What advice would you give to a DPO starting out in their career?
Learn from those that came before you - taking on the role in 2021 is quite different to those who were contemplating becoming DPOs in 2017 during the pre-GDPR readiness era. Nurture relationships with DPOs from a variety of sectors who can act as a sounding board.
Develop your soft skills especially communication, influencing and people management. These skills are equally as important to the modern DPO as knowledge about privacy, security and compliance. Lastly, expect the unexpected...It’s a career with lots of interesting challenges to overcome. Our profession has changed rapidly and so have the problems we need to solve. This is why it’s important to stay humble to new ways of doing things.