By The Risk and Insurance Management Society, Inc.
4.5
1010 ratings
The podcast currently has 315 episodes available.
Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.
In this episode, Justin interviews Andrew Bent on risk management involvement in developing requirements for contracts, the most important thing a risk professional can do before they start drafting insurance requirements, and the types of coverages and limits to include in a contract. Andrew shares his approach to reviewing contracts received from other organizations, and his pet peeves about reviewing contracts that have requests for endorsements or policy coverages that are hard to obtain or no longer exist. He shares some general tips for negotiations.
Listen in for advice on win-win strategies in contract negotiations.
Key Takeaways:
[:01] About RIMS.
[:14] Member registration for RISKWORLD 2025 is now open! General registration opens on December 4th. Visit RIMS.org/RISKWORLD.
[:26] About this episode. From RIMS headquarters in New York, we will delve into the importance of contract review in risk management with our guest today, Andrew Bent.
[:47] The next RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep Virtual Workshop will be held on December 17th and 18th. The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be hosted along with George Mason University from December 3rd through the 5th.
[1:06] Links to these courses can be found on the Certification page of RIMS.org and through this episode’s show notes.
[1:13] RIMS Virtual Workshops! “Risk Appetite Management” is back by popular demand. Registration closes November 19th for the session on November 20th and 21st. That session will be led by Ken Baker.
[1:28] Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting recently joined us here on RIMScast. On December 4th and 5th, she will host “Applying and Integrating ERM”. On December 17th and 18th, she will host “Captives as an Alternate Risk Financing Technique”.
[1:45] Those are just three of the workshops RIMS offers; we have lots more! Other dates for the Fall and Winter are available on the Virtual Workshops calendar, RIMS.org/virtualworkshops.
[1:57] Interview! Our guest today has 20 years of experience as a risk management professional and consultant and is known for the development, implementation, and optimization of ERM frameworks. He is Andrew Bent, the Senior Engagement Lead from Marsh Advisory.
[2:17] Andrew is also one of the founding members of the RIMS CRMP Commission. He’s here to talk about the importance of contract review in risk management and to provide tips and strategies for effective review.
[2:28] We will also discuss how contract review can even influence business relationships. Andrew Bent, welcome to RIMScast!
[2:57] Andrew started in New Zealand as a chemical engineer. He compares chemical processes with risk frameworks. He then worked in risk management with the New Zealand Customs Service.
[4:11] Australia and New Zealand’s governments made drastic cuts to public service about how resources were deployed. They did this with good risk management theory, the 4360 standard.
[4:48] The Customs Service applied the 4360 standard to the risks of people, crafts, and goods coming across the border. They did risk assessments on many things. It was a good way for Andrew to understand how risk works and how to either mitigate risks or live with them.
[5:22] There are only so many shipping containers that can get opened every day and so many people who can be evaluated every day if you don’t want to shut down your country’s entire commerce trade and flow.
[5:41] Andrew stayed there for a few years. Then he moved to Canada in 2009, a financially difficult time. He loved Canada and found the people to be similar to New Zealanders. He worked in a large municipal police agency in Western Canada.
[6:55] They were forward-thinking and strategic in how they thought about risk. He was able to help set up an enterprise risk management team and help accelerate the integration of strategy and risk.
[7:17] For a time, Andrew was the only chemical engineer in the world who had moved to Alberta and didn’t work for an oil and gas company. So he went to work for an oil and gas company for a while.
[7:27] Andrew found RISKWORLD hugely beneficial to his work. Andrew had a challenging job working beside health and safety folk. He developed a broad range of understanding of health and safety rules and regulations and helpful insights into operations and business.
[7:54] Andrew then moved back into the regulatory space with one of the provincial energy regulators. Then he met his now wife, an American. They had a long-distance commuting relationship until he moved down to the U.S. and subsequently to Washington, D.C.
[8:23] Along the way, Andrew had a couple of additional jobs, including cyberspace and risk management teams and risk management functions in the gig economy.
[8:51] Fundamentally, Andrew has found that risk management breaks down into understanding what you are trying to do, what your inputs are, what your risks are, and managing them as much or as little as your risk appetite needs.
[9:33] Andrew says contract review usually has the deepest understanding of what is and what is not insured under current programs of insurance. That helps them inform contract owners about what are and are not acceptable levels of risk they can assume in most contracts.
[9:54] Contract review helps to draw out the discussions around the organization’s risk-reward balances that they want to make sure are built into contracts. They can get overlooked in the rush to get a deal done. Contract review wants to bring that balance back to the conversation.
[10:27] Contract review also provides advice on some of the types of risk controls outside of insurance risk transfer that a contract owner should be thinking about, such as cyber, IT controls, data protection, health and safety, and a host of other issues.
[10:49] Contract owners should be thinking about and potentially building into their contracts as part of the negotiation with the counterparty. This is a two-way negotiation. We always want to be thinking about what each party is trying to achieve out of this contract.
[11:16] As risk management professionals, part of our role is to be the grownup in the room while everyone else is rushing to get the deal done. We often have to take a step back and ask if this is the right deal to be done.
[11:32] If it is, what do we need to protect and what value do we bring to the organization if the deal is done?
[11:52] Andrew believes the most important thing a risk professional can do before drafting insurance requirements is to talk to the person who wants the contract. Andrew rarely sees it happen but it is the single most important thing to happen before writing any requirements.
[12:15] Everyone involved needs to understand the purpose of the contract. Why are we doing this? What is being proposed here? What’s the work that needs to be done? What are the services that are going to be delivered?
[12:31] What are the organizational objectives to be achieved by entering this contract? Andrew shares an example from his career of how this is discussed, with a small vendor providing a critical service but who had trouble with the standard contract. Flexibility was needed.
[14:46] If you understand the work or services to be provided in a contract, you’re two-thirds of the way to understanding what risks need to be covered by insurance or another way. If someone’s digging a ditch at your building, they probably don’t need to provide cyber coverage.
[15:40] In cases where you have people moving between sites, you might need to include auto coverage. Workers’ compensation coverage is always something you need to think about. You don’t want to end up being on the hook if a contractor is injured working for you.
[16:19] Some things may not just need to be in our insurance provisions within a contract but also into the liability or other sections of the contract. You need to see the entire contract, not just the insurance provisions within the contract.
[16:48] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! On November 21st, HUB International returns with the fourth installment of their Ready for Tomorrow series, “From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures”.
[17:07] On November 25th, Resolver returns to discuss “The Future of Risk & Compliance: 5 Key Insights for the Modern Leader”.
[17:15] On December 5th, we have “Predictive Strategies to Detect Electrical and Machinery Failures”, presented by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD company.
[17:27] On Thursday, December 12th, OneTrust returns to deliver “Staying Vigilant: 7 Practical Tips for Ongoing Third-Party Risk Monitoring”.
[17:36] More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members.
[17:48] RIMS is now accepting nominations for all awards other than Risk Manager of the Year 2025. The submission deadline is Monday, January 6th, 2025. To receive a RIMS award, all winners must be active members and in good standing.
[18:08] The awards are the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Chapter Leadership Award, the Harry and Dorothy Goodell Award, the Volunteer of the Year “Heart of RIMS” Award, the Richard W. Bland Memorial Award, the Chapter of the Year Award, the Rising Risk Professional Award, the Risk Management Hall of Fame, and the Cristy Award.
[18:46] You can find more information about the awards through the About Us page of RIMS.org or the link in this interview’s show notes.
[18:55] Back to My Interview with Andrew Bent!
[19:10] When Andrew reviews a contract his organization has received from another organization, he keeps in mind that everyone tries to negotiate a contract in a way that is most beneficial for them.
[19:21] In an ideal world, everyone approaches contract negotiation as a win-win, but most of the time, people come in with their ideal position. Understand the other party. A large company will have multiple layers and a legal department to negotiate through and changes will take time.
[20:35] If you’re dealing with a smaller organization, maybe a one-person shop, be aware that they may not have a lot of risk management knowledge. Don’t take advantage of that. As a risk management professional, you have an ethical obligation to do the right thing.
[21:08] You need to make sure to protect your organization. You also want to make sure that the counterparty you’re contracting with is also left in a position where if something does go wrong, they’re not destroyed.
[21:26] Andrew doesn’t want to be the proud owner of someone’s home because that’s the only asset they have. Be sensible about the obligations and insurance requirements you place on parties, particularly on those without a lot of assets. Be thoughtful in managing those things.
[21:58] You have to be able to think about what the other party is looking to protect and to achieve out of this contract. That doesn’t mean you give up your objectives, limits, and red lines.
[22:17] Step out of your viewpoint briefly and put yourself in their shoes. It gives you a perspective on what might be a reasonable compromise between the two positions and helps you get to an agreed position faster and more efficiently.
[22:45] Andrew’s Number One pet peeve is people who refuse to negotiate. Everyone starts with their ideal position but if you’re not prepared to move, then you’re not prepared to do business. Every contract needs to be a two-party agreement or you’re not being commensurate.
[23:16] Another pet peeve is requesting things that aren’t going to help you manage your risk. If Andrew is looking at a contract from a counterparty and they’re asking for things that bear no resemblance to the scope of work, that tells him they’re phoning it in with a standard contract.
[23:42] If Andrew gets both of those things together, he asks if this is the level of input in their contract, what will they be like to work with? You can learn a lot about the people you are potentially going to work with by how they negotiate and work through that process.
[24:07] If they’re prepared to come to the table and have a reasonable discussion, not always an easy discussion, that says a lot about how they’re going to work once they’ve got ink on paper and you’re into the business you want to get into.
[24:34] Andrew has had requests for a form that doesn’t exist anymore. This is driven by very old standard contract language that hasn’t been updated since 1984. He uses it as an opportunity to educate. Some people refuse to be educated. The computer says they need that form.
[25:20] That shows what they would be like to work with. You need to understand what you are trying to achieve and how important this particular contract is. Sometimes you just have to walk away when the value of doing what the counterparty is asking for isn’t worth it to you.
[26:05] Andrew gives examples of both a reasonable requirement and an unreasonable requirement from a landlord if you want to do construction within a newly leased building. It’s about how, where, and what those requests are and how reasonable they are in the contract.
[27:12] Remember that you are working with another party toward a mutual benefit. A legally binding contract is between two parties that come to some agreement with a transfer of services and payment between them. There has to be something of value to both parties.
[27:39] You’re there for a reason. Even if you can go in hot and heavy, unwilling to bend, that doesn’t mean you should even if there is a power imbalance between the two parties.
[28:24] There is another party, another person or group, involved here. Treat them with the courtesy, respect, and professional dignity you would like to receive as well. Work with them. Try to understand their position.
[28:51] It’s OK to walk away. There are some deals that you’re just not going to get done. There are times when the best course of action is just to say, Look, we gave it the old college try, and for whatever reason the risk appetite and the risk tolerance for both parties didn’t line up.
[29:28] If you do it respectfully and professionally, you maintain that relationship for the future, and maybe next time it will work out; it just didn’t this time. Be professional, be thoughtful, be mindful of your position, and also be mindful of the other party.
[30:02] Special thanks again to Andrew Bent for joining us here on RIMScast! Andrew will be making an appearance in our brand-new video series for the RIMS-CRMP. We’ll eventually update this episode’s show notes with that link.
[30:16] More RIMS Plugs! The RIMS App is available to RIMS members exclusively. Go to the App Store and download the RIMS App with all sorts of RIMS resources and coverage. It’s different from the RIMS Events App. Everyone loves the RIMS App!
[30:51] You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show, or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are in our show notes. RIMScast has a global audience of risk and insurance professionals, legal professionals, students, business leaders, C-Suite executives, and more. Let’s collaborate and help you reach them! Contact [email protected] for more information.
[31:36] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email [email protected] for more information.
[31:53] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today’s risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more.
[32:10] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management.
[32:24] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. You can email Justin at [email protected].
[32:31] Thank you all for your continued support and engagement on social media channels! We appreciate all your kind words. Listen every week! Stay safe!
Mentioned in this Episode:
RIMS DEI Council
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RIMS Strategic & Enterprise Risk Center
NEW FOR MEMBERS! RIMS Mobile App
RIMS-CRMP Stories — Featuring Valerie Fox!
