Gregg Shafel Case Summary

If I had the opportunity to advise Gregg Steinhafel and Target on actions to take to better handle a crisis like the cyber attack they experienced in 2013 I would focus on policy and training development. It seemed alarming to me that a CEO and his top executives disagreed on the best strategy and moved forward without reaching a consensus (Kinicki, 2016). Discrepancies between team members, especially at such a high level, would indicate to me an inconsistent or poorly established culture. Identifying the company's actual values and goals is imperative to then detail the ethical standards, proper course of action, appropriate communications, and resulting training (LeClair, 2000). Establishing these policies would lead to standard expectations in behavior and choices, and uniform culture (LeClair, 2000).
Technology innovation and global competition are two essential aspects of modern business, as a result companies invest a great deal in these areas (LeClair, 2000). It is imperative for senior management, like Steinhafel and his senior managers, to identify the information important to their business and which information is most valuable so that they can develop an IT infrastructure to protect those assets and then educate, inform, and train employees in a way that fosters a culture in which security is a priority (Dutta, 2002). With planning, innovation, and training a company can face the ever changing threats of the cyber world with increased confidence and thereby gain the confidence and business of their customers (Dutta,