High time consumption in answering security questionnaires in an HR solutions provider

Abstract

The Company TL Group is a leading outsourcing payroll company in Vietnam, serving a variety of corporate clients requiring strict compliance with risk, information security, and data privacy standards. Under the aegis of IT Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC), the team engages in the study of detailed security assessment questionnaires during the processes of onboarding clients, conducting vendor due diligence, as well as annual re-assessments for the renewal of contracts. Such assessments are important for building client trust, attaining regulatory compliance, and providing for business expansion. Notwithstanding the strategic importance of these assessments, TL Group has lately been facing operational challenges reflected through exceedingly longer lead times, missed client deadlines, and increasing manual workloads for the IT GRC team. According to an observational analysis of the internal data between January and July 2025, it was found that the team had handled 1,960 security questions, with a mean of 48 questions per request and an average completion time of five working days. These symptoms have led to delays in sales cycles, high levels of friction for cross-department collaboration, and poorer operational efficiency. Internal performance data analysis, literature review, and deep interviews with IT GRC Assistant, IT GRC Supervisor, IT Operations Manager, and Payroll Stakeholder have identified the main problem as: High-Time consumption in answering security questionnaires. Four possible problems were assessed: Poor prioritization mechanism according to deadlines and risk levels, No ticketing system, Lack of resources to meet the surge in workload in 2025, and High-time consumption in answering security questionnaires. This paper provides a detailed analysis of factors contributing to the High time consumption in answering the Security Questionnaire at the TL Group. By mapping the cause-and-effect relationships within the research, the root cause of the problem was identified; hence, feasible solutions were proposed to address it. These findings act as a basis upon which the TL Group can take targeted actions to enhance operational efficiency and bolster overall performance.