Recent years have proved that risk is complex, especially with new and complex technology adding rocket fuel to the fire. Its intricacies force companies to continually change with evolving threats and to explore new risk management solutions to help them do it. In 2022, experts agree that automation, human behavior, 24/7 data streams, better incident preparation and risk assessment are the risk management trends to watch.
Their insight provides a helpful “map” to navigate the evolving risk landscape better, minimizing incidents and saving your company resources. Knowing what the industry experts are saying about five of this year’s hottest tech-enabled risk management trends lets you better minimize risk so you can navigate new and evolving risks with confidence.
1. Automating Everything
The benefits of automation and AI are now being fully embraced for the first time. Kyle MacDonald, Director of Operations for Force by Mojio, says AI is “taking a firm place in risk management and has the ability to not only detect where cyber-attacks are starting or being attempted, but it also identifies areas of weakness where these kinds of attacks might become possible, which allows companies to fix those areas.” MacDonald shares that this is “a new type of proactivity that will eliminate risk significantly,” since companies can proactively stop threat events, instead of just responding to them after they happen.
Its ability to take on mundane tasks frees up internal employees to spend time on high-value tasks where their productivity is more valuable. Tyler Wall, President & CEO of SD Bullion, said,
“As a business owner and founder, I’m always thinking about risk management and what lies ahead. Automation is the primary trend that I’m keeping my eye on. While many see this as a risk and worry about humans losing their jobs to robots, I see this as an opportunity. Specifically, automation will significantly boost employee productivity because AI can relieve people of mundane, repetitive tasks. My employees are my greatest assets, which is why I see automation as an opportunity to free them from doing tasks that don’t take full advantage of their skills, talents, and creativity.”
Automations also help detect and address risk better by identifying your company’s weaknesses and why attacks were possible in the first place.
2. Using Behavioral Data
Behavioral monitoring software lets the user record and analyze human behavior to understand why people make certain decisions. The software’s ability to detect and alert you to “risky behavior” using psychology, neuroscience, cognitive science, and the social sciences makes it a valuable tool for minimizing risk. When you know what drives certain behavior and cognitive biases, you can learn to modify them and minimize the behaviors that lead to risk.
COVID-19 has also played an undeniable role in impacting this risk management trend. Stephen Baldwin, Founder of Assisted Living Center, shares,
“We’re still in the middle of a pandemic, which means that risk management is still centered around it and how unexpected change may disrupt companies’ operations. You can prepare for sudden change by training and building an adaptable workforce that can swiftly adapt to it. You have to forget about rigidity and experiment with different models because flexibility is critical in allowing employees to take action regardless of the circumstances.”
As global circumstances change, behaviors do, too. Monitoring how effective your evolving workforce attitudes are with new software, based on behavioral science, helps predict risky behavior and keeps risk events from taking place.
3. Collecting 24/7 Risk Intelligence
For the first time in history, companies can continually monitor data and get instant access to current risk information. This is a huge jump from the past, where relying on the accuracy of the most recent collection (which could be weeks or even months ago) was the best option. Atul Vashistha, CEO and Founder of Supply Wisdom, shared with Forbes, “While supplier risk assessments have been used for years, they are typically conducted annually or, at best, after a big risk event. In the rapidly evolving risk landscape, the data collected quickly became stale, and as a consequence, the static nature of this process created significant blind spots.” Now, continuous monitoring makes current information instantly available.
Constant risk intelligence gathering lets you make decisions more confidently because the newest data supports them. Atul agrees, sharing that “Big data and automation can be tremendous catalysts to accelerate significant advancements in risk management by enabling companies to continuously monitor risk at scale both cost-effectively and efficiently.”
4. Prioritizing Incident Preparation
Thanks to new technologies like automated ticketing and response services and better activity monitoring, risk management trends have also shifted from responsive to proactive. By focusing resources on incident preparation, your enterprise operates less on the “what ifs” since it’s anticipated all potential courses of action, losses included. Deloitte’s “The Future of Risk: New Game, New Rules” reports,
“Organizations are expanding their approaches to focus on vigilance (detecting patterns that may indicate or even predict risk events) and resilience (the capacity to rapidly contain and reduce the impact of risk events) as well. We can expect activities like these to rise in importance: monitoring emerging threats, identifying anomalies in business processes, managing stoppages from third-party vendors, and preparing for risk-related workplace disruptions.“
Not prioritizing incident preparation results in a higher amount of risk events. It also keeps your company from moving forward since it’s forced to use valuable resources to manage past incidents. Instead, take the wiser route: monitor risk and anticipate incidents before they happen, so they never occur at all.
5. Knowing How Much Risk Is Too Much
Risk used to be associated with avoidance and loss. Today, better incident detection and prevention means risk can tell you how well your preparation and response efforts are working. Risk tolerance is how equipped your company is to handle a certain level of risk and still achieve its objectives. Think of it as the backup parachute you pack—just in case — so you can focus on enjoying the thrill of the jump, like new innovations or experiments.
With information technology identifying potential risks to your systems or data, you know exactly where and how you can move forward safely within your risk tolerance. According to Deloitte’s “The Future of Risk: New Game, New Rules,” CFOs are already starting to consult risk dashboards as they consider building out new products, changing a market strategy, or re-allocating capital. Being afraid of risk is no longer the only option when you know your risks and how much your company can handle.
Don’t Risk Your Enterprise’s Future
Incorporating new ideas and technologies into your risk management practices is challenging, even with the knowledge that it’s necessary to run a successful business, safe from unnecessary risk. Thankfully, you’re not walking the always-changing security landscape alone. Learning from the experiences of industry leaders lets you enjoy the benefits of tech-driven risk detection and incident response without unknown risk.
Another way to safeguard your enterprise’s future is partnering with an experienced risk and security management company to learn which risks might be worth taking. Resolver partners with enterprises to provide a clear picture of your existing risk so you can make quick and effective decisions to move your business forward. Curious to see how your company can increase its security function using risk management best practices and trending ones? Resolver’s joint webinar outlines our 5-stage Security Maturity Model and provides guidance and lessons learned from security experts in hundreds of leading enterprises across all industries.
