Finance Elite Awards 2018

6 US BUSINESS NEWS / 2018 Finance Elite Awards , What can US Marketers learn from GDPR Matt Shepherd, Head of Data Strategy, BBH London discusses the lessons that US firms can take from the EU’s new legislation. In the wake of GDPR, US marketers have a great opportunity to stand on the shoulders of giants. I’m not suggesting that the EU is in any way better than the US, I don’t want to make the same mistake that Isaac Newton made by including that “giant” quote in a letter to Robert Hooke. Hooke mistook this as an insult to his height, rather than a complement to his work that had helped Newton advance his theories faster than he would have otherwise been able to on his own. So what exactly is GDPR? It stands for General Data Protection Regulation. In simple terms, it is a common-sense piece of legislation that means brands can’t take liberties with EU customers when it comes to collecting and using EU customer data. The GDPR’s scope covers the processing of personal data for all EU citizens, wherever that processing is taking place. The new regulations have good intentions, they are being introduced to help protect personal data across all the EU states and promote the safe transfer of data both within and beyond the EU. There are 7 key principles that all brands will need to cover as part of processing data for EU citizens. These include: • Fair and lawful processing • Specific and legitimate and compatible purpose • Adequate, relevant and limited • Accurate and up-to-date • Kept no longer than necessary 2