Nominations open for RIMS 2025 Awards! (Through Jan. 6, 2025)
Nominations for the Donald M. Stuart Award
RIMS Webinars:
“From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures” | Sponsored by Hub International | Nov. 21, 2024
“The Future of Risk & Compliance: 5 Key Insights for the Modern Leader” | Sponsored by Resolver | Nov. 25, 2024
“Predictive Strategies to Detect Electrical and Machinery Failures” | Sponsored by TUV SUD GRC | Dec. 5, 2024
“Staying Vigilant: 7 Practical Tips for Ongoing Third-Party Risk Monitoring” | Sponsored by OneTrust | Dec. 12, 2024
RIMS.org/Webinars
Upcoming Virtual Workshops:
RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep (Virtual)Dec. 17‒18, 2024 | 9:00 am‒4:00 pm EST — Register by Dec. 10.
“Applying and Integrating ERM” | Dec 4‒5
“Captives as an Alternate Risk Financing Technique” | Dec. 17‒18
See the full calendar of RIMS Virtual Workshops
RIMS-CRMP Prep Workshops
Related RIMScast Episodes:
“Risk Quantification Through Value-Based Frameworks”
“Maintaining an Award-Winning ERM Program with Michael Zuraw”
“Applying ERM Theory with Elise Farnham”
“On Risk Appetite and Tolerance”
Sponsored RIMScast Episodes:
“Risk Management in a Changing World: A Deep Dive into AXA's 2024 Future Risks Report” | Sponsored by AXA XL (New!)
“How Insurance Builds Resilience Against An Active Assailant Attack” | Sponsored by Merrill Herzog
“Third-Party and Cyber Risk Management Tips” | Sponsored by Alliant
“RMIS Innovation with Archer” | Sponsored by Archer
“Navigating Commercial Property Risks with Captives” | Sponsored by Zurich
“Breaking Down Silos: AXA XL’s New Approach to Casualty Insurance” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Weathering Today’s Property Claims Management Challenges” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Storm Prep 2024: The Growing Impact of Convective Storms and Hail” | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company
“Partnering Against Cyberrisk” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Harnessing the Power of Data and Analytics for Effective Risk Management” | Sponsored by Marsh
“Accident Prevention — The Winning Formula For Construction and Insurance” | Sponsored by Otoos
“Platinum Protection: Underwriting and Risk Engineering's Role in Protecting Commercial Properties” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Elevating RMIS — The Archer Way” | Sponsored by Archer
“Alliant’s P&C Outlook For 2024” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Why Subrogation is the New Arbitration” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyclone Season: Proactive Preparation for Loss Minimization” | Sponsored by Prudent Insurance Brokers Ltd.
“Subrogation and the Competitive Advantage” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
RIMS Publications, Content, and Links:
RIMS Membership — Whether you are a new member or need to transition, be a part of the global risk management community!
RIMS Virtual Workshops
On-Demand Webinars
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RISK PAC | RIMS Advocacy
RIMS Events, Education, and Services:
RIMS Risk Maturity Model®
RIMS Events App Apple | Google Play
Sponsor RIMScast: Contact [email protected] or [email protected] for more information.
Want to Learn More?
Keep up with the podcast on RIMS.org, and listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Have a question or suggestion? Email: [email protected].
Join the Conversation!
Follow @RIMSorg on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
About our guest: Andrew Bent, Senior Vice President, Senior Engagement Lead, Marsh Advisory — Strategic Risk Consulting Founding Member of the RIMS-CRMP Commission
Social Shareables (Edited For Social Media Use):
There are only so many shipping containers that can be opened every day and so many people who can be evaluated every day if you don’t want to shut down your country’s entire commerce trade. — Andrew Bent
If you understand the services to be provided in a contract, you’re two-thirds of the way to understanding what risks need to be covered. If someone’s digging a ditch at your building, they probably don’t need to provide cyber coverage. — Andrew Bent
You need to make sure to protect your organization. You also want to make sure that the counterparty you’re contracting with is also left in a position where if something does go wrong, they’re not destroyed. — Andrew Bent
Step out of your viewpoint and put yourself in their shoes. It gives you a perspective on what might be a reasonable compromise between the two positions and helps you get to an agreed position faster and more efficiently. — Andrew Bent
Everyone starts with their ideal position but if you’re not prepared to move, then you’re not prepared to do business. Every contract needs to be a two-party agreement or you’re not being commensurate. — Andrew Bent
There are some deals that you’re just not going to get done. There are times when the best course of action is just to say, Look, we gave it the old college try, and for whatever reason the risk appetite and the risk tolerance for both parties didn’t line up. — Andrew Bent
Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.
In this episode, Justin interviews Kevin Stein, the CEO of Delos Insurance Solutions. Kevin tells of his aerospace engineering background and how modeling led him to the insurance space. He speaks of his passion for insurance, and of co-founding Delos Insurance Solutions to fill the commercial coverage gap around California Wildfires. Kevin speaks of his optimism for the future of Wildfire control with property fire-hardening principles and new detection and deterrent technology.
Listen in for advice on hardening commercial properties against wildfire risk, and how to secure coverage against this risk.
Key Takeaways:
[:01] About RIMS.
[:15] About this episode. From RIMS headquarters in New York, our guest today is Kevin Stein, the CEO of Delos Insurance and we will discuss wildfire risk.
[:39] The next RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep will be held with Purima virtually on November 14th and 15th. The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be hosted along with George Mason University from December 3rd through the 5th.
[:58] Links to these courses can be found on the Certifications page of RIMS.org and through this episode’s show notes.
[1:05] RIMS Virtual Workshops! “Risk Appetite Management” is back by popular demand. Registration closes November 19th for the session on November 20th and 21st. That session will be led by Ken Baker.
[1:20] Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting recently joined us here on RIMScast. On December 4th and 5th, she will host “Applying and Integrating ERM”. On December 17th and 18th, she will host “Captives as an Alternate Risk Financing Technique”.
[1:37] Those are just three of the workshops RIMS offers; we have lots more! Other dates for the Fall and Winter are available on the Virtual Workshops calendar, RIMS.org/virtualworkshops.
[1:49] This is the last call to register for the RIMS ERM Conference 2024 which will be held on November 18‒19, 2024 in Boston, Massachusetts. The agenda is live, we’ve got a great keynote, and we’ve got so many fantastic educational sessions and networking opportunities for you!
[2:07] So visit the Events page of RIMS.org and register today! A link is also in this episode’s show notes.
[2:14] Interview! Climate change and wildfire risks are on our minds here at RIMScast! My take is that there is no longer a wildfire season here in the U.S., it’s just wildfire year. Let’s see if our guest agrees with me, and what risk managers can do to combat and mitigate this problem.
[2:39] My guest is Kevin Stein. He is the CEO of Delos Insurance Solutions and he is an aerospace engineer by training. We're going to get a fascinating perspective from him on wildfire risks and what risk professionals can do to limit their exposure.
[2:56] We’re also going to talk about the trends driving wildfire reduction techniques. Let’s get to it! Kevin Stein, welcome to RIMScast!
[3:21] Kevin and a Co-founder started Delos Insurance Solutions in 2017. It is a specialty MGA. They sell policies across California in areas that other insurers have vacated because of perceived wildfire exposure in those regions.
[3:40] Delos Insurance Solutions is in partnership with an environment think tank made up of 100 professors, post-doc scientists, and the top wildfire researchers in the world.
[99] They have co-developed the civil government models for agencies including CalFire, the Public Utilities Commission, and the U.S. Forestry Service, for 25 years.
[4:04] With the think tank, Delos Insurance Solutions has developed more sophisticated wildfire underwriting internal tools and models that give a sense of a per-risk view of wildfire exposure as well as a portfolio-level view of wildfire exposure.
[4:19] With that, Delos Insurance Solutions has developed a number of programs. They sell home insurance, landlord’s insurance, and vacant home insurance across California.
[4:33] Kevin tells about his experience as an aerospace engineer. He did his Master’s in Aerospace Engineering at Stanford. He started on the modeling side and found his way into insurance.
[4:56] Kevin finds insurance fascinating. He says that everybody in the industry understands how interesting insurance is and everybody outside the insurance industry does not. Having gone from outside the industry to inside it, Kevin says the people in the industry are correct.
[5:13] Kevin says there are many different, interesting aspects of insurance and his career has been a wild ride.
[5:40] Kevin says the reality of wildfire season is that wildfires can happen at any time. There need to be specific conditions for these fires to become large, destructive wildfires. Conditions need to be hot, dry, and windy and there needs to be fuel.
[6:01] The seasons have been changing. In California, the wildfire seasons in 2017 and 2018 were very destructive. Historically, Northern California has a rainy season from mid-October through late March or early April. In 2017 they had sun through the end of December and rain until June.
[6:43] During the Fall, Northern California has a lake effect of winds coming over the mountains out to the ocean, and it’s usually stormy. In 2017 and 2018, they had 100-degree temperatures, the vegetation had been dry for six months, and the extreme winds led to fire superstorms.
[7:11] In any wildfire area, once sustained rains start, you’re in a more comfortable position. You need vegetation that’s been dried out for a while to have large fire superstorms but even in the Spring or early Summer, you can have individual or smaller fires that threaten your properties.
[7:37] The antidote to smaller, individual fires is to implement property-hardening techniques on commercial properties that effectively protect structures against smaller, slower-moving fires.
[8:25] Fires are spreading. The Salem, Massachusetts fires, the Eastern Canada fires, the Hawaiian fires, the fires in Oklahoma, and in San Diego show that fires can happen in a lot of geographies now that have not experienced fires before.
[8:59] This has a big effect on the insurance market. Insurers and reinsurers are looking at the spread and prevalence of wildfires and getting more concerned about what that means for their average exposure and maximum exposure.
[9:18] The price of re-insurance is going up significantly and the availability of re-insurance and capacity is going down significantly.
[9:28] The key for folks who own properties and large buildings and who rely on risk transfer as an effective means for managing their risk, is to be more creative and find more specialty groups.
[9:49] The insurance industry is morphing. The previous structure included wildfire exposure with hurricane exposure and tornado exposure. Now many of them will exclude wildfire.
[10:16] Risk managers will have to find specialty groups that are underwriting wildfire exposure more effectively and capturing re-insurance capacity more effectively to provide policies for people with this exposure.
[10:40] A key to understanding your fire exposure is to understand what type of fires you are potentially exposed to. There are wind-driven fire locations, moisture-driven fire locations, and vegetation-driven fire locations. [10:58] To harden your property to vegetation fires, make the area around your building either a parking lot or drought-resistant, fire-resistant landscaping. Don’t use bark or woodchips. You can have small scattered plants surrounded by concrete to avoid the risk of vegetation fire.
[11:50] With wind-driven fires, your biggest risk is embers. Embers can catch a building on fire by igniting vegetation at the base of the structure, so remove all vegetation against the structure or under eaves, especially with single-story structures.
[12:20] Embers can also get inside structures. Have ember-mesh screens on air intakes, such as those used by the HVAC system, and any openings in the foundation and your eaves.
[13:03] Build structures out of fire-resistant materials. Shingles and siding need to be fire-resistant or fire-safe. Use double-pane windows. Single-pane windows crack in fires and embers can get in. Use ember-mesh screens.
[13:59] For landscaping, make sure it is drought-resistant and fire-resistant.
[13:52] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! On November 14th, Marsh will present “Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape”.
[14:03] On November 21st, HUB International returns with the fourth installment of their Ready for Tomorrow series, “From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures”.
[14:17] On November 25th, Resolver returns to discuss “The Future of Risk & Compliance: 5 Key Insights for the Modern Leader”.
[14:26] On December 5th, we have “Predictive Strategies to Detect Electrical and Machinery Failures”, presented by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD company.
[14:37] On Thursday, December 12th, OneTrust returns to deliver “Staying Vigilant: 7 Practical Tips for Ongoing Third-Party Risk Monitoring”.
[14:47] More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members.
[14:59] RIMS is now accepting nominations for all awards other than Risk Manager of the Year 2025. The submission deadline is Monday, January 6th, 2025. To receive a RIMS award, all winners must be active members and in good standing.
[15:19] The awards are the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Chapter Leadership Award, the Harry and Dorothy Goodell Award, the Volunteer of the Year “Heart of RIMS” Award, the Richard W. Bland Memorial Award, the Chapter of the Year Award, the Rising Risk Professional Award, the Risk Management Hall of Fame, and the Cristy Award.
[15:57] You can find more information about the awards through the About Us page of RIMS.org or the link in this interview’s show notes.
