When speaking with security, governance, risk and compliance professionals about incident reporting and investigation management software, they consistently mention a business need – the triggering of automatic actions from captured data.  Simply, users want a solution to initiate a series of actions based upon data triggers.  For example, a security analyst enters the report of a lost or stolen laptop.  Ideally, the creation of a “stolen laptop” record would automatically trigger multiple actions:

1. Notify the designated need-to-know individuals
2. Task a resource with disabling the reporting person’s single sign-on credentials
3. Collaborate the record among stakeholders
4. Reassign the record to an investigator
5. Require approval before closure

Moreover, a “Yes” response to a database field inquiring if the laptop contained personal identifiable information may require additional notifications or steps.

The combinations and number of workflows can vary depending upon record type or a user’s business.  Stand-alone tools exist to automate workflow.  However, recent improvements allow visual configuration of workflow by business users leveraging a workflow engine embedded in the solution.  For security, governance, risk and compliance professionals, the example workflow and multiple other workflows become a reality.  The business user can create, modify and disable workflows based upon need.

D3 incorporated such an engine into its incident reporting, investigation management and case collaboration software allowing for automated approvals, escalations, routings, task assignments and collaborations.  With the current push in organizations for standardization, a case management solution’s ability to automatically trigger multiple actions based upon user entry becomes paramount, especially when dealing with incidents where compliance and risk mitigation require a repeatable process.  More importantly, the trigger of automatic actions allows users to focus on closing cases rather than initiating the required actions.  Ultimately, embedded configurable business process management will allow fewer users to complete larger volumes of work, providing an ROI through decreased headcount. CP5MNUGJPY22