Challenge The Existing

For our risk management efforts, we are relying on high-end technologies, the latest frameworks and the latest process ideas like Just in Time Inventory system. We believe that they will make our businesses better and improved. Better processes, technology and people. What is missing? Let us call it knowledge or Intelligence. Combination is Super processes, technology and people.

I would like to call it the trick of the trade. Dynamic and not linear!!!

Businesses are paying huge money for mapping processes, documenting risks & controls on some technological platform to increase visibility. At first a risk assessment exercise is carried out at a reasonably high cost by the people who are either less experienced or less talented in the area (Actually they are getting leveraged). This is a mammoth task as one needs to feed a huge amount of intelligent data into some technological system with quality consistent throughout. And, if a team of highly experienced business people were do such manual work, the cost could be much much more. Copy paste is not a bad idea at all if one has already done it before for some other companies irrespective of the industry or country differences. Branded consulting companies call it knowledge bank and cost is reduced to some extent as well (Theirs or yours.. Think!!). I am not sure about the worth but in presence of such a knowledge bank it is natural to not to apply ones minds for actual situation at hand.

Enterprise wide risk management is not just about risk assessment and finding mitigating controls but understanding a broader perspective of business controls. Not just the plain knowledge of business but learning the trick of the trade. Think about the Strength, Weakness, and Opportunity Cost, Cost Benefit, Simplicity and Endurance of a control too.

The serious question is why effectiveness of controls is given more weightage over efficiency of controls now-a-days? Is some body making a business out of it?

Business people also talks about KPI, KRAs, roles and responsibilities. Good idea! but till now it is a subjective aspect of controls and it is subjective because tricks can differ from business to business and management style.

My next case study is mainly targeted to Hospitality & Retail Industry named Duplication in Processes. These industries are more prone to have duplication in processes resulting into intentional or unintentional leakages in revenue by the people involved. However, the knowledge can be applied to other businesses as well.

Duplication in Processes is one of the aspects to bring a perspective on efficiency of control. I will also be writing about other industry scenarios in coming case studies.

There are 44 subscribers by email to this knowledge station and I am sure I will be having mix readers who are Business Heads, Business Managers, Consultants or Auditors looking for answers to both high-end controls as well as nitty-gritty.

The idea is to have an interesting case study and story line to refresh and challenge your mind every week. And, to have a perspective of dynamic relationships rather than linear relationships with respects to business controls.

Thanks for allowing your mind to get challenged.