[16:06] Back to My Interview About Wildfire Risks with Kevin Stein!
[16:36] Kevin has a really optimistic view of the future of wildfire risk. A lot of that has to do with firefighting strategies and resources. The California government has put massive amounts of money into forest management and it’s been very effective.
[17:01] Kevin is optimistic about the new technology. Improved outdoor sprinklers are triggered if a fire is oncoming and douse everything in water or fire-retardant material. Sensors are put in different locations to recognize fire quickly.
[17:39] How fast firefighters get to a wildfire is hugely important in terms of how big the fire will be. Fires that are reached and controlled quickly don’t become giant superstorms. Giant superstorms cause significant loss and burn down large buildings. Small wildfires can’t do that.
[18:07] The sensors are put on a variety of buildings to recognize smoke automatically with computer vision AI built in. Some longer-term technology is very interesting. In the future, there will be drone armies to replace the helicopters to pour fire retardant or water on top of wildfires.
[19:10] Commercial clients can deal with re-insurers like Lloyd’s of London to get coverage. Property-hardening characteristics and technologies come into play with a detailed assessment of the defensibility of the structure.
[20:38] Wildfire Re-insurers are moving from being generalists to being specialists. Generalist actuaries study years of loss history to predict losses for the next year. Specialist perils require area expertise because the risks cannot be handled simply through large amounts of data.
[21:13] Cyber is a great example of this. Cyber insurance was first bundled with general liability. The carriers soon realized they had no expertise to predict cyber risk so they excluded it. Specialty groups with expertise popped up to fill the gap in the market.
[21:36] This has happened with flood insurance, hurricane insurance in Florida, and earthquake insurance. Wildfire is the next one. It’s changing very rapidly. It’s very complicated, so you need people with area expertise to be able to underwrite it profitably.
[21:58] There is a trend where primary carriers are pulling back. They’re making the sound decision for a risk manager who can’t understand a peril. This opens up space for specialists to jump in, like Delos Insurance Solutions. Kevin says more groups will show up to serve the sector.
[22:54] Kevin reveals some of his aerospace engineer experience. He put in a proposal to NASA for a heliocentric spacecraft to look for life on Alpha Centauri. That wasn’t chosen, but there was an interesting satellite project he worked on.
[23:35] Kevin helped create two NBN satellites to provide internet to all of Australia, combined with a detailed fiber network. Kevin managed everything mechanical on the build of those two satellites.
[24:25] Special thanks again to Kevin Stein of Delos Insurance Solutions for joining us today on RIMScast. RIMS has a Wildfire Resources Page on RIMS.org. A link is in this interview’s show notes. Be sure to go there for more insight and information on how you can combat wildfire risk.
[24:44] More RIMS Plugs! The RIMS App is available to RIMS members exclusively. Go to the App Store and download the RIMS App with all sorts of RIMS resources and coverage. It’s different from the RIMS Events App. Everyone loves the RIMS App!
[25:18] You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show, or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are in our show notes. RIMScast has a global audience of risk and insurance professionals, legal professionals, students, business leaders, C-Suite executives, and more. Let’s collaborate and help you reach them! Contact [email protected] for more information.
[26:00] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email [email protected] for more information.
[26:17] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today’s risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more.
[26:33] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management.
[26:46] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. You can email Justin at [email protected].
[26:53] Thank you all for your continued support and engagement on social media channels! We appreciate all your kind words. Listen every week! Stay safe!
Mentioned in this Episode:
RIMS DEI Council
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RIMS Strategic & Enterprise Risk Center
RIMS ERM Conference 2024 — November 18‒19, 2024 | Boston, MA
NEW FOR MEMBERS! RIMS Mobile App
RIMS-CRMP Stories — Featuring Valerie Fox!
Nominations open for RIMS 2025 Awards! (Through Jan. 6, 2025)
Nominations for the Donald M. Stuart Award
RIMS Wildfire Resource Center
RIMS Webinars:
“Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape” | Sponsored by Marsh | Nov. 14, 2024
“From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures” | Sponsored by Hub International | Nov. 21, 2024
“The Future of Risk & Compliance: 5 Key Insights for the Modern Leader’ | Sponsored by Resolver | Nov. 25, 2024
“Predictive Strategies to Detect Electrical and Machinery Failures” | Sponsored by TUV SUD GRC | Dec. 5, 2024
“Staying Vigilant: 7 Practical Tips for Ongoing Third-Party Risk Monitoring” | Sponsored by OneTrust | Dec. 12, 2024
RIMS.org/Webinars
Upcoming Virtual Workshops:
Risk Appetite Management Nov. 20‒21
RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep (Virtual)Dec. 17‒18, 2024 | 9:00 am‒4:00 pm EST — Register by Dec. 10.
“Applying and Integrating ERM” | Dec. 4‒5
“Captives as an Alternate Risk Financing Technique” | Dec. 17‒18
See the full calendar of RIMS Virtual Workshops
RIMS-CRMP Prep Workshops
Related RIMScast Episodes:
“Safety and Preparedness in 2024 with National Safety Council CEO Lorraine Martin”
“Mitigating the Risks of Catastrophes with Mrunal Pandit of Tata Consumer Products”
“Evolving Fire Risks with Ralph Bless”
“California Wildfires: Risks, Preparedness, Business Continuity, and the Impact on Insurance Markets” (2020)
Sponsored RIMScast Episodes:
“Risk Management in a Changing World: A Deep Dive into AXA’s 2024 Future Risks Report” | Sponsored by AXA XL (New!)
“How Insurance Builds Resilience Against An Active Assailant Attack” | Sponsored by Merrill Herzog
“Third-Party and Cyber Risk Management Tips” | Sponsored by Alliant
“RMIS Innovation with Archer” | Sponsored by Archer
“Navigating Commercial Property Risks with Captives” | Sponsored by Zurich
“Breaking Down Silos: AXA XL’s New Approach to Casualty Insurance” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Weathering Today’s Property Claims Management Challenges” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Storm Prep 2024: The Growing Impact of Convective Storms and Hail” | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company
“Partnering Against Cyberrisk” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Harnessing the Power of Data and Analytics for Effective Risk Management” | Sponsored by Marsh “Accident Prevention — The Winning Formula For Construction and Insurance” | Sponsored by Otoos
“Platinum Protection: Underwriting and Risk Engineering's Role in Protecting Commercial Properties” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Elevating RMIS — The Archer Way” | Sponsored by Archer
“Alliant’s P&C Outlook For 2024” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Why Subrogation is the New Arbitration” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyclone Season: Proactive Preparation for Loss Minimization” | Sponsored by Prudent Insurance Brokers Ltd.
“Subrogation and the Competitive Advantage” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
RIMS Publications, Content, and Links:
RIMS Membership — Whether you are a new member or need to transition, be a part of the global risk management community!
RIMS Virtual Workshops
On-Demand Webinars
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RISK PAC | RIMS Advocacy
RIMS Events, Education, and Services:
RIMS Risk Maturity Model®
RIMS Events App Apple | Google Play
Sponsor RIMScast: Contact [email protected] or [email protected] for more information.
Want to Learn More?
Keep up with the podcast on RIMS.org, and listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Have a question or suggestion? Email: [email protected].
Join the Conversation!
Follow @RIMSorg on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
About our guest: Kevin Stein, CEO of Delos Insurance Solutions
Social Shareables (Edited For Social Media Use):
There are so many different, super-interesting aspects of insurance. — Kevin Stein
I have a really optimistic view of the future of wildfire risk. A lot of that has to do with firefighting strategies and resources. The California government has put massive amounts of money into forest management and it’s been very effective. — Kevin Stein
Sensors can be put in different locations to recognize fire quickly. How fast firefighters get to a wildfire is hugely important in terms of how big the fire will be. Fires that are reached and controlled quickly don’t become giant superstorms. — Kevin Stein
There is a trend where primary carriers are pulling back. They’re making the sound decision for a risk manager who can’t understand a peril. This opens up space for specialists like Delos Insurance Solutions to jump in. Other groups will follow. — Kevin Stein
Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.
In this episode, Justin interviews Valerie Fox, the 2024 Donald M. Stuart Award Winner. Valerie and Justin discuss her receiving the Donald M. Stuart Award and what this recognition means to her. Valerie tells how her journey in risk management has evolved over her 42-year career. Valerie has held prominent roles across a diverse range of industries. She shares some highlights and challenges of her career. Valerie remarks on the education opportunities, taking on leadership roles, and networking, that ORIMS and RIMS provided for her that helped her develop and advance in her risk career. She shares details of a long-term international project that stretched her and that she is proud of. Valerie offers her expectations for the future of risk management and how today’s students can prepare themselves to be tomorrow’s risk leaders. Valerie hopes to continue her student outreach and offer them the knowledge to guide their paths.
Listen in for advice on resilience and lifelong learning to keep up with the evolving risk management industry.
Key Takeaways:
[:01] About RIMS.
[:15] About this episode. From RIMS headquarters in New York, I am delighted to be joined by Valerie Fox, the 2024 Donald M. Stuart Award Winner and a RIMS-CRMP holder!
[:41] The next RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep will be held with PARIMA virtually on November 14th and 15th. The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be hosted along with George Mason University from December 3rd through the 5th.
[:57] Links to these courses can be found on the Certifications page of RIMS.org and through this episode’s show notes.
[1:04] RIMS Virtual Workshops! Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting recently joined us here on RIMScast. On December 4th and 5th, she will host Applying and Integrating ERM. On December 17th and 18th, she will host Captives as an Alternate Risk Financing Technique.
[1:26] Those are just two of the workshops RIMS offers; we have lots more! Other dates for the Fall and Winter are available on the Virtual Workshops calendar, RIMS.org/virtualworkshops. We’ve got more important plugs coming during the break. Now, let’s get on with the show!
[1:44] Interview! The RIMS Ontario Chapter (ORIMS) presented the Donald M. Stuart Award to our guest, Valerie Fox, at the RIMS Canada Conference 2024 in Vancouver.
[1:57] Valerie is a CRM holder, a RIMS-CRMP holder, and the former Director of Risk Management and Health and Safety for NPL Canada. She has since retired.
[2:14] The Donald M. Stuart Award is widely recognized as Canada’s highest honor within the risk management field and since 1979, has celebrated Canadians who have made outstanding contributions to the profession.
[2:28] Throughout her 42-year career, Valerie has held prominent leadership roles in risk management for a range of multinational corporations, including Walmart and Wendy’s Restaurants of Canada.
[2:44] We’ll talk a bit about her career, how she sees the risk profession evolving, and why she’s so inspired by the next generation of risk management professionals. Donald M. Stuart Award Winner, Valerie Fox, welcome to RIMScast!
[3:33] Valerie notes that winning the Donald M. Stuart Award was a very special moment for her. She has a tremendous respect for the history of the Donald M. Stuart Award and the professional values it represents.
[4:04] When Valerie was VP of the Ontario RIMS Chapter Board in 2017, she was responsible for the oversight of this award. She enjoyed it so much that she continued to be the presenter of the award for the last seven years. This year, she stepped down from the ORIMS Board.
[4:25] When Valerie stepped down from the ORIMS board, her colleagues nominated her for the award. She couldn’t be more humbled or appreciative of their recognition and support. To be recognized alongside the people she presented the award to over the years is very special.
[5:02] ORIMS accepts nominations from all over the country. It’s an award for all of Canada and is overseen by the Ontario Chapter. The nomination process has two stages.
[5:21] If a nomination clears the first stage, a total nomination package is submitted with further documentation. The package goes to a panel of evaluators across the country, including risk managers, people on boards, and insurance companies and brokers.
[5:44] They evaluate the nominations. The person with the top collective score wins the award. They’re looking at the nominees’ history with their companies, volunteerism, and the tenets the award represents. It’s the Canadian version of RIMS Risk Manager of the Year.
[6:36] Valerie’s first role as a risk manager was Manager of Contracts and Insurance. She bought insurance, handled claims, and implemented some risk control of targeted risks.
[6:56] The job description of a risk manager has evolved immensely and varies greatly from entity to entity, depending on the company’s maturity, operations, experiences, losses, and more.
[7:16] You could still be hired today as Manager of Contracts and Insurance but you could also be aspiring to be a Chief Risk Officer of a major, multi-national corporation with the responsibility to help them be more resilient and grow.
