4 The IERP® Monthly Newsletter September - November 2021
Successful ERM implementation has shown that the system can be integrated with existing ones and be scaled up or down as required, spurring firms that are undecided about it to consider implementing it. The current environment is a major deciding factor as well. Given the levels of disruption and the scalability of ERM systems, organisations have become more open to trying new methods.
It helps too that many ERM-linked processes and procedures are already in place in many businesses. Most are already identifying risks, for instance, and have been applying management strategies to sustain their growth and competitiveness. These measures would have included ways of mitigating risks to the organisation. Perhaps they are realising that all they need, subsequently, is the ERM method of evaluation, analysis and monitoring to improve these. Because of its scalability, ERM practitioners usually encourage firms to focus on small projects to demonstrate the effectiveness of its processes, before applying these more widely.
When implementation is controlled in this way, it helps the firm understand its challenges in a comprehensive, connected way, besides allowing the people involved to see what works for the organisation, and what doesn’t. It allows them to improve and even make mistakes without severe consequences. In the process, they will develop a deeper understanding of the organisation, and be able to more accurately identify the core issues it faces. ERM processes are also a means of improving the company’s documentation, and provides an accurate picture of how well its systems are working – all important, relevant indications of the organisation’s overall health.
What ERM has been consistently demonstrating where it has been applied, is that it can support firms in their efforts to anticipate events that place them at risk. It helps them answer the “hard questions” about risk, such as how far and wide the risk may spread, and how long these will be felt. As firms try to answer, their responses will naturally provoke a state of preparedness associated with effective implementation, and ongoing monitoring of the situation to keep abreast of developments.