Corporate wellness is both a philosophy and a summons to action. Concerning the latter, and the manner in which so much private information migrates from paper to "the cloud," as distant (in theory) as the liquid droplets, frozen crystals and various chemicals that populate the sky, one thing is certain: Those cotton-colored shapes, like the rows of servers, fans and entangled wiring in some remote data center, can just as quickly darken, electrify and destroy us with lightning and mayhem.
The only way to avoid this danger, and the only way to secure the culture companies seek to promote, is with the right protection. In other words, if businesses continue to mobilize their employees - if every smartphone, laptop, tablet or wearable is a gateway to personal empowerment - then the communication that ensues, between doctors, counselors, insurers, nutritionists and their respective clients, needs a fail-safe mechanism.
The problem is that, but for this column and a discussion of the specific nature of the threat we face, every so-called "solution" is nothing but, in this metaphorical transition from the heavens to the earth, gauze on a possibly mortal wound. Yes: I am not the first - and I will not be the last - to issue this warning.
But I am the only one, who refuses to iron or laminate the words "New and Improved" on software that is nothing of the sort. For, the digitization of wellness - the electronic documentation of every prescription, premium, payment and patent, this medical quartet of confidential data and intellectual capital - will invisibly implode, its numbers stolen and misappropriated by thieves we will never see.
Should that scenario happen, in which a major corporation has its entire infrastructure devoted to improving individual wellness collapse, should every private portal suddenly close, and, in the wholesale breach of everything from customized rewards programs to the daily workflow of a physician's orders - this disruption would be an unprecedented disaster.
I issue this statement based on experience, where, in my role as Founder and CEO of Impervio E-IRM System (Enhanced Information Rights Management), I provide - and I already offer - an alternative to the false solutions that will save no one and cost a company everything.
The challenge before us is, in fact, quite simple. There is the goal of corporate wellness, on the one hand, and the protection of all the associated documentation about this plan, on the other. The goal itself is elastic; it has multiple meanings, but thrives in an environment where creativity is a virtue, respect is a given and experimentation is a necessity.
Technology is the means to accomplish these ambitions, but again, the fulfillment of this campaign - to see a healthier workforce, mobilized to be mobile (walking outside or exercising with a trainer, or taking the stairs or forgoing sweets and other sugary vices) - depends on how inventive we are in general.
Safeguarding this multibillion-dollar industry requires the same determination and ingenuity. And therein lies the essence of corporate wellness and information rights management: It is the domain of the outlier, the individual courageous enough to exact change and make people's lives better.
The Outlier in Action: A Champion for Health and a Guardian of Information
In the most practical terms, an outlier is a champion for urgent change. There is nothing incremental about the results of this individual's actions. The steps themselves may be just that - steps, not jumps or massive leaps - but the ends, in comparison to the status quo, are undeniable in their impact and indisputable in their value.
An outlier does not, however, idolize change without regard to context; he or she demands change because an existing system is mediocre, wrong, inefficient, overpriced or intellectually bankrupt. The outlier for corporate wellness is the confederate of the outlier for information rights management.
Their intentions - to protect and strengthen a workforce, through innovative ideas and technological progress - are companion pieces of a joint mission. Which is to say, companies should encourage outliers to showcase their proposals and demonstrate the power of their customized tools and resources.
What every outlier deserves - and what every organization needs, to maintain its own longevity - is the extraordinary-made-ordinary: Something so dramatic, for its own health and the safety of countless documents, that it forever redefines the way we approach these issues.
About the Author
Randy Reaney is the Founder and and Co-CEO of Impervio Technologies Inc., which proudly introduces their Impervio E-IRM System (Enhanced Information Rights Management), a dynamic new software company comprised of some of the world's brightest and most sought-after security, software and technology experts.
He has over twenty-five years of global business experience with organizations in the software, banking, real estate, media, sales and marketing fields.