[7:41] Valerie saw the evolution in risk management start very slowly. It has continually ramped up and now is speeding forward.
[7:50] Over her career, Valerie had to be willing to delve into new challenges and be prepared to learn and develop new skills and new mitigation strategies and develop broad-based business knowledge. Without that knowledge, it’s difficult to assess potential impacts.
[8:33] Different industries have different areas of risk focus. Valerie started in the airline industry. A major focus was having a major accident response plan ready. There were challenges of jurisdictional insurance requirements and risk exposures around the world.
[9:11] Valerie spent five years in the public sector as a risk manager for a municipality. The focus of public entities is protecting people in public spaces, maintaining critical services, and managing reputation. It includes presenting the right answers.
[9:51] Valerie worked in the retail industry in domestic and international markets. On her first day at Walmart Canada, she realized how unprepared she was to deal with health and safety and worker’s compensation management responsibilities. Those had been under HR in Canada.
[10:13] Working for American companies, she had to get up to speed quickly on those areas of risk. Valerie trained herself on the job. She met with anyone she knew in the industry who was involved in health and safety. She met with people from the boards.
[10:42] Valerie spent a lot of time in the stores with the associates to see what their concerns were. She spent time with operations leaders, seeing the processes first-hand to understand the risks and put together programs that fit the culture and the environment of the companies.
[11:26] Valerie says retailers today need to do a deep-dive business impact analysis, map out dependencies and processes, and have alternative options to avoid business interruption. As a risk manager, you have to understand that to help businesses come up with the right solutions.
[11:55] Valerie reviews a case of having to train people quickly after a buyout.
[12:52] Valerie talks about working with a new inexperienced team that she had to take under her wing and teach risk management quickly. In large corporations, you also build company-wide teams and external teams that help you.
[13:17] Valerie taught CRM courses at the University of Toronto. Later, she had the pleasure of hiring one of her most enthusiastic students for a risk management position. He now works for another company she is close to and he is doing super well.
[13:48] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! On November 14th, Marsh will present “Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape”.
[13:58] On November 21st, HUB International returns with the fourth installment of their Ready for Tomorrow series, “From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures”.
[14:13] On November 25th, Resolver returns to discuss “The Future of Risk & Compliance: 5 Key Insights for the Modern Leader”.
[14:22] On December 5th, we have “Predictive Strategies to Detect Electrical and Machinery Failures”, presented by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD company.
[14:33] On Thursday, December 12th, OneTrust returns to deliver “Staying Vigilant: 7 Practical Tips for Ongoing Third-Party Risk Monitoring”
[14:42] More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members.
[15:01] RIMS is now accepting nominations for all awards other than Risk Manager of the Year 2025. The submission deadline is Monday, January 6th, 2025. To receive a RIMS award, all winners must be active members and in good standing.
[15:18] The awards are the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Chapter Leadership Award, the Harry and Dorothy Goodell Award, the Volunteer of the Year “Heart of RIMS” Award, the Richard W. Bland Memorial Award, the Chapter of the Year Award, the Rising Risk Professional Award, the Risk Management Hall of Fame, and the Cristy Award.
[15:56] You can find more information about the awards through the About Us page of RIMS.org or the link in this episode’s show notes. I also have a link in the show notes to the nominations page for the Donald M. Stuart Award. Check it out!
[16:13] Back to My Interview with 2024 Donald M. Stuart Award Winner, Valerie Fox!
[16:33] Valerie was ORIMS President in 2018 and 2019. She also had a couple of terms as Vice President, two terms as Secretary, and more. She is an active ORIMS member and a Director at Large. She intends to continue volunteering, especially with student outreach.
[17:28] Justin remembers the wonderful people he worked with when he co-hosted the ORIMS luncheon last year.
[17:57] Valerie describes how being involved in RIMS and ORIMS, whether volunteering or participating in regular events, gives you so much to learn both in formal training and networking that greatly helps your career.
[18:29] Volunteering on the board gives you leadership development opportunities. Those who step up to do this work are go-getters and prominent professionals who know their jobs. Their ages are from quite young to quite senior. It’s a diverse group of leaders.
[18:58] You learn a lot about non-profit work and compliance. On the board, Valerie learned a tremendous amount that she has applied elsewhere in her career. You can improve your comfort with public speaking.
[20:00] Justin suggests trying stand-up comedy or an improv class three times to develop a foundation of confidence to speak publicly.
[20:24] Valerie was on the RIMS Risk Leaders Series. See the link in the show notes. She gave an expansive view of her career and the challenges she overcame using risk management.
[19:16] The career accomplishment Valerie is most proud of is with Walmart International. Valerie had to get the risk management process promptly into place and hire a team when Walmart came into Canada in 1994. It was very successful.
[21:47] Therefore, Valerie was asked to take a three-year expatriate assignment to work with Walmart’s international division as an internal consultant in seven countries where Walmart had recently opened operations.
[22:02] She visited each country to work with their leadership teams on insurance brokerage, services, claims, health and safety, food safety, construction, benefits, and whatever they needed. It was tough. It was two-and-a-half years of being far out of her comfort zone.
[22:34] At the end of that assignment, she felt like she had made a difference and she had grown as a risk manager and as a person. It was an invaluable experience she is very proud of.
[23:01] It was a new way of doing things for Walmart, too. Valerie was a test case. There were some glitches through which Walmart learned and improved its support system for expatriates working around the world. It was an evolution both for Walmart and Valerie.
[23:32] Valerie has assisted with RIMS-CRMP workshops in Canada.
[24:00] Valerie believes the risk leaders of tomorrow in Canada should take the CRM program and work toward their CRMP certification. There is also a variety of technical training that can help them throughout their careers.
[24:18] RIMS has helped Valerie to stay current through seminars and articles. It’s extremely important that people have a solid business base. Get out from behind the desk and understand the business and how business is done.
[24:47] Going forward, the emerging trend for employers is going to be to look at some of these qualifications as a minimum requirement. Gaining that base knowledge is important.
[25:00] Valerie says risk leaders need to focus on the soft skills of team management, social intelligence, communication, and identifying and supporting mental health. Risk management is a people business. Know how to communicate with people and read their reactions.
[25:34] Working from home during the pandemic has depleted some opportunities to gain that experience. Future risk leaders need to ensure they have those skills today.
[25:59] Valerie is encouraged by the college and university students she has been meeting over the last couple of years of outreach. The students are bright, curious, motivated, and hungry to get out there and make their mark.
[26:24] They’re comfortable with technology and passionate about the world events that are shaping risks these days. They are the future. She hopes that she can continue to share some tidbits or tribal knowledge that they might find helpful.
[26:44] Valerie has concerns about the talent gap as lots of people retire. We need to fill that gap fast. The students she has been seeing indicate to her that the future is bright.
[27:01] Justin had the pleasure of attending the McGannon Foundation’s closing ceremony for their students. The students are extremely impressive. He feels that we will be seeing them up on stage receiving awards in the not-too-distant future.
[27:20] Val, it has been such a pleasure to see you again. I want to congratulate you again on winning the Donald M. Stuart Award in 2024. I look forward to seeing you at more RIMS events. Thank you so much for all you do for ORIMS and RIMS!
[27:42] Special thanks again to Valerie Fox for joining us here on RIMScast! It’s always a pleasure to speak with her. There is a link to her RIMS Risk Leaders Series interview in this episode’s show notes. There is a link to her CRMP Story also in this episode’s show notes.
[28:02] For more coverage of the RIMS Canada Conference 2024 Awards, check out the October 15th episode of RIMScast, when we were live from Vancouver with Maryam Salmasi. She was the Fred H. Bossons Award Winner for 2024. A link is in this episode’s show notes.
[28:20] More RIMS Plugs! The RIMS App is available to RIMS members exclusively. Go to the App Store and download the RIMS App with all sorts of RIMS resources and coverage. It’s different from the RIMS Events App. Everyone loves the RIMS App!
[28:53] You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show, or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are in our show notes. RIMScast has a global audience of risk and insurance professionals, legal professionals, students, business leaders, C-Suite executives, and more. Let’s collaborate and help you reach them! Contact [email protected] for more information.
[29:36] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email [email protected] for more information.
[29:53] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today’s risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more.
[30:09] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management.
[30:23] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. You can email Justin at [email protected].
[30:30] Thank you all for your continued support and engagement on social media channels! We appreciate all your kind words. Listen every week! Stay safe!
Mentioned in this Episode:
RIMS DEI Council
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RIMS Strategic & Enterprise Risk Center
NEW FOR MEMBERS! RIMS Mobile App
Hear Valerie on the RIMS Risk Leaders Series
RIMS Press Release: RIMS Ontario Chapter Honours Valerie Fox with the 2024 Donald M. Stuart Award
RIMS-CRMP Stories — Featuring Valerie Fox!
Nominations open for RIMS 2025 Awards! (Through January 6, 2025)
Nominations for the Donald M. Stuart Award
RIMS Webinars:
“Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape” | Sponsored by Marsh | Nov. 14, 2024
“From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures” | Sponsored by Hub International | Nov. 21, 2024
“The Future of Risk & Compliance: 5 Key Insights for the Modern Leader” | Sponsored by Resolver | Nov. 25, 2024
“Predictive Strategies to Detect Electrical and Machinery Failures” | Sponsored by TÜV SÜD GRC | Dec. 5, 2024
“Staying Vigilant: 7 Practical Tips for Ongoing Third-Party Risk Monitoring” | Sponsored by OneTrust | Dec. 12, 2024
RIMS.org/Webinars
Upcoming Virtual Workshops:
RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep with PARIMA (Virtual) November 14‒15 | 9:00 am‒4:00 pm SGT — Register by Nov. 7.
“Applying and Integrating ERM” | Dec 4‒5
“Captives as an Alternate Risk Financing Technique” | Dec. 17‒18
See the full calendar of RIMS Virtual Workshops
RIMS-CRMP Prep Workshops
Related RIMScast Episodes:
“Live From Vancouver! with Maryam Salmasi, Fred H. Bossons Award Winner 2024”
“300th Episode Spectacular with RIMS CEO Gary LaBranche”
“Change Management and Strategy with Jay Kiew, RIMS Canada Conference 2024 Keynote”
“DE&I Initiatives with Lilian Vanvieldt-Gray of Alliant Insurance Services”
“Julie Bean, 2024 Heart of RIMS Award Winner”
Sponsored RIMScast Episodes:
“How Insurance Builds Resilience Against An Active Assailant Attack” | Sponsored by Merrill Herzog (New!)
“Third-Party and Cyber Risk Management Tips” | Sponsored by Alliant
“RMIS Innovation with Archer” | Sponsored by Archer
“Navigating Commercial Property Risks with Captives” | Sponsored by Zurich
“Breaking Down Silos: AXA XL’s New Approach to Casualty Insurance” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Weathering Today’s Property Claims Management Challenges” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Storm Prep 2024: The Growing Impact of Convective Storms and Hail” | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company
“Partnering Against Cyberrisk” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Harnessing the Power of Data and Analytics for Effective Risk Management” | Sponsored by Marsh
“Accident Prevention — The Winning Formula For Construction and Insurance” | Sponsored by Otoos
“Platinum Protection: Underwriting and Risk Engineering's Role in Protecting Commercial Properties” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Elevating RMIS — The Archer Way” | Sponsored by Archer
“Alliant’s P&C Outlook For 2024” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Why Subrogation is the New Arbitration” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyclone Season: Proactive Preparation for Loss Minimization” | Sponsored by Prudent Insurance Brokers Ltd.
“Subrogation and the Competitive Advantage” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
RIMS Publications, Content, and Links:
RIMS Membership — Whether you are a new member or need to transition, be a part of the global risk management community!
RIMS Virtual Workshops
On-Demand Webinars
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RISK PAC | RIMS Advocacy
RIMS Events, Education, and Services:
RIMS Risk Maturity Model®
RIMS Events App Apple | Google Play
Sponsor RIMScast: Contact [email protected] or [email protected] for more information.
Want to Learn More?
Keep up with the podcast on RIMS.org, and listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Have a question or suggestion? Email: [email protected].
Join the Conversation!
