Risk is recognized,but not controlled?

 

In December 2010 the Economist Intelligence Unit * conducted a SAP-sponsored worldwide survey of 385 senior executives from finance, risk, compliance and legal functions. All respondents were executives in one of the following industries:

• financial services

• healthcare

• energy and utilities

• logistics and manufacturing

• public sector

Outside the public sector, 63% of respondents work for companies with annual revenue of over US$500m or the equivalent, and 25% work for firms with over US$5bn in annual revenue. The average annual company revenue was around US$4bn. One-third of the respondents are employed in Western Europe, 28% in the Asia-Pacific region and 27% in North America.

The full report is found at http://digitalresearch.eiu.com/enterpriseriskandcompliance/report; it is summarized at http://digitalresearch.eiu.com/enterpriseriskandcompliance/highlights.

For many respondents the high scores from self assessments fail to match reality as determined by the Economist Intelligence Unit.

One interesting statistic was the result of asking the responders "How do the risk and compliance practices of your organization rate relative to the rest of your industry?"

Responses were broken down between those organizations that had suffered an event and those that were - so far - unscathed.

Executives of those organizations that had survived an event were far more conservative in their thinking (see graphic, below).

While the report may not be an eye-opener to most risk management practitioners, it does provide useful information.

 

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* The Economist Intelligence Unit is the business-to-business arm of The Economist Group, which publishes The Economist Newspaper. Like The Economist, we are known for our global perspective, accurate analysis, objective thinking, business acumen and influential opinions. We pride ourselves as the world’s foremost provider of country, industry and management analysis. For nearly 65 years, the Economist Intelligence Unit has delivered vital business intelligence to influential decision-makers around the world. Our extensive international reach and unfettered independence make us the most trusted and valuable resource for international companies, financial institutions, universities and government agencies. Today we have over 150 full-time country specialists and economists supported by an unparalleled global network of 650+ contributing analysts and editors