The survey looked at risk management in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors.
Chandler says it shows that both the leaders in risk management and those lagging behind in risk management adopt the same approaches, indicating it is less about what organisations do and more about how well they do it.
“Some companies and organisations are very good at managing their risks, but too many do not realise the full benefit an active risk management strategy can bring,” he says.
“In fact, companies and organisations that just tick the box for risk management may be better off not having risk management strategy at all. It can be more dangerous relying on ineffective risk management processes than not having any risk processes at all. This is not an area in which to be complacent.”
The survey shows three quarters of all public sector organisations and businesses have used external assistance at some point. Chartered accountants are the preferred professional provider (51 percent), followed by insurance brokers and boutique risk consultants at 33 percent each.
Chandler says across all sectors senior management do not value risk management as much as boards.
“Interestingly, the level of value risk managers feel they are able to deliver is dependent upon the attitudes of senior management to risk, reflective of the importance of the tone at the top.
“The survey clearly demonstrates that boards value more detailed risk reporting (operational, project and divisional/business risks) while senior management value strategic and top or largest risk reporting more. This seems contrary to the impression that boards are focused on the big picture and management on the detail.”
