It is clear that access management is playing an increasingly important role, including in the world of HR. It determines who can view and edit which information and is essential for safeguarding the privacy and security of HR data. But nobody wants to spend all day dealing with access requests.

Fortunately, HR analytics allows us to automate certain rules: “If the email address contains @hr-company.com, then that person gets access to the personnel data.” In most cases, the IT department within your company will make decisions on this, but HR’s input is essential: who should be granted access to what? At what level should access be granted? In this blog post, we discuss the two major approaches to access management: Coarse Grained vs. Fine Grained Access Control.

Coarse Grained, or “broad-grained”, access means that users are granted access to large sections of data through only a few broad access rules, such as granting access based on a role or department. This type of access is easier to manage and implement, but offers less control over who can see which specific data.

Example

An HR manager is granted full access to the personnel files of all employees. This means they can view every aspect of a file, from personal data to salary information and performance evaluations. Regardless of who occupies the HR manager position.

Situation in which this is a good option:

In a small organisation with a limited number of employees, broad-grained access can be practical. For example, if there is only one HR manager who is responsible for all HR-related tasks. In that case, it is efficient for this person to have access to all required data without constantly having to switch between different access rights.

Situation in which this can be dangerous:

Suppose an intern starts in the HR department. If the organisation applies broad-grained access, this intern could, possibly by accident, receive the same broad access rights as an experienced HR employee. This can be problematic if the intern has not yet received extensive training in privacy and security protocols, or has not yet signed the privacy policy. As a result, there is a risk that sensitive information may be unintentionally shared or misused.

Fine Grained, or “fine-grained”, access provides much more detailed control over which users have access to which specific data. This means that you can determine, for each type of data and for each user, who may view or edit what.

Example:

A recruiter only has access to application data and candidates' CVs, while salary data and personal information remain restricted. A team leader has access to the performance evaluations of their team, but not to their salary information.

Situation in which this is a good option:

In a large organisation with multiple departments and sensitive information, fine-grained access can be essential. For example, a recruiter does not need access to the salary data of current employees, but only to application information. This prevents sensitive information from being shared unnecessarily and helps ensure compliance with privacy regulations such as GDPR legislation.

Situation in which this can be dangerous:

Managing fine-grained access can be complex and time-consuming. Imagine an organisation that needs to respond quickly to an emergency situation in which multiple employees temporarily require access to specific data. If access rights are not properly configured or if there is no clear policy for emergency access, this can lead to delays and inefficiencies, which may weaken the organisation during a crisis. Even in day-to-day operations, if the organisation experiences a high level of mobility and employees frequently join the company or change positions, granting access at the lowest level can be very time-consuming.

Determining the right access strategy for your organisation does not have to be a choice between fine-grained and coarse-grained access; often a combination of both can provide the best solution.

Suppose you work for a medium-sized organisation with an HR department that is responsible for both recruitment and employee management. You can use coarse-grained access based on role and region. For example, HR managers in Brussels automatically have access to all training data of employees in Brussels. At the same time, you may want each employee to see only their own training data, so for this you use fine-grained access control.

Determining the right access strategy for your organisation depends on several factors:

• What is the sensitivity of the data? For highly sensitive information, such as salary data or medical records, fine-grained access may be necessary to ensure privacy and security.
• What is the size of your organisation? In smaller organisations, where fewer employees require access to HR data, coarse-grained access may be sufficient.
• What are the needs of your organisation? Conduct a thorough analysis of who needs which data to do their job effectively. If mainly the same roles within the organisation require the same type of information, coarse-grained access will be sufficient.

By using a combination of fine-grained and coarse-grained access, you can find the right balance between security and efficiency. This allows you to tailor access to HR data precisely to the needs of your organisation. Would you like help implementing the best strategy for your situation? Then contact us. We will be happy to help!

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