Follow @RIMSorg on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
About our guest: Valerie Fox, CRM, RIMS-CRMP, former Director of Risk Management & Health & Safety for NPL Canada
Social Shareables (Edited For Social Media Use):
Evolution in risk management started very slowly. It has continually ramped up and now it’s speeding forward. Over my career, that meant I had to be willing to delve into new challenges and be prepared to learn and develop new skills. — Valerie Fox
On the board, I’ve learned a tremendous amount that I’ve been able to apply elsewhere in my career. — Valerie Fox
It’s extremely important that people have a solid business base. Get out there from behind the desk and really understand the business and how business is done. — Valerie Fox
Students are comfortable with technology and passionate about the world events that are shaping risks these days. They are the future. I hope that I can continue to share some tidbits or tribal knowledge that they might find helpful. — Valerie Fox
Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.
In this episode, Justin interviews Trisha Sqrow, of Marsh Advisory, and our Council Vice-Chair 2024, Suzanne Christensen, of Franklin Templeton Investments, and making his debut on RIMScast is Karthick Dalawai, of Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company. Karthick, Suzanne, and Trisha discuss value-based frameworks in terms of benefits, their experience with them, and value metrics. They share the concept of a value-based Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) framework to align risk management activities with the creation of shareholder value. They mention risk quantification methodologies to assess financial and non-financial risks. They explain the use of scenario analysis to tailor risk management practices to your organization's risk appetite and objectives and give ideas on how to get buy-in from the boardroom. Listen in for ways to implement a value-based ERM framework in your organization.
Key Takeaways:
[:01] About RIMS.
[:15] About this episode. From RIMS headquarters in New York, we will be joined by three members of the RIMS Strategic and Enterprise Risk Management Council to discuss risk quantification through a value-based framework.
[:43] The RIMS ERM Conference 2024 will be held on November 18th and 19th in Boston. Opening keynote speaker John Hagel recently appeared here on RIMScast. Register at RIMS.org/ERM2024.
[:58] We will talk about everything from RMIS and AI to D&O, ESG, the SEC, and various other acronyms. If you are a RIMS-CRMP holder, you can earn recertification points by attending the RIMS ERM Conference 2024!
[1:16] For those of you interested in studying for the exam, a pre-conference workshop will be held on-site on November 16th and 17th. Register now; a link is on this page!
[1:30] The next RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep will be held with Purima virtually on November 14th and 15th. The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be hosted along with George Mason University from December 3rd through the 5th.
[1:45] Links to these courses can be found on the Certifications page of RIMS.org and through this episode’s show notes.
[1:53] RIMS Virtual Workshops! Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting recently joined us here on RIMScast. On December 4th and 5th, she will host Applying and Integrating ERM. On December 17th and 18th, she will host Captives as an Alternate Risk Financing Technique.
[2:14] Other dates for the Fall and Winter are available on the Virtual Workshops calendar, RIMS.org/virtualworkshops.
[2:23] Interview! Returning to the show are Trisha Sqrow, of Marsh Advisory, and our Council Vice-Chair 2024, Suzanne Christensen, of Franklin Templeton Investments, and making his debut on RIMScast is Karthick Dalawai, of Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company.
[3:00] These brilliant minds, Trisha, Suzanne, and Karthick, will present the session “Risk Quantification Through Value-Based Frameworks” to kick off Day 2 of the RIMS ERM Conference 2024 on November 19th.
[3:15] Today we’ll get tips on how to launch a value-based framework, what the benefits and limitations may be, and how to convince your board to buy in. Karthick Dalawai, Trisha Sqrow, and Suzanne Christensen welcome to RIMScast!
[4:54] Karthick explains that Enterprise Risk Management in its current form and where it goes from here to enable leaders to make informed decisions tie back to metrics and the quantification of results.
[5:22] Doing risk management thematically is good and influential, but anything you don’t quantify you can’t improve. Risk quantification is essential for a good enterprise risk management program.
[5:49] Trisha’s risk management path has evolved toward a value-based framework. She suggests an organization could start by measuring its overarching risk appetite, understanding its risks, and putting its ERM framework in place.
[6:22] The parameters could be how much financial, regulatory, or strategic risk you want to take. Hone in on what the risk translates to by quantifying the value.
[7:03] The metrics may not always be dollar amounts. There may be safety value metrics, or cyber security impacts. There is a way to tie those back to financials in many cases, but you can look at different values.
[7:51] Karthick says it’s easier to quantify financial risk than intangibles like cyber risk or talent risk. Having a common denominator makes it possible to explain risk so IT, HR, and all departments understand the enterprise risk, not just the risk in their slivers of the organization.
[8:58] Defining risk under a value-based framework takes three keys: uncertainty, deviation from the company strategy, and taking the right opportunities to increase value. If you planned to grow 10% and you grew 15%, analyze that opportunity. What was the cost of that benefit?
[10:20] Suzanne adds that scenario analysis helps. Why did your growth vary from your planned growth? What do you have to have in place to manage it? With a 15% growth, you’ll need more resources and a plan for the logistics. You may need to make a lot of other arrangements.
[11:06] You need to think about those things in contingency mode. Scenario analysis does that; it helps you work through those plans.
[11:30] Karthick describes the possible limitations of a value-based framework. The common denominator is a financial metric. Executives need to understand what factors contribute to that value. Tying the risk appetite to the value occurs high in the organization. It’s all-encompassing.
[12:07] You have to break the framework into layers by what it means for the different business units and how they measure business. Rightly implemented, a value-based framework is of great value; otherwise, people might become disconnected from it.
[12:37] Suzanne agrees that people might not buy in if the framework is not well-implemented. Suzanne and Karthick discuss avoiding bias and starting with wrong assumptions.
[13:02] Karthick believes that gets into the risk culture of the organization. Is it conservative or more aggressive? When you have a quantifiable and measurable risk appetite, some people may tend not to breach it at all. Many times, risk decisions need not be risk-optimized.
[13:48] Having a measurable risk metric guides how much risk people can take to add value to the organization, not just to manage the downside. Tie it back to the business metrics through which leaders measure their performance. Having a good manager is a win-win.
[14:16] Suzanne adds that weighing the cumulative impact of multiple decisions while figuring out a strategy for the organization helps you think about the risk appetite of the firm and if there is room to take more risk.
[14:53] Trisha considers the risk culture of the organization in helping people understand value-based frameworks. There are a lot of conversations to be had with various departments. A financial office does not have the same risks as a manufacturing facility or an airport.
[15:28] Work with the people looking at safety metrics and help translate them into dollar amounts, considering insurance and claims. What value does the framework add?
[15:45] Help people understand the value-based framework and have conversations around it. How much risk can you take?
[16:19] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! On October 31st, TÜV SÜD GRC discusses “Mastering Property Renewals: Strategies for Success in 2025 with Risk Engineering”.
[16:34] On November 4th, I will be hosting a special RIMS Webinar presentation, “Lessons from Veterans on Strategic Risk Leadership”. That session will feature insights and perspectives from risk managers who previously served in the United States Armed Services.
[16:53] On November 14th, Marsh will present “Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape”.
[17:00] On November 21st, HUB International returns with the fourth installment of their Ready for Tomorrow series, “From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures”.
[17:15] On November 25th, Resolver returns to discuss “The Future of Risk & Compliance: 5 Key Insights for the Modern Leader”.
[17:23] On Thursday, December 12th, OneTrust returns to deliver “Staying Vigilant: 7 Practical Tips for Ongoing Third-Party Risk Monitoring”
[17:32] More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members.
[17:44] Back to My Interview with Suzanne Christensen, Trisha Sqrow, and Karthick Dalawai.
[18:22] Karthick says to ask the executives at your organization if they use the deliverables from ERM in their day-to-day decision-making and how they tie into the metrics. If you get a positive answer, you’re in a good spot. If not, a value-based framework is a good solution.
[19:00] Every executive business leader manages P&L and understands dollarized values. Value-based frameworks are good tools if they are implemented in the right way.
[19:21] Trisha says to consider your impact scoring. That’s the beginning of your risk appetite. Work toward getting a common denominator.
[19:40] Suzanne comments that to make better, more confident decisions in the organization, and get the executives engaged in the conversation, you want to understand what their tough decisions and challenges are.
[20:03] In what would the executives like more transparency and understanding to make their tough strategic or day-to-day decisions? Connect with them where their challenges are as a starting point. That immediately proves value to the organization.
[20:41] Trisha and Suzanne have publications discussed in episodes linked in the show notes. Suzanne authored a report on emerging risks and board reporting, “Navigating the Complexities of Emerging Risks”. Trisha co-authored “Developing and Refining Risk Appetite and Tolerance”.
[21:21] Suzanne and Karthick will be two of the panelists in the closing general session of the RIMS ERM Conference 2024 on November 19th. That’s going to be a forward-looking discussion that will be a lot of fun. [21:57] During that closing session, we’re going to give away a registration to RISKWORLD 2025 in Chicago! Everyone should stick around for this session!
[22:16] Thank you all so much for joining us today here on RIMScast!
[22:25] Special thanks to Trisha Sqrow, Karthick Dalawai, and Suzanne Christensen of the RIMS Strategic and Enterprise Risk Management Council.
[22:36] On November 19th, they will kick off Day 2 of the RIMS ERM Conference 2024 in Boston, with a session about Risk Quantification through a Value-based Framework. That will not be the only session they will present, so if you like what you heard, register now at RIMS.org/ERM2024.
[22:59] Links to the guests’ prior RIMScast interviews and their respective reports are in this episode’s show notes.
[23:12] More RIMS Plugs! The RIMS ERM Conference 2024 will be held in Boston, Massachusetts on November 18th and 19th. Register today at RIMS.org/ERM2024!
[23:27] The RIMS App is available to RIMS members exclusively. Go to the App Store and download the RIMS App with all sorts of RIMS resources and coverage. It’s different from the RIMS Events App. Everyone loves the RIMS App!
[23:58 ] You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show, or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are in our show notes. RIMScast has a global audience of risk and insurance professionals, legal professionals, students, business leaders, C-Suite executives, and more. Let’s collaborate and help you reach them! Contact [email protected] for more information.
[24:40] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email [email protected] for more information.
[24:57] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today’s risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more.
[25:12] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management.
[25:26] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. You can email Justin at [email protected].
[25:33] Thank you all for your continued support and engagement on social media channels! We appreciate all your kind words. Listen every week! Stay safe!
Mentioned in this Episode:
RIMS ERM Conference 2024 will be in Boston, MA Nov. 18–19 | Register Now
RIMS DEI Council
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RIMS Strategic & Enterprise Risk Center
NEW FOR MEMBERS! RIMS Mobile App
RIMS Executive Report: “Developing and Refining Risk Appetite and Tolerance”
RIMS Professional Report: “Navigating the Complexities of Emerging Risks”
RIMS-CRMP Stories — New interview featuring Dan Elliott!
Submit Your Nomination for 2025 Risk Manager of the Year — Part I is due on Oct. 31!
RIMS Webinars:
“Mastering Property Renewals: Strategies for Success in 2025 with Risk Engineering” | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company | Oct. 31, 2024
“Lessons from Veterans on Strategic Risk Leadership” | Presented by RIMS | Nov. 4, 2024
“Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape” | Sponsored by Marsh | Nov. 14, 2024
“From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures” | Sponsored by HUB International | Nov. 21, 2024
“The Future of Risk & Compliance: 5 Key Insights for the Modern Leader” | Sponsored by Resolver | Nov. 25, 2024
“Staying Vigilant: 7 Practical Tips for Ongoing Third-Party Risk Monitoring” | Sponsored by OneTrust | Dec. 12, 2024
RIMS.org/Webinars
Upcoming Virtual Workshops:
RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep with PARIMA (Virtual) | November 14–15, 2024 | 9:00 am–4:00 pm SGT — Register by Nov. 7
“Applying and Integrating ERM” | Dec 4‒5
“Captives as an Alternate Risk Financing Technique” | Dec. 17–18
See the full calendar of RIMS Virtual Workshops
RIMS-CRMP Prep Workshops
Related RIMScast Episodes:
“Big Shifts with John Hagel, ERM Conference Keynote”
“Applying ERM Theory with Elise Farnham”
“Maintaining an Award-Winning ERM Program with Michael Zuraw”
“On Risk Appetite and Tolerance” with Trisha Sqrow
“Emerging Risks and Board Reporting” with Suzanne Christensen
Sponsored RIMScast Episodes:
“Third-Party and Cyber Risk Management Tips” | Sponsored by Alliant (New!)
