Risk Management Within an Organization

Risk management is a identification process of upcoming threats and danger to an organization. In an organization risk can enter through many ways, it can come from project failure, financial market, an accident in organisation such as flood, earthquake, cyclone, power failure, public health and safety and legal risk etc. Risk can be low to medium, or medium to high. It is difficult to say that an organisation can solve all the upcoming risks to the organisation like earthquake, we can just assume that earthquake can damage the business, but we cannot say how much, but there are some alternatives of upcoming threats like in power failure we can use generator to keep running the business.

The purpose of risk management within an organization to identify problems before they enter and create problems in the organisation, so that risk management handling process may be planed. It is a continuous looking ahead process so it is an important part of a business. Early detection of risk is important because it is easier, not much expensive, and changes can made easily in the planned process. It is easy to maintain a strategy and solve the risks when they are in early stage. A successful manager can monitor risks before they create problems in a business. The lack of information can is dangerous in a business so the staff of the organisation should be well training so that they can assume the risk when it is in early stage and report to the management as soon as possible.

An effective risk management program can help the organisations to manage their risks and maximize success opportunities. There are too many benefits of risk management within an organization, like less time consuming, less costly, less labor. The managers of an organisation should train the staff that they can discuss the risks with the management when it is in early stage. Communication is a beneficial way for an organization it helps to understand the most important risk areas. Staff can provide information in written or discuss with the management. So it can be early identification for the management and an alert to the management about the upcoming threats. The potential risk management benefits are; supporting business planning, use of resources in effective ways, continuous improvement in the business, fewer dangers and threats, increase of new opportunities, increasing communication between staff and management, helps and focus internal audit programme etc.

Stages of  Risk Management Within an Organization

1. Reviewing of Activities and Internal Environment

By reviewing the internal environment of a organisation we can assume that how we can identify the risks and found risk in the organisation is acceptable or unacceptable, if it is unacceptable then how can we manage that risk to avoid an upcoming danger or threat. It can be found by an audit committee or by a group. Risk can affect the internal environment of the organisation. It depends on the organisations staff that how well they are trained by the management, it depends on the skills of the staff that how they will handle it or will they handle it themselves or will report to management of the organisation.

The staff and management should perform their duties with responsibilities and complete their assignments on the given time frame by the management. There should be a continuous monitoring of activities in the organisation and the management should do something for the development of the staff and give them a proper and continuous training so they can be perfect in performing their duties.

2. Setting Objectives

All the organisations face the risks from internal and external environments. Objectives should be exist before the management can identify risks affecting the achievements of the organisation. An agency should develop related objectives. There are three broad categories of objectives – operations,  reporting, and compliance.  In operations the company should do all the operations and work very effectively and in a progressive way, there should not be the minor faults in the formulations of the products and services of the company. If there are any risks around the operation the management should make a report and find the solutions of the involved risks. If they will avoid the so there will not be compliance risks for the company, and the company can achieve their target successfully.

There are some questions that what risks should a company not accept for example quality compromises and environmental and rules and regulations set by the government. They must not accept the legal risks. All the product and services should be a standard quality. Always worst outcomes should be assessed for the development of the company.

3. Event identification

An event is a incident arising from external and internal sources that can affect implementation of strategy. There are some external and internal factors through which we can identify events. Economic changes can affect the company financially. Ups and down in the currency of the country can affect the import and export of the company. Natural environments can also affect the company. Environmental damage can cause by failure in the rules and regulations set by law. Loss of funds through frauds can be a serious problem for the company. Failure to measurement of product can be another deficit for the company. Project delay can affect the company, s reputation. Failure of contractors and partners can be another bad situation for the company. Technical faults can also be costly for the company, It can be time consuming and affect the company, s target and reputation.

4. Risk Assessment  

In an organisation it is possible that an event can occur and affect the achievements of the objectives. It can decrease the value of the goods and services, so that risk should analysed because of their impacts. Management should consider the future events, expected or unexpected. They should always finding that what is worst that can happen or damage the reputation of the organisation. Considering the risk appetite the amount of risk is acceptable or not, most likely the government entities risk is low than the private organisations. Tolerance level is high in the private organisations. Risk assessment can use quantitative and qualitative methods. If the management already miss to give notification to the controller and it can be failure to recover the funds. Lack of notification can result in investigation.

5. Risk Response

Management determines that how can be respond to the risk, reviewing and impact, evaluating costs and benefits and selecting options within the entity’s risk tolerance. Management should keep trying to avoid the risk if there are other alternatives in front of company. By doing that the risk management we can find out what is good for the company. If the risk occurs the specific actions should taken by the management to reduce the risk level. Reducing risk by sharing the impact of the risk can be beneficial for the organisation. If the organisation will accept the risk without doing anything then the results can be dangers.

It is easy to analyse the cost side in spite of benefit side. Management should first find the risks in each division or in each business unit. A view of risk can be depicted in several ways focusing on major risks and event categories across divisions. If the risk is in the program unit can be tolerated but it depends of the level of the risk.

6. Control Activities

There is a major role of effectiveness and efficiency in control activities. Control activities should be tested to ensure that there is not material weakness or difficulties. Management also should ensure that control activities are carried out in a timely manner. Internal auditor can also support management by providing assurance on the effectiveness and efficiency of control activities. In an organisation they must provide the receipt to customers, cash should be handle with care, information system and data processing system should be strong enough, financial reporting, accounts receivable , and investments should handle with care. Misuse of company, s assets, corruption and fraudulent reports should be should be probe properly.

The management should focus on the core areas like information system, contracts, purchasing, grants and other programs, services provided to the community, revenue collection, salaries of employees, and property. Risk with large and moderate impacts should be addressed with control activities.

7. Information Communication

Information is major source to identify risks, and respond them in a appropriate way even is external or internal. Information should available for widespread use, all the transactions should recorded and tracked in actual timing, management should have immediate access to operating and financial information more effectively. If the risk is in tolerance than that, s all right otherwise an action should take immediately. Data reliability in information system should assessed carefully, poor assessment or bad management decisions can affect the targets. Communication is another way to be safe from risks, managers and staff needs to discuss the matters with each other, and tries to find the solutions for the problems. If necessary they should take actions immediately.

8. Monitoring

In an organisation ongoing monitoring activities should be continuous process. Ongoing monitoring activities will occur through management activities. Division head, Line manager, controller, senior management, internal auditor, and external auditor can evaluate the monitoring process. A variety of evaluation techniques are available like checklist, questionnaire, flowchart techniques, performance steps etc. Reporting to the management about the risks is a good way to keep an eye in the organisation it will be far seeing process which can keep safe the organisation from unwanted danger and threats.

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