Airmic: risk managers more involved in strategy
Those who lead in risk management in their organisations are ‘very involved’ or ‘somewhat involved’ in strategic decision-making, said 66% of respondents in the latest Airmic Big Question survey. This comes as a recent World Economic Forum (WEF) report on the outlook for chief risk officers said 95% of respondents in their survey stated that an effective risk function provides a competitive organisational edge.
Julia Graham (pictured), chief executive of Airmic, said: “Organisations have realised how essential risk management is in times of crisis such as during the pandemic. With the current period of extended geopolitical turmoil, organisations need to embed risk management in their strategic decision-making, so as to navigate through the permacrisis.”
The WEF report also noted an increase in the percentage of chief risk officers deeming elections and political regime change to be a risk of concern – particularly after the US presidential election last November, in developments which have been contributing to economic policy uncertainty, and to investor and consumer caution globally.
Hoe-Yeong Loke, head of research at Airmic, said: “The round of tariffs that the Trump White House is unleashing on allies and rivals alike is just in its early stages. Unlike during his first term, Trump has shown even more willingness to use tariffs towards achieving wider foreign policy goals – such as curbing illegal immigration and drug trafficking – rather than purely on trade considerations. All of this creates an even more volatile and dynamic global environment, which calls for risk professionals to step to the forefront to guide their businesses and organisations.”
Some respondents to the Airmic Big Question survey said that there is lingering cynicism as to whether risk management can contribute to strategic opportunities for businesses. This mirrors the sentiments in the WEF report which said 47% of chief risk officers ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that “the risk function can block innovations or growth initiatives based on its risk assessment.”
Leigh-Anne Slade, head of media, communications and interest groups, said: “For many of our members’ organisations, risk management is already largely involved in preserving and enabling the organisation to deliver on its strategic goals – but they could be much more involved in the setting that strategy with the board, especially before crisis hits.”
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