“RMIS Innovation with Archer” | Sponsored by Archer
“Navigating Commercial Property Risks with Captives” | Sponsored by Zurich
“Breaking Down Silos: AXA XL’s New Approach to Casualty Insurance” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Weathering Today’s Property Claims Management Challenges” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Storm Prep 2024: The Growing Impact of Convective Storms and Hail” | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company
“Partnering Against Cyberrisk” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Harnessing the Power of Data and Analytics for Effective Risk Management” | Sponsored by Marsh
“Accident Prevention — The Winning Formula For Construction and Insurance” | Sponsored by Otoos
“Platinum Protection: Underwriting and Risk Engineering's Role in Protecting Commercial Properties” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Elevating RMIS — The Archer Way” | Sponsored by Archer
“Alliant’s P&C Outlook For 2024” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Why Subrogation is the New Arbitration” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyclone Season: Proactive Preparation for Loss Minimization” | Sponsored by Prudent Insurance Brokers Ltd.
“Subrogation and the Competitive Advantage” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyberrisk Outlook 2023” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Chemical Industry: How To Succeed Amid Emerging Risks and a Challenging Market” | Sponsored by TÜV SÜD
“Insuring the Future of the Environment” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Insights into the Gig Economy and its Contractors” | Sponsored by Zurich
“The Importance of Disaster Planning Relationships” | Sponsored by ServiceMaster
RIMS Publications, Content, and Links:
RIMS Membership — Whether you are a new member or need to transition, be a part of the global risk management community!
RIMS Virtual Workshops
On-Demand Webinars
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RISK PAC | RIMS Advocacy
RIMS Events, Education, and Services:
RIMS Risk Maturity Model®
RIMS Events App Apple | Google Play
Sponsor RIMScast: Contact [email protected] or [email protected] for more information.
Want to Learn More?
Keep up with the podcast on RIMS.org, and listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Have a question or suggestion? Email: [email protected].
Join the Conversation!
Follow @RIMSorg on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
About our guests: Karthick Dalawai, Chief Risk Officer for Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company
Trisha Sqrow, Vice President, Consulting Solutions, Marsh Advisory for Marsh USA Inc.
Suzanne Christensen, SVP, Head of Enterprise Risk Management for Franklin Templeton Investments Social Shareables (Edited For Social Media Use):
Why Enterprise Risk Management exists in its current form and where it goes from here tie back to metrics and the quantification of results to enable leaders to make informed decisions. — Karthick Dalawai
Depending on your organization, you might be looking at different values and different types of metrics. Some might be strictly financial. An industry that has significant safety concerns might have a lot of safety value metrics, based on the type of risk. — Trisha Sqrow
Scenario analysis helps because you can run through those situations to say if that happens, then what happens? What do we have to have in place to be able to manage through that? With a 15% growth, you’ll need more resources and a plan for the logistics. — Suzanne Christensen
Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.
In this episode, Justin interviews Chris Willey of American Eagle FCU. Justin asks Chris how banking and financial risk management has evolved since Chris entered the profession, in the past 15 years after the housing crisis, and in the past two years after the SVB collapse. They talk about Chris’s 2023 RIMS ERM Global Award of Distinction, how leadership has reacted to the ERM program, and how the program has changed since last year. Chris explains American Eagle FCU’s ERM philosophy, including its nine risk categories. Chris shares her thoughts about what it takes to activate an effective ERM Program today, and how ERM can help improve the banking sector and the risk industry overall. October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month. Chris tells what that means to her.
Key Takeaways:
[:01] About RIMS.
[:15] About this episode. From RIMS headquarters in New York, our guest is Chris Willey, the VP of ERM at American Eagle Financial Credit Union. She is also a recipient of the 2023 RIMS ERM Global Award of Distinction.
[:43] The RIMS ERM Conference 2024 will be held on November 18th and 19th in Boston. Opening keynote speaker John Hagel recently appeared here on RIMScast. Register at RIMS.org/ERM2024.
[:58] We will talk about everything from RMIS and AI to D&O, ESG, the SEC, and various other acronyms, in addition to future casting and risk quantification.
[1:10] RIMS-CRMP holders can earn recertification points by attending the RIMS ERM Conference 2024! For those interested in studying for the exam, a pre-conference workshop will be held on-site on November 16th and 17th. Register now; a link is on this page!
[1:34] The next RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep will be held with Purima virtually on November 14th and 15th. The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be hosted along with George Mason University from December 3rd through the 5th.
[1:50] Links to these courses can be found on the Certifications page of RIMS.org and through this episode’s show notes.
[1:57] RIMS Virtual Workshops! Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting recently joined us here on RIMScast. On December 4th and 5th, she will host Applying and Integrating ERM. On December 17th and 18th, she will host Captives as an Alternate Risk Financing Technique.
[2:20] Other dates for the Fall and Winter are available on the Virtual Workshops calendar, RIMS.org/virtualworkshops.
[2:28] Interview! My guest today, Chris Willey, is the Vice President of Enterprise Risk Management at American Eagle Financial Credit Union. In 2023, her ERM program received a RIMS ERM Global Award of Distinction. We didn’t get to connect last year to discuss it.
[2:49] We’re here now, and we will learn all about Chris Willey’s ERM philosophies, how American Eagle FCU handles certain risks, and what their risk register looks like. We will also get some tips for staying cyber secure, as October is International Cybersecurity Awareness Month.
[3:06] Chris Willey, welcome to RIMScast! Congratulations again for your ERM program being one of the honorees of the 2023 RIMS ERM Global Award of Distinction!
[3:51] Chris started at the credit union 34 years ago in Internal Audits where she got to see and understand the entire organization. In 1998, the board of directors started a risk management department. Chris applied and got the job.
[4:25] At first, they worked on traditional risk management, including insurance and fraud. Over the years, they added responsibilities. ERM was the last piece they added to their risk management repertoire, 14 years ago.
[4:56] Around the time of the housing crisis, one of the credit union’s high-risk areas, the board asked Chris to create an ERM program. Credit union regulators were also instrumental in starting ERM. While not required, having an ERM program is necessary to understand your risks.
[6:26] Chris has one staff member, Theresa, the Assistant Vice President, who helps with all facets of risk management. Chris and Theresa do a lot. Chris says it would be nice to have another person helping them.
[7:28] After the Silicon Valley Bank collapsed in March 2023, the interest rate risk and liquidity risk got a lot of attention. American Eagle FCU was on top of it. Their interest rate risk was increasing and the ERM program had already begun taking measures to thwart risk.
[8:10] American Eagle had scaled back some of their lending and beefed up their liquidity because of what happened on the West Coast. That helped put them in a great spot.
[8:44] The regulators had come down hard on them and American Eagle did a lot of things to prove that they were going to be OK. The regulators are the insurers so wanted to make sure American Eagle had enough liquidity in case something happened like that at the credit union.
[9:04] It was a lot of work. The CFO and others in the organization put in additional monitoring tools. That’s what the ERM program does. It says, “Hey, we’ve got a potential issue or higher risk.” It’s a call to action to ask, "What are we going to do differently to mitigate the risk?"
[9:37] American Eagle’s interest rate risk is still trending a little bit higher but it’s under control and being monitored. The regulators gave them a great pass last year and are working on this year’s audit.
[10:12] When the American Eagle FCU ERM program was awarded the 2023 RIMS ERM Award of Distinction, regulators were thrilled. The board of directors was very happy to hear of it at a board meeting. The Risk Council Team was also thrilled and felt they were on the right track.
[11:11] The award came at a good time for the ERM program. Since then, American Eagle has had a few new executive leaders. The ERM program team is educating the risk council on what ERM is and the nine risk categories, definitions, KRIs, and what they should keep or change.
[12:43] American Eagle is getting to the point of putting new KRIs in place to see where they land with the risk ratings. They are asking if their risk tolerance or appetite should be increased. American Eagle FCU has been risk-averse. You can take calculated risks with an ERM program.
[13:41] If the risk gets to be above your expectations, you can try to reel it back to a more manageable level.
[14:04] American Eagle FCU is growing in its assets and also in its team members. The ERM program is adding a People Risk category to help create a culture that’s engaging. The board of directors is excited to see what that will look like.
[14:39] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! On October 24th, Hub International returns for the fourth installment of their Ready for Tomorrow series, “From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures”.
[14:56] On October 31st, TÜV SÜD GRC discusses “Mastering Property Renewals: Strategies for Success in 2025 with Risk Engineering”. On November 4th, I will be hosting a special RIMS Webinar presentation, “Lessons from Veterans on Strategic Risk Leadership”.
[15:17] On November 14th, Marsh will present “Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape”. On Thursday, December 12th, OneTrust returns to deliver “Staying Vigilant: 7 Practical Tips for Ongoing Third-Party Risk Monitoring”
[15:43] More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members.
[15:55] There is another webinar you should know about. On October 22, 2024 at 1:00 p.m. ET. I will be moderating for my friends at ex judicata “If I Leave the Law — A Webcast Series: Landing a Nonlegal Job in Insurance Industry: Risk Management, Brokerage, Claims, & Advisory”.
[16:20] Other panelists include leaders from Lockton, Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance, and our friend from the RIMS Public Policy Committee and the RIMS Detroit Chapter, Lynn Haley Pilarski, who works at GM. The link is in this episode’s show notes. [16:41] This is a complimentary webinar and it is a chance for you to invite your friends who are in the legal profession, looking to transition to another role, to check out risk management and see what it’s all about. The link is in this episode’s notes.
[16:58] Back to My Interview with Chris Willey of American Eagle FCU! The nine risk categories of American Eagle’s ERM program are credit risk, interest rate risk, liquidity risk, transaction risk, compliance risk, concentration risk, strategic risk, reputation risk, and cyber risk.
[17:44] American Eagle FCU started with the seven NCUA risks, and as cybercrime became prevalent, they added a category for cyber risk. When NCUA sent a letter on concentration risk, American Eagle FCU added a category for concentration risk. The people risk is upcoming.
[18:32] Now all risks are counted equally, but they may start looking at weighted averages. That is still TBD.
[19:25] American Eagle FCU has from 335 to 350 team members. The credit union is state-charted in Connecticut. They have members in Massachusetts but no branches in that state. They have no plans to charter in other states.
[20:35] American Eagle FCU is trying to manage everything with a balanced approach, taking on more risk than before, and moving toward the center of the risk spectrum. The initiatives of their strategic plan involve a certain amount of risk and it will be OK.
[21:34] To start an ERM program from scratch in 2024 you need executive buy-in. The tone from the top is important. American Eagle FCU started at the management level and once it was running well, they brought the board of directors into it.
[22:01] Chris explains how strategic initiatives, projects, budgets, finances, and reputation were KRI measures that were reported to the board twice a year.
[22:52] Two of the three 2023 honorees of distinction, American Eagle FCU and Sterling Bank and Trust, are in the banking sector, which speaks to what ERM can do for banking.
[23:21] With interest rates as they are, it’s a good idea for a bank to have an ERM program to help navigate these times, whether interest rates are going up or down. Risk management is very basic to every financial institution, whether or not it is ERM.
[24:36] Justin remembers that there was no risk manager at Silicon Valley Bank. RIMS believes that every organization, regardless of its size, should have a dedicated risk professional. Chris thought at the time there were going to be a lot of risk management positions opening up.
[25:36] It is prudent to have a risk professional. They bring insight to your thinking that you may never have considered. The American Eagle FCU ERM program uses Key Risk Indicators. You want leading KRIs to pinpoint problems that are up and coming. Look forward, not back.
[26:29] ERM can help the risk profession greatly. In the cyber area, everyone has data they need to protect. If you have an ERM program looking at some of the risks in the cyber area, you might be able to create a better environment and protect against all the threats out there.
[27:08] Threats are not going to stop. They will continue to get worse. American Eagle ERM makes decisions based on its ERM program. They do business-level risk assessments to help business owners understand how to stay within their risk tolerance level.
[27:51] ERM is language and knowledge from which every organization can benefit.
[27:57] October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month. American Eagle FCU has participated in Cybersecurity Awareness Month for over a decade to educate team members on all kinds of cybersecurity issues and threats.
[28:38] This year, the theme is Willy Wonka, with cyber security videos and activities for interactive learning. They issue their security training for the year for all team members. They also educate members with tips on social media, their newsletter, and their website.
[29:45] American Eagle FCU is holding a fraud symposium for members. October at American Eagle FCU is a fun time. The CFO dresses as WIlly Wonka and the ERM team members are Oompa Loompas. They do short videos throughout the month about what’s coming up.
