risk analysis

Inherent Risk: Why It’s So Confusing and What You Should Do Instead

When asking a question, isn’t it awkward when all you get is a blank stare in return? It certainly felt awkward at points when asking different business units specific risk questions in my early career as an ERM practitioner. Whenever I would use risk terminology with an executive or manager, all I would frequently get…

Harness the Visual Bow tie to Better Communicate Risks and Controls

It’s no secret among those who know me well that I’m a visual person. Like many others of the same disposition, I learn concepts the best through any sort of picture, diagram, or some other type of visual aid. Therefore, I was naturally intrigued by a 2022 Risk Awareness Week session by Graeme Keith entitled…

Don’t Let Goals and Initiatives Be Blindsided by External Events

As the end of the year draws near, I think we’d all agree that while it wasn’t without its challenges, this year also wasn’t quite as turbulent as the previous two. While a lot of people are juggling company parties, shopping for friends and family, and special activities for the kids, most companies are putting…

Why Quantitative Risk Assessment is Not Just the Best But the Only Option – A Conversation

Periodically, I have the pleasure of speaking one-on-one with Hans Læssøe on a variety of topics around ERM, strategic risk, and other issues and trends. As you know from my previous conversations (here, here) and posts featuring his work, Hans was formerly a practitioner at the iconic LEGO Company, but even more notably, is a…

One Simple Method to Validate Risk Assessment Results

Everyone sees the world a bit differently…it’s one of those fun facts that makes life so interesting. Think about how boring the world would be if we all thought the same way! As with a group of any size, a company’s personnel will have a variety of perspectives or biases on a particular risk. It’s…

Asking Unbiased Risk Assessment Questions

Originally coined by the U.S. Army War College in the early ‘90s, the acronym VUCA, short for volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous, has become a popular term for describing today’s business environment. I agree this oft-repeated mantra could almost be considered cliché, but that doesn’t make it any less true. To make the best decisions…

Determining the Best Approach for Low Probability Risks

To start today’s article, I would like to share a family story from July 2021… My husband Nathan was taking our son Jackson to his first baseball game. The two of them took a “guys” trip to see a minor-league team in my former hometown about 3 hours away. On their way, they stopped at…

What Does Risk Identification Have to Do With Crime Dramas?

Anyone who knows me well knows how much I enjoy murder mystery TV shows and books. My personal bookshelf is loaded with novels from JD Robb, Tess Gerritsen, David Baldacci, and others. And IF I’m able to manage some TV time, something that is getting more difficult all of the time it seems, shows like…

How Addressing Minor Risks Through Process Optimization Creates Opportunities

I’ve said it dozens of times here and have seen repeated elsewhere – trying to manage each and every risk can be mindboggling and, at best, lead to wasted resources in the form of time, people, and money. In the most extreme circumstances, attempting to manage every risk can lead to business failure, which is…

One Fatal Error of KRIs and How to Avoid It

If you were to ask what constitutes a well-rounded, mature ERM program that delivers strategic value to the organization, many would say robust key risk indicators (KRIs) would certainly be at or near the top of the list. Writing in the book Enterprise Risk Management: Today’s Leading Research and Best Practices for Tomorrow’s Executives, Deloitte…

risk analysis

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