What’s in it for me?
| What’s in it for me? Why do you do risk management? Crises can occur at any time and there is no end to the number of potential disasters. The most effective way to deal with them is through prevention. Taking time to create plans for risk management, can also make a difference. The difference between a major loss and getting back on track reasonably quickly. Many of the steps in the development of such plans are useful for dealing with a crisis. There are many among them that are good practice. This for the overall health of the organization whether or not a crisis occurs. Being financially responsible, having strong lines of communication, providing protection for your employees, and creating an efficient management structure are always excellent practices. Even when there is “business as usual.” | In this contribution I write my own opinion, not that of any organization |
“What’s in it for me” is twofold
“What’s in it for me” is twofold: in times of crisis and in times of “business as usual.”
The table below lists some of the benefits of risk management both in times of crisis and in normal times.
| In crisis | During “Business as usual” |
| Avoiding unexpected costs | Preventing unexpected costs |
| Corrective actions: who should do what in the teams is known | Prevention of workplace accidents |
| Communication flows smoothly during crisis | Prevention of fraud |
| Downtime remains minimal | Prevention of data theft |
| The teams are prepared for a possible worst-case scenario. | Prevention of data corruption |
| Everyone knows perfectly well his/her tasks and responsibilities and liabilities in times of crisis regarding the Time-Critical processes | Everyone knows perfectly well his/her duties and responsibilities and liabilities during “business as usual.” |
| Teams have experience thanks to exercises and training. Emotions stay under better control. | Communication during “business as usual” is a natural way to train communication in crisis |
| No cultural, political, legal, regulatory, financial, economic and competency surprises | You know the trends that can have an impact on the organization and its operations |
| You took the perceptions and values of external stakeholders into account | You know the perceptions and values of external stakeholders are known |
| The organization optimally uses the organization’s capabilities in terms of people and resources | The organization’s capabilities in terms of people and resources are known |
| Information flows and decision processes run optimally | Information flows and decision processes are known and up to date |
| Everybody knows their roles and responsibilities, everyone knows what to do | Roles and responsibilities are fully known and assigned to the most appropriate individuals |
| The organization knows the risks better | Dependencies between processes and projects are known and utilized |
| The Crisis Management Team (CMT) can determine the scope of the crisis | The risks are known and things are organized to avoid some risks |
| The focal points are discussed | Measures are taken only for the relevant risks |
| High-quality solutions are already implemented | Objectives are negotiable |
| The CMT makes decisions smoothly and responsibly | The Risk Management Team implements high-quality solutions |
| The Risk Management Team makes decisions responsibly | |
| Decisions maximize opportunities | |
| There is time to make decisions | |
| … | … |