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How can the mining sector protect its reputation?

The African mining sector is in a state of flux. What was once regarded as an unquestionable champion of industry, a conduit for remarkable growth and expansion throughout the continent, now faces a new set of challenges. As local mindsets shift and evolve into a new phase of consciousness, the zeitgeist has come to question the ethical approach taken by organisations that profit from the extraction of raw materials from the depths of the earth.

Sustainability and transparency. These are now the watchwords that underpin debate within mining. During the recently held 2014 South African Mining Indaba, conversation turned more towards the long lasting impact that mining houses are having on the communities in which they operate, and indeed the tools they use to promote communication and ethical behaviour, than to profits and dividends.

One need only review the progress of the Marikana enquiry, a formal analysis of the role the South African Police Force and related mining groups played in the killing of over 30 protesting miners, to understand the vital importance of moral accountability within this space. Here, email and telephone records are now being used as evidence in a case against the relevant business players. The ability to empirically draw upon this information when needed has never been more vital.

How can technology promote change within this sector? By applying new approaches to communication within the mining environment it could be possible to positively alter public reputation while improving internal business processes to promote profit growth.

Electronic communication is critical

Unlike the days of old, when mining houses communicated internally via telegraph or registered letter, commands and reports are executed via electronic mail. There is no formal business operating today that does not use email to interact with its stakeholders and suppliers. This is the de facto approach.

If applied incorrectly at a corporate level the use of electronic communication has the significant potential to introduce an element of risk to the fold. Inability to store, access and ultimately control these resources can lead to misuse or exploitation. A disgruntled or dishonourable employee could quite easily share sensitive data with competitors or delete incriminating communication if the proper checks and balances are not put in place.

With this in mind it is absolutely vital that mining houses introduce centralised email platforms that are governed by an agreed set of internal policies. Frameworks of this nature, hosted either on premise or in a remote cloud based environment, must offer perpetual storage of all communication, eDiscovery functionality and considerable security measures in order to be effective in the long term.

Email is a necessity, but data leakage and misuse needn’t be. By applying a comprehensive electronic communication archiving, security and continuity platform to a mining environment, participant groups within the industry can ensure that corporate governance policies and an ethical and transparent approach are upheld.

Managing communications data

Brandon Bekker MD, Mimecast South Africa.

According to Brandon Bekker MD, Mimecast South Africa, data management at a communication level is critical – especially within highly competitive and volatile business environments such as mining.

“Due to the global nature of the mining sector’s business, it is important for their stakeholders that they follow compliant data management processes. Offering our mining customers the ability to store immutable data perpetually, and share it locally and across borders without exposing them to risk, is a service that is incredibly important for their eDiscovery and auditing requirements.”

There is also a legal element to data compliance. South African businesses will soon be expected to comply with the components outlined within the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPI), which strictly governs the manner in which organisations store and manage personal data.

Although mining organisations are generally more concerned with promoting efficient business practices on the ground than capturing significant amounts of personal information the act will impact almost every sector in some manner. Indeed, POPI is not the only legislation that impacts the manner in which information is housed. Many African states have introduced similar requirements at a domestic level.

Adhering to these expectations at a regional level requires the introduction of a robust email management system. Again, archiving, security and continuity are absolutely critical to compliance. It would be extremely costly and time intensive, when operating throughout the continent, to build and apply policies that fulfil the obligations laid out at a regional level.

Unified solution

According to Bekker, a unified solution is the best approach in this event.

“A unified solution has the potential to organise and provide access to data in an easy and productive way. With the POPI Act regulating how mining organisations process the personal information of employees and associated communities, it is important that these groups have access to the tools needed to securely manage this personal data and ensure their regulatory compliance. The cross-border implications of the POPI Act will also impact the mining sector – where information will have to be stored and processed locally in order to comply with the act’s stipulations”.

In an ever shifting business environment such as this, maintaining visibility and an ethical approach is unquestionably vital to protecting and enhancing business reputation. Effectively engaging with the communities in which a mining group operates while communicating with the world at large requires significant trust in the communication platforms used to facilitate daily conversation. Email, if managed incorrectly, can introduce significant and unnecessary risk. Taking its management and analyses seriously is not a nice to have – it is a necessity.

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