Ever wondered why some organisations thrive in uncertainty while others crumble? As a management consultant, I’ve seen how leadership approaches impact organisational resilience. Often leaders treat good governance as a mere tick-box exercise, disconnected from strategic decision-making – a dangerous approach in today’s volatile business landscape.
The solution? Integrate strategy and risk so leaders consider them together, hand in glove or two sides of the same coin. What follows is a risk-aware culture throughout your organisation.
When I facilitate strategy workshops I emphasise:
- Proactive Scanning: Looking for emerging risks and opportunities
- Scenario Planning: Preparing for multiple futures.
- Premortems to understand what must go right.
- Adaptive Leadership: Being flexible to pivot when needed.
Remember, the biggest risk today is not taking any. Our job as leaders is to manage risk intelligently, turning threats into advantages.
As a C-Suite Leader, evaluate how risk is discussed in your organisation. Is it separate from or integrated into strategic conversations? Are employees empowered to identify and discuss potential risks?
As a Risk Leader, consider if you are reporting on risk on behalf of owners of the risk? Make the shift to supporting risk owners to report on risk at the same time they report on performance. Don’t worry, there will still be plenty for you to report on via Audit and Risk Committees to help stimulate risk-based strategic conversations.