A large part of risk management success depends on the support and commitment from executives, Board members and key stakeholders.
It is important, as early as possible, to identify specific people at different levels within the organisation who support the concept of risk-based management and are ready to assist the risk manager:
- At the executive level – risk managers should find what motivates different executives, the CFO, for example, may be interested in implementing and supporting risk management to show the realistic risk-adjusted results and forecast to the banks and insurance companies to save on financing or insurance costs. Or he may be interested in having a methodology to validate investment projects, because he is not happy with how company was investing in very high risk initiatives lately. The COO may be interested to decrease the level of operational risks. The HR Director may be interested in timely identification of the staff turnover risk, etc.
- At the Board level – independent directors or other Board members may be supportive of risk management because it provides greater transparency in decision making and creates an additional information channel for them.
- At the auditor level – risk managers should participate in the audit methodology discussion and try to synchronise risk management methodologies between what is used internally and what external auditors apply.
- At the regulator level – risk managers should discuss regulators’ expectations and methodologies to try to synchronise risk management methodologies between what is used internally and what regulators expect.
Finding the right sponsors is more of an art, than a science. It’s highly unlikely that the risk manager will be able to convince all Board members or all executives. However, this is not really necessary, as long as the risk manager has support from certain individuals at every level mentioned above.
USE THE CHECKLIST PROVIDED BELOW TO TURN THIS SECTION INTO ACTIONS
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Get executive sponsors on board to integrate risk management in the activities of a particular function. Help him / her realise potential benefits for the area of responsibility. Make him Chair of the Risk Management Committee (if it exists) |
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Find interested parties at the Board level (try Audit Committee Chair or Independent Directors) |
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Find support from an external auditor or regulator |
USEFUL VIDEOS
| Alex Sidorenko from RISK-ACADEMY talks about finding the right sponsors at the executive level, the Board of Directors and the external auditor and regulator level. | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBJ04Dvj9Qo |
| Alex Sidorenko from RISK-ACADEMY talks about the place of the risk manager within the organisational structure, as well as the pros and cons of different reporting lines for the risk manager. | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2b005LDwLA |
| A short video providing some suggestions on how to encourage senior management to implement risk-based thinking in the organisation. | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MbJLkSlbU4 |
| Alex Sidorenko from RISK-ACADEMY talks about how a risk manager can help make real money for their company. Good risk managers can provide very tangible dollar savings and help raise new funds. | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGZImxwDQBE |
Check out other risk management books
RISK-ACADEMY offers online courses
Informed Risk Taking
Learn 15 practical steps on integrating risk management into decision making, business processes, organizational culture and other activities!
ISO31000 Integrating Risk Management
Alex Sidorenko, known for his risk management blog http://www.riskacademy.blog, has created a 25-step program to integrate risk management into decision making, core business processes and the overall culture of the organization.
Advanced Risk Governance
This course gives guidance, motivation, critical information, and practical case studies to move beyond traditional risk governance, helping ensure risk management is not a stand-alone process but a change driver for business.