[31:41] Chris, it is wonderful to see you. I appreciate all your time and your wonderful insight. It speaks to the banking sector and the broader risk community. There’s a lot that our listeners can learn from this episode. Congratulations again on the 2023 RIMS ERM Award of Distinction!
[32:09] Special thanks again to Chris Willey of American Eagle FCU for joining us here on RIMScast! Check out the episode’s show notes for more resources about cybersecurity and the 10 risks we discussed during the interview.
[32:24] More RIMS Plugs! The RIMS ERM Conference 2024 will be held in Boston, Massachusetts on November 18th and 19th. Register today at RIMS.org/ERM2024!
[32:40] The RIMS App is available to RIMS members exclusively. Go to the App Store and download the RIMS App with all sorts of RIMS resources and coverage. It’s different from the RIMS Events App. Everyone loves the RIMS App!
[33:13] You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show, or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are in our show notes. RIMScast has a global audience of risk and insurance professionals, legal professionals, students, business leaders, C-Suite executives, and more. Let’s collaborate and help you reach them! Contact [email protected] for more information.
[33:58] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email [email protected] for more information.
[34:15] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today’s risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more.
[34:32] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management.
[34:46] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. You can email Justin at [email protected].
[34:54] Thank you all for your continued support and engagement on social media channels! We appreciate all your kind words. Listen every week! Stay safe!
Mentioned in this Episode:
RIMS ERM Conference 2024 will be in Boston, MA Nov. 18‒19 | Register Now
RIMS DEI Council
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RIMS Strategic & Enterprise Risk Center
NEW FOR MEMBERS! RIMS Mobile App
The Strategic and Enterprise Risk Center
RIMS-CRMP Stories — New interview featuring Dan Elliott!
Submit Your Nomination for 2025 Risk Manager of the Year — Part I is due on Oct. 31!
International Cybersecurity Awareness Month
RIMS Webinars:
“If I Leave the Law — A Webcast Series: Landing a Nonlegal Job in Insurance Industry: Risk Management, Brokerage, Claims, & Advisory” | Presented by ex judicata | Oct. 22, 2024
“From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures” | Sponsored by Hub International | Oct. 24, 2024
“Mastering Property Renewals: Strategies for Success in 2025 with Risk Engineering” | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company | Oct. 31, 2024
“Lessons from Veterans on Strategic Risk Leadership” | Presented by RIMS | Nov. 4, 2024
“Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape” | Sponsored by Marsh | Nov. 14, 2024
“Staying Vigilant: 7 Practical Tips for Ongoing Third-Party Risk Monitoring” | Sponsored by OneTrust | Dec. 12, 2024
RIMS.org/Webinars
Upcoming Virtual Workshops:
RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep with PARIMA (Virtual) November 14‒15, 2024 | 9:00 am‒4:00 pm SGT — Register by Nov. 7.
Applying and Integrating ERM | Dec 4‒5
Captives as an Alternate Risk Financing Technique | Dec. 17‒18
See the full calendar of RIMS Virtual Workshops
RIMS-CRMP Prep Workshops
Related RIMScast Episodes: “Big Shifts with John Hagel, ERM Conference Keynote”
“Applying ERM Theory with Elise Farnham”
“Maintaining an Award-Winning ERM Program with Michael Zuraw”
Sponsored RIMScast Episodes:
“RMIS Innovation with Archer” | Sponsored by Archer (New!)
“Navigating Commercial Property Risks with Captives” | Sponsored by Zurich (New!)
“Breaking Down Silos: AXA XL’s New Approach to Casualty Insurance” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Weathering Today’s Property Claims Management Challenges” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Storm Prep 2024: The Growing Impact of Convective Storms and Hail” | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company
“Partnering Against Cyberrisk” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Harnessing the Power of Data and Analytics for Effective Risk Management” | Sponsored by Marsh
“Accident Prevention — The Winning Formula For Construction and Insurance” | Sponsored by Otoos
“Platinum Protection: Underwriting and Risk Engineering's Role in Protecting Commercial Properties” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Elevating RMIS — The Archer Way” | Sponsored by Archer
“Alliant’s P&C Outlook For 2024” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Why Subrogation is the New Arbitration” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyclone Season: Proactive Preparation for Loss Minimization” | Sponsored by Prudent Insurance Brokers Ltd.
“Subrogation and the Competitive Advantage” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyberrisk Outlook 2023” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Chemical Industry: How To Succeed Amid Emerging Risks and a Challenging Market” | Sponsored by TÜV SÜD
“Insuring the Future of the Environment” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Insights into the Gig Economy and its Contractors” | Sponsored by Zurich
“The Importance of Disaster Planning Relationships” | Sponsored by ServiceMaster
RIMS Publications, Content, and Links:
RIMS Membership — Whether you are a new member or need to transition, be a part of the global risk management community!
RIMS Virtual Workshops
On-Demand Webinars
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RISK PAC | RIMS Advocacy
RIMS Events, Education, and Services:
RIMS Risk Maturity Model®
RIMS Events App Apple | Google Play
Sponsor RIMScast: Contact [email protected] or [email protected] for more information.
Want to Learn More?
Keep up with the podcast on RIMS.org, and listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Have a question or suggestion? Email: [email protected].
Join the Conversation!
Follow @RIMSorg on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
About our guest: Chris Willey, VP of Enterprise Risk Management at American Eagle Financial Credit Union
The American Eagle FCU ERM top risk categories: Credit Risk Interest Rate Risk Liquidity Risk Transaction Risk Compliance Risk Concentration Risk Strategic Risk Reputation Risk Cyber Risk Coming soon: People Risk Social Shareables (Edited For Social Media Use):
Our CFO and others in our organization put in additional monitoring tools. That’s what the ERM Program does. It says, “Hey, we’ve got a potential issue or higher risk.” It’s a call to action to ask, "What are we going to do differently to mitigate the risk?" — Chris Willey
It’s hard to benchmark one ERM Program to the next. It’s different, based on your risk tolerances and the way you run your business. — Chris Willey
If we want to grow, give back to the community, and do all the initiatives we would like to with our strategic plan, we are going to have to take more risk, and it’s going to be OK. — Chris Willey
Threats are not going to stop. They are going to continue and get worse. We make decisions based on our ERM program. We do business-level risk assessments and get the business owners involved so they understand what their tolerance levels are. — Chris Willey
Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.
In this episode, Justin interviews Maryam Salmasi, the Fred H. Bossons Award Winner for 2024. They discuss Maryam’s passion for ERM, her professional training in Iran, and her tips on studying for the CRM exam. She tells how being multilingual helps her in risk management. She reveals what winning the Fred H. Bossons Award 2024 meant to her. Maryam concludes with her hopes and next steps for her risk management career in Canada.
Key Takeaways:
[:01] About RIMS.
[:15] About this episode. We are coming to you live from Vancouver at the RIMS Canada Conference 2024 and are featuring our very special guest, the Fred H. Bossons Award Winner for 2024, Maryam Salmasi.
[:43] The RIMS ERM Conference will be held on November 18th and 19th. Keynote John Hagel recently appeared here on RIMScast. The full agenda is live.
[:53] We will talk about everything from RMIS and AI to D&O, ESG, the SEC, and various other acronyms, in addition to future casting and risk quantification. Register at RIMS.org/ERM2024.
[1:05] RIMS-CRMP holders can earn recertification points by attending the RIMS ERM Conference 2024! For those interested in studying for the exam, a pre-conference workshop will be held on-site on November 16th and 17th. Register now; a link is on this page!
[1:28] The next RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep will be held with Purima virtually on November 14th and 15th.
[1:36] The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be hosted along with George Mason University from December 3rd through the 5th. Links to these courses can be found on the Certifications page of RIMS.org and through this episode’s show notes.
[1:51] RIMS Virtual Workshops! Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting recently joined us here on RIMScast. On December 4th and 5th, she will host Applying and Integrating ERM. Other dates for the Fall and Winter are available on the Virtual Workshops calendar, RIMS.org/virtualworkshops.
[2:16] Interview! This episode is recorded live on-site at the RIMS Canada Conference 2024 in Vancouver. It’s a beautiful city and everyone is having a fantastic time!
[2:29] The RIMS Canada Council and Planning Committee outdoes themselves every year with the networking opportunities and educational offerings! One of the highlights of the RIMS Canada Conference was the Fred H. Bossons Award.
[2:42] The Fred H. Bossons Award honors the risk management professional who earns the highest average mark on the three examinations required to attain the Canadian Risk Management designation (CRM). This year’s winner is ERM consultant Maryam Salmasi.
[2:56] Maryam has such a fantastic story and unique background. I wanted to capture her perspective and share it all with the RIMScast audience!
[3:03] We’re going to learn about what it was like for her to be an emerging risk professional in Iran, what her experience has been here in Vancouver, and what it took for her to study for, pass, and eventually make the grade!
[3:18] Maryam Salmasi, this year’s winner of the Fred H. Bossons Award, welcome to RIMScast!
[3:58] Maryam is an enterprise risk management consultant at Stage Meta in Canada. She is also working with the Burnaby Board of Trade in Vancouver, with incredible people.
[4:20] Maryam has been in ERM for about eight years. Risk management helps control uncertainty. Maryam is passionate about helping businesses to grow and make the best of themselves.
[4:39] Maryam chose to concentrate on risk management to help businesses understand their risks and address them, mitigate them, and have better paths for growth.
[5:06] Maryam started her career in Iran. She is a newcomer to Canada. In Iran, she worked as a risk manager for an insurance company, insurance agencies, and a brokerage.
[5:31] Maryam worked in the insurance industry for about 19 years, in underwriting, claims, and customer-facing roles for about three years. She worked in organizational development, ERM, organizational excellence, quality, and process management, as a manager and specialist.
[6:13] Maryam was also involved in designing new insurance products and executing actuarial calculations, package design, and insurance acquisitions.
[6:43] Maryam says that organizations share similarities in all the world. They each have structure, risk strategies, and financial, operational, and hazard risks. The environments are different but the concepts are the same.
[7:19] Maryam says that in Iran, more than 50% of insurance industry employees are women who work hard and thrive in different positions but not many of them are managers or directors.
[8:16] Maryam was part of a supportive risk management networking group that was mostly women.
[8:48] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! On October 17th, Resolver will discuss The Future of Risk & Compliance: 5 Key Insights for the Modern Leader.
[9:00] On October 24th, Hub International returns for the fourth installment of their Ready for Tomorrow series, From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures.
[9:13] On October 31st, TÜV SÜD GRC discusses Mastering Property Renewals: Strategies for Success in 2025 with Risk Engineering. On November 4th, I will be hosting a special RIMS Webinar presentation, Lessons from Veterans on Strategic Risk Leadership.
[9:43] On November 14th, Marsh will present Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape. More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members.
[10:02] There is another webinar you should know about. On October 22, 2024 at 1:00 p.m.ET. I will be moderating for my friends at ex judicata If I Leave the Law — A Webcast Series: Landing a Nonlegal Job in Insurance Industry: Risk Management, Brokerage, Claims, & Advisory.
[10:28] Other panelists include leaders from Lockton, Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance, and our friend from the RIMS Public Policy Committee and the RIMS Detroit Chapter, Lynn Haley Pilarski, who works at GM. [10:45] This is a complimentary webinar and it is a chance for you to invite your friends who are in the legal profession, looking to transition to another role, to check out risk management and see what it’s all about. The link is in this episode’s notes.
[11:05] Back to My Interview with the 2024 Fred H. Bossons Award Winner, Maryam Salmasi! Maryam studied for the CRM exam online at the Insurance Institute at her own pace while she was searching for a full-time job as she worked as a risk management consultant.
[12:21] Maryam’s study method is to take detailed notes and create summaries and summaries of summaries, to review and compare the points. She says there are similar concepts across CRM and risk management materials and her notes help her locate and review concepts.
[12:55] That review gave her a better understanding of the concepts than trying to memorize them. Her notes were very helpful for her.
[13:13] Maryam finished the risk management courses and the examinations in two semesters. In the first semester, she took two exams. In the second semester, she studied for and took the third exam.
[13:53] Maryam was not taking the examinations to win an award but to acquire the CRM certification. When she found out she had won the 2024 Fred H. Bossons Award, at first she was surprised. It’s great that someone recognized her passion as she did what she truly enjoyed.
