestlé, Padilla | Food Minds, Spoiler Alert, US Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA), Eagle Protect PBC and Trust in Food™ as a Media Partner. Nestlé will present attendees with ice cream and discuss how they’re working to support bee habitats through their widely-used ingredients.

·        A ‘Good Retail’ pavilion will explore how retail brands are optimizing sourcing and navigating emerging issues in the retail industry. The pavilion will feature the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA), LUSH, Starbucks and Smarter Sorting .

·        A ‘Good Finance’ pavilion focused on cutting-edge financial models will host EY, iCompli, Tides and Corporate Knights as a media partner.

·        A ‘Good Workplace’ pavilion will explore how brands are attracting and retaining top talent by innovating their company from the inside out. The pavilion will feature Cupanion, Diversey, and Porpoise.

·        A ‘Good Supply Chain’ pavilion will showcase brands and solution providers that are improving transparency and accountability in the value chain. The pavilion will feature BullFrog Power, Intertek, Segura Weir-TS, The Sustainability Consortium, Trex Company, Water for People and WAP Sustainability.

To complement their discussions in the Activation Hub, several sponsors are organizing special events and receptions for attendees. The conference kicks off with a tree planting event hosted by Arbor Day Foundation and a Greening Your Business Infrastructure tour, hosted by The Canadian Council of Forest Ministers . Clif Bar will host a 4-mile Great Trail hike on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. The hikes on Tuesday and Wednesday will be led by Ultra runner and Vancouver local, Ellie Greenwood. On Tuesday evening after a reception hosted by Salesforce.org , LUSH will host a tour of their cosmetics factory for attendees, providing vegan food and drinks. In partnership with LUSH, Hives for Humanity will host a walk to East Van Roasters and Hastings Urban Farm to learn about social entrepreneurship and sample locally roasted coffee, chocolate and honey. The Activation Hub will also host the SB Innovation Open (SBIO) semi-finals on Tuesday, whereby 11 social or environmental startups will pitch their innovations before a panel of judges and audience members.  

Other sponsors and exhibitors at SB’18 Vancouver include BASF, Salesforce.org, SC Johnson , 21 st Century Fox, Danone, The Nature Conservancy, Driscoll’s, Shaw Industries, 599 Labs, ECOR, Catalist, BSR, younoodle, Participant Media, lululemon, Visa, TD Bank, Target, Schneider Electric, Rolland, MGM Resorts, Do Some Good, MBDC, Future of Internet Power, Nice and Serious and Leger.  

The Activation Hub at SB’18 Vancouver will run Monday, June 4 ththrough Thursday, June 7th at the Vancouver Convention Center. This year, Community Passes are available for those wishing to participate in this immersive networking experience, in addition to the Opening Night Welcome Reception hosted by BASF and plenary session featuring Sadhu Johnston , City Manager of Vancouver, John Izzo , Bestselling Author, and Marcelo Lu , President of BASF Canada. Pre-registration is encouraged and available for purchase at www.SB18Vancouver.com . For more information about the Activation Hub, email [email protected] or call 415.626.2212.

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