Carol Williams

Traditional vs. ERM – Going Beyond Managing Risks One at a Time

November 5, 2018

When I first began my blog, the first big topic I explored was the difference between traditional and enterprise risk management. In the traditional vs. ERM article (one of the most popular articles of all time), I outlined eight ways that separate each of these concepts. Today, I want to dive a bit deeper on…

Practicing ERM without a Formal ERM Program

October 29, 2018

Many of the ERM resources you encounter on my blog and elsewhere focus on elements of a formal program like developing a framework, establishing risk appetite, and more. We imply, at least indirectly, that your organization must have this formal structure in place before practicing ERM. However, this isn’t always the case… Double-take – why…

Why Assigning a Risk Owner is Important and How to Do It Right

October 22, 2018

Falling in the middle of the risk management cycle (after developing risk appetite and tolerance and identifying, but before assessing and analyzing risks), the organization then must identify who will “own” or be responsible for a particular risk. Although the exact definition of what a risk owner is will vary depending on the organization, it…

Lessons in Personal Risk Tolerance – Hurricane Michael Edition

October 15, 2018

The second article I ever wrote on this blog was on the local impact of Hurricane Hermine in 2016. And now, Tallahassee and the Florida Panhandle region is once again recovering from another hurricane, this one Hurricane Michael. Hurricane Michael reached Category 4 (winds of 130-155 mph or 209-251 km/h) shortly before landfall, making it…

Traditional vs. ERM – Elevating Risk Management from the Business Unit to the Whole Enterprise

October 8, 2018

One of my most popular articles discusses the differences between traditional risk management and ERM, with one of the core differences being the approach to risk. Traditional risk management occurs within a singular business unit – it is departmentalized or occurs in what’s called a “silo” or “stove pipe.” The IT Director or Chief Technology…

A 5-Minute Primer on Factoring ERM into Credit Ratings for Insurance Companies

September 24, 2018

An article we published in mid-2017 gave an introduction to how credit rating agencies are factoring ERM into their ratings. For most organizations, the evaluation of ERM is simply folded into the overall review of the firm’s management and governance. Additional research and other resources (see here and here) shared with me since the original…

Risk Transfer – A Response Strategy for Limiting Damage from a Negative Event

September 18, 2018

An article published in early 2017 giving a brief overview of risk response strategies has been one of my most popular…and it still resonates with risk management professionals. I’ve wanted to dive deeper into each of these risk response strategies to provide readers with a little more background on how a particular one applies to…

Peak Car – Can ERM Help Automakers Adapt to a Growing Trend?

September 3, 2018

On occasion, I come across news articles that present a great opportunity to showcase how ERM can be a valuable tool in helping organizations adapt to change. Because let’s face it – any organization, be it for-profit or non-profit, must adapt to growing trends to ensure they remain relevant for the long haul. The best…

Four Ways to Strengthen Risk Literacy in Your Organization

August 28, 2018

Math is not my strong suit. I feel more at ease at the keyboard, weaving words together. That’s not to say I’m terrible at math. In fact, I passed a rigorous calculus course in high school, and I actually enjoyed business statistics. But those days are in the distant past, and I rarely have occasion…