This is a curious factor about individuals, generally we crave the acquainted, and generally we demand the novel.
Go see Metallica dwell. What would you like? Enter Sandman. Grasp of Puppets. The songs by coronary heart. Play some deep reduce from a B-side and watch 50,000 individuals all of a sudden turn into very all in favour of their telephones. However go see your favorite comic and the contract flips solely. Inform me a joke I’ve heard earlier than and I will ask for my a reimbursement.
The distinction? We search familiarity once we need consolation and shared expertise. We search novelty once we need stimulation and new data. What it means is that as people, we’re truly remarkably constant about being inconsistent.
Now, have a look at your safety consciousness programme.
Most of you might be operating one in every of two failing methods. Both you are the tribute act – similar phishing simulation each quarter, similar “lock your display screen” poster since 2019, similar obligatory annual coaching that everybody clicks via like a software program licence settlement. Otherwise you’re the determined open-mic comic – weekly “partaking content material,” gamification, escape rooms, VR headsets, interpretive dance workshops about ransomware.
Each approaches assume your viewers desires one factor. They do not. They need each. At totally different occasions. In numerous contexts. For various matters.
Somebody new to the organisation? They want the best hits. Phishing. Passwords. Bodily safety. The basics. Play them the repertoire till it turns into muscle reminiscence. However your veteran security-aware workers? They’re standing there ready for brand spanking new materials and you are still enjoying Smoke on the Water.
The actual downside is not that you just’re selecting the unsuitable method. It is that you just’re selecting an method. Singular. One-size-fits-all. Utilized to everybody no matter their expertise, function, or what they really want proper now.
Your metrics mirror this confusion. Engagement tanks as a result of half your viewers is bored and half is overwhelmed. Retention suffers since you’re both repeating what they know or introducing what they are not prepared for. You blame “safety fatigue” when actually it is simply horrible timing.
In your present consciousness technique, everybody will get the identical factor as a result of it is environment friendly, measurable, and honest. It is also ineffective.
This is the uncomfortable bit… fixing this manually is not possible. You’ll be able to’t monitor what tons of or hundreds of staff want at any given second. You’ll be able to’t work out who wants repetition versus novelty right now versus subsequent week.
However AI can. Actual-time behavioural evaluation. Adaptive content material supply. Particular person studying paths that know when somebody wants the comforting acquainted and once they’re prepared for one thing new.
As a substitute of sending your complete firm the identical annual module, AI can construct a personalised channel for every individual. New starter in finance? They get the basics, damaged into quick, repeatable segments. Seasoned engineer who by no means falls for phishing however retains misconfiguring cloud storage? Much less, “Don’t click on hyperlinks,” and extra hands-on cloud safety eventualities. A supervisor who places confidential data on an unencrypted USB drive? Serve content material that focuses on constructing understanding on deal with information and finest methods to share it securely.
Completed properly, this offers coaching that’s personalised, related, and well timed that respects individuals’s time, consideration, and present data.
The know-how exists. The query is whether or not you are courageous sufficient to confess that your one-size-fits-all method is not working – and by no means may.
Are you operating a tribute act or an open mic evening?
Mistaken query. You need to be operating neither.
