BE A RISK LEADER?

The risk landscape is constantly evolving and becoming complex. Being able to identify and manage all the risks to an organisation is no longer that simple.

The increasing complexity of the business environment calls for a new approach to managing risk, one that promotes resilience in a heavily interconnected and integrated world. An organisational risk leader will help drive the success of the business and take charge of the risk agenda.

What then, does it take to be a risk leader?

Strategic partnership

A risk leader helps the board set the risk appetite of the organisation in line with its business model and acts as wise counsel and effective challenge to CEO, board and broader business. He/She aligns business with a balanced risk/reward approach for effective commercial business decisions and navigates board and executive relationships.

Executive leadership

The risk leader takes charge of vision and purpose for the risk function by inspiring excellence in business partnerships thereby creating credibility and value. This is an enterprise-wide function that balances framework, policy and process with forward-thinking capability and navigation. This role includes a constant consideration of future challenges including succession and ‘future-proofing’ the function.

Culture

The risk ‘culture-carrier’; the risk leader establishes the right culture with the board and senior management team and understands the present status of risk culture. They drive a winning strategy to a mature culture that is right for the business and create an openness where learning takes place. Once a culture is in place the risk leader builds a network across the business to instil the established risk culture.

Organisational capability

The creation and maintenance of a pragmatic, business-focused framework, using management information to support risk/reward business decisions and culture is an important function of a risk leader. Here, the risk leader considers both internal and external factors in the design and coverage of the risk function. The structure is fluid, able to continually improve, adapt and evolve.

Based on the above, the risk leader posseses the following qualities:

1. Organisational and stakeholder navigation
2. Courage
3. Communication
4. Integrity, ethics and values
5. Credibility.

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