Our business colleagues rightly look to us for advice on a broad range of areas. Emerging technologies — and their implications for the business — is one such area. There is a side to our professional temperament that makes us wary of fully embracing new technologies given the potential to expose the company to risk. And yet we must. The legal department should champion and lead innovation in these areas, offering guidance that projects a path forward toward adoption of new technologies.
The cover story of this technology-focused issue of the ACC Docket, “Parting the Clouds of Digitalization,” explores the digital transformation initiatives that are taking over global businesses. According to the authors, many of us (over 80 percent) are not properly prepared for the growing trend of moving to a digital business. Given this, it’s important for in-house counsel to be proactive in our understanding of digitalization and the associated risks, especially data privacy.
Not surprisingly, another topic of great concern featured in this Docket issue concerns privacy laws. Using the US California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) as an example, the authors explore other national guidelines and provide strategies and hands-on tools you can use to implement the new privacy mandates. Other topics explored in this issue include how to minimize the risk of losing patent rights through disclosure, adding value to your company’s blockchain initiative, and a conversation on cybersecurity.
ACC has additional resources to help you guide your company through these changing times. Recent items developed by the Information Governance Network, for example, include the article “Operationalizing the California Consumer Privacy Act”. This network, along with the IT, Privacy, & Technology Network, will also present a session on CCPA at ACC’s Annual Meeting this October. For more resources related to technology, visit the ACC website and browse the Resource Library by interest area, or visit the networks page at www.acc.com/networks to see what’s coming up in the area of privacy and more.
One of the greatest resources available through your membership in this global organization is the vast network of peers you have at your fingertips — and through in-person events like the Annual Meeting. Will you be in Phoenix, AZ, October 27-30? A few particularly relevant sessions, including “Conducting an Information Technology Risk Assessment,” “The Changing Landscape of the Data Center Industry & Cloud Services,” and “Privacy is Not (Just) a Four-Letter Word: Privacy in the EU, Other than the GDPR,” are sure to offer great tips to take back to the office. If you’re still on the fence about attending, I encourage you to visit www.acc.com/am19 to learn more about the top-notch speakers and programming featured this year, including more on-trend sessions. Not to mention the added benefit of being able to network with your peers from different regions and industries in real time.
As in-house counsel, we are primarily charged with keeping our companies safe and on-side. However, we should also be at the table driving forward with the technological times. To do our jobs well, we must keep up with trends within the global business community, especially those tied to evolving legislation and technology. ACC will continue to do its part, facilitating the creation of timely resources like this publication; those created by the Information Governance Network; and educational programming like the Annual Meeting and beyond.
Drop me a line at chair@acc.com if there’s anything you’d like to share about this Docket issue
or your ACC experience.