[14:38] Maryam is grateful to be recognized for her passion for risk management and the insurance industry. She enjoyed being on stage and receiving the trophy for the award. It’s precious to her.
[15:01] Maryam speaks Persian, English, and some Italian. Knowing English helped Maryam in her risk management career. She also found a few risk books translated into Persian from English. She follows some Italian insurance companies’ social media accounts in Italian.
[15:44] Maryam feels that knowing other languages and cultures is like having two or three souls. It’s wonderful to know them, but for insurance and risk management, she says that English is the best language.
[16:24] Maryam has found great opportunities to network and meet incredible people with great backgrounds and knowledge of risk management, most of them in the insurance industry, at the RIMS Canada Conference 2024. Maryam is grateful to be there.
[16:52] Maryam’s tip for studying for the CRM examinations is to make notes and summaries. You have to pass both Institute courses and exams separately. That’s a total of six exams. Once you achieve passing grades in both courses and the exams, you will receive the designation.
[17:29] Maryam scheduled two exams on the same day, which kept her fresh and focused on the material, which she thought was good, although she was tired at the end of the day.
[17:58] Maryam’s next step is to learn more and to get the CRMP certification. She is still in search of her ideal long-term position. She hopes this certification will help her to gain more success! Justin believes the Fred H. Bossons Award will elevate Maryam’s professional profile.
[18:49] I want to thank you so much! It was such a pleasure to meet you and I feel fortunate to sit down with you the day after you won an award. Congratulations again and I wish you continued success!
[19:07] Special thanks again to 2024 Fred H. Bossons Award winner Maryam Salmasi for joining me here on RIMScast live, in person! We had a great time here at the RIMS Canada Conference 2024 in Vancouver.
[19:20] I look forward to seeing you all at the RIMS Canada Conference 2025 in Calgary, September 14th through the 17th.
[19:27] And special thanks and congratulations to all the members of the RIMS Canada Council, the RIMS Canada Conference Planning Committee, and the RIMS Events staff for producing one of the most memorable RIMS Canada Conferences I’ve attended. I hope you get some sleep!
[19:46] Register today for the RIMS ERM Conference 2024, to be held November 18th and 19th in Boston, Massachusetts! Visit RIMS.org/ERM2024 to register.
[20:04] More RIMS Plugs! The RIMS App is available to RIMS members exclusively. Go to the App Store and download the RIMS App with all sorts of RIMS resources and coverage. It’s different from the RIMS Events App. Everyone loves the RIMS App!
[20:37] You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show, or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are in our show notes. RIMScast has a global audience of risk and insurance professionals, legal professionals, students, business leaders, C-Suite executives, and more. Let’s collaborate and help you reach them! Contact [email protected] for more information.
[21:19] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email [email protected] for more information.
[21:36] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today’s risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more.
[21:51] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management.
[22:05] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. You can email Justin at [email protected].
[22:12] Thank you all for your continued support and engagement on social media channels! We appreciate all your kind words. Listen every week! Stay safe!
Mentioned in this Episode:
RIMS ERM Conference 2024 will be in Boston, MA Nov. 18–19 | Register Now
RIMS DEI Council
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RIMS Strategic & Enterprise Risk Center
NEW FOR MEMBERS! RIMS Mobile App
RIMS Canada News Release: RIMS Ontario Chapter Honours Valerie Fox with the 2024 Donald M. Stuart Award
Follow RIMS Canada on LinkedIn
The Strategic and Enterprise Risk Center
RIMS-CRMP Stories — New interviews featuring Dan Elliott!
The CRM designation provides risk professionals with a foundation of knowledge and skills needed to identify, assess, monitor, and limit risks. The award is recognized by RIMS and awarded by GRMI.
RIMS Webinars:
The Future of Risk & Compliance: 5 Key Insights for the Modern Leader | Sponsored by Resolver | Oct. 17, 2024
“If I Leave the Law – A Webcast Series: Landing a Nonlegal Job in Insurance Industry: Risk Management, Brokerage, Claims, & Advisory” \ Presented by ex judicata | Oct. 22, 2024
From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures | Sponsored by Hub International | Oct. 24, 2024
Mastering Property Renewals: Strategies for Success in 2025 with Risk Engineering | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company | Oct. 31, 2024
Lessons from Veterans on Strategic Risk Leadership | Presented by RIMS | Nov. 4, 2024
Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape | Sponsored by Marsh | Nov. 14, 2024 RIMS.org/Webinars
Upcoming Virtual Workshops
RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep with PARIMA (Virtual) November 14–15, 2024 | 9:00 am–4:00 pm SGT — Register by Nov. 7
Applying and Integrating ERM | Dec 4‒5
See the full calendar of RIMS Virtual Workshops
RIMS-CRMP Prep Workshops
Related RIMScast Episodes:
“Big Shifts with John Hagel, ERM Conference Keynote”
“Applying ERM Theory with Elise Farnham”
“Maintaining an Award-Winning ERM Program with Michael Zuraw”
Sponsored RIMScast Episodes:
“Navigating Commercial Property Risks with Captives” | Sponsored by Zurich (New!)
“Breaking Down Silos: AXA XL’s New Approach to Casualty Insurance” | (New!)
“Weathering Today’s Property Claims Management Challenges” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Storm Prep 2024: The Growing Impact of Convective Storms and Hail” | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company
“Partnering Against Cyberrisk” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Harnessing the Power of Data and Analytics for Effective Risk Management” | Sponsored by Marsh
“Accident Prevention — The Winning Formula For Construction and Insurance” | Sponsored by Otoos
“Platinum Protection: Underwriting and Risk Engineering's Role in Protecting Commercial Properties” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Elevating RMIS — The Archer Way” | Sponsored by Archer
“Alliant’s P&C Outlook For 2024” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Why Subrogation is the New Arbitration” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyclone Season: Proactive Preparation for Loss Minimization” | Sponsored by Prudent Insurance Brokers Ltd.
“Subrogation and the Competitive Advantage” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyberrisk Outlook 2023” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Chemical Industry: How To Succeed Amid Emerging Risks and a Challenging Market” | Sponsored by TÜV SÜD
“Insuring the Future of the Environment” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Insights into the Gig Economy and its Contractors” | Sponsored by Zurich
“The Importance of Disaster Planning Relationships” | Sponsored by ServiceMaster
RIMS Publications, Content, and Links:
RIMS Membership — Whether you are a new member or need to transition, be a part of the global risk management community!
RIMS Virtual Workshops
On-Demand Webinars
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RISK PAC | RIMS Advocacy
RIMS Events, Education, and Services:
RIMS Risk Maturity Model®
RIMS Events App Apple | Google Play
Sponsor RIMScast: Contact [email protected] or [email protected] for more information.
Want to Learn More?
Keep up with the podcast on RIMS.org, and listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Have a question or suggestion? Email: [email protected].
Join the Conversation!
Follow @RIMSorg on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
About our guest: Maryam Salmasi, ERM Consultant at Stage Meta, Fred H. Bossons Award Winner 2024
Social Shareables (Edited For Social Media Use):
Risk management controls uncertainty. Because I am passionate about helping businesses to grow and to make the best of themselves, I chose to concentrate on risk management to help them understand their risk. — Maryam Salmasi
It’s very important to have Canadian certification to show that you know this concept. My only intention was to pass the exam. It’s great that someone recognized my passion for risk management because I did what I truly enjoyed. — Maryam Salmasi
When you know other languages or cultures it’s like you have this second or third soul. It’s pretty wonderful to know other languages or cultures but for insurance or risk management, English is the best language. — Maryam Salmasi
I found great opportunities to network and meet incredible people with great backgrounds and knowledge of risk management, most of them in the insurance industry, at the RIMS Canada Conference 2024. I am grateful to be here. — Maryam Salmasi
Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.
In this episode, Justin interviews John Hagel, RIMS ERM Conference Keynote. John’s keynote on November 18 will be titled Embracing Change to Manage Risk. Justin and John explore how risk has evolved over John’s 40-year career and the last decade, and aligning risk management with technological innovation. John shares his thoughts on the RIMS Risk Maturity Model and a hint of what to expect in his November 18th keynote address at the RIMS ERM Conference 2024 in Boston. John concludes with his observation of positive trends in risk management.
Key Takeaways:
[:01] About RIMS.
[:15] About this episode. Our topic is ERM and our guest is John Hagel, who will be the opening keynote at the RIMS ERM Conference 2024 in Boston on November 18th and 19th.
[:46] RIMS ERM Conference! The full agenda is live. We will talk about everything from RMIS and AI to D&O, ESG, the SEC, and various other acronyms, in addition to future casting and risk quantification. RIMS.org/ERM2024.
[1:05] RIMS-CRMP holders can earn recertification points by attending the RIMS ERM Conference 2024! For those interested in studying for the exam, a pre-conference workshop will be held on-site on November 16th and 17th. Register now; a link is on this page!
[1:28] The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be hosted along with George Mason University from December 3rd through the 5th. Links to these courses can be found on the Certifications page of RIMS.org and through this episode’s show notes.
[1:44] RIMS Virtual Workshops! On October 9th and 10th, Chris Hansen returns to deliver Fundamentals of Insurance. He’s very popular in the Worker’s Comp space.
[1:59] Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting recently joined us here on RIMScast. On December 4th and 5th, she will host Applying and Integrating ERM. Other dates for the Fall and Winter are available on the Virtual Workshops calendar of RIMS.org/virtualworkshops.
[2:20] Interview! I am so excited to present an interview with our guest today, John Hagel! He will deliver the opening keynote address at the RIMS ERM Conference 2024. It’s titled Embracing Change to Manage Risk.
[2:37] John is a visionary with more than 40 years of experience as a management consultant, entrepreneur, and thought leader in Silicon Valley. He will kick off our conference, exploring how technological innovation is transforming the global economy, society, and the risk landscape.
[2:55] John will also explore how these concepts will influence and intersect with three critical risk tenets: strategy alignment, culture and accountability, and risk capabilities. There’s so much to discuss. Let’s get to it!
[3:09] John Hagel, welcome to RIMScast! John joins a long line of impactful keynote speakers for the RIMS ERM Conference. He is excited about it!
[3:54] John was drawn to Silicon Valley decades ago because of the sense of optimism and the energy around addressing opportunities in the future and also because it’s the seedbed of some amazing digital technology.
[4:17] John founded a couple of tech startups. He was a senior executive with Atari in the video game business from 1982 to 1984, a partner at McKinsey & Company, helping found their Silicon Valley office, and led a research center at Deloitte, called the Center for the Edge.
[5:20] Atari provided an opportunity for young people to get into digital technology.
[6:09] John talks about the risks in technology over the years. Digital technology is improving exponentially over time. What’s competitive today becomes obsolete a couple of days from now or years from now.
[6:27] John has done a lot of work around what he calls the big shift, or the long-term forces that are redefining the global economy and society. On one side, the big shift creates mounting performance pressure, the competition intensifies and the pace of change accelerates.
[6:46] A small event in a faraway place quickly becomes a globally disruptive event. There’s a lot of risk from the mounting performance pressure. One of the consequences of all this is that it increases the risk of the status quo. Doing what you’ve done before becomes more risky.
[7:24] At the same time, the big shift is creating exponentially expanding opportunity, with far more value at far less resource, far more quickly. It decreases the risk of creating exponential value.
[8:14] John believes the most disruptive trend over the past years has been customers becoming more powerful with access to more information. They use that information to find someone much more effective at addressing their needs. They’re becoming less trusting.
[8:44] John sees trust eroding in large institutions around the world. That’s disruptive, as large institutions want and need trust but they’re losing it. This is business-to-business trust. It is being lost because of the spreading emotion of fear.
[10:35] In Silicon Valley, John had the opportunity to work with some of the most successful technology companies. He found that they have a different approach to strategy than most traditional organizations. John is a strong proponent of the value of this approach.
[10:56] This different approach is called Zoom Out-Zoom In. Zoom out 10 to 20 years; what’s the really big opportunity we could be pursuing? Zoom in; what can we do in the next six to 12 months to help us accelerate our movement toward that opportunity?
[11:25] Companies that pursue the Zoom In-Zoom-Out strategy focus on the risk of not acting. They move forward but don’t try to do massive 10-year projects. They do something in the next six months that can help them learn faster what’s required to achieve the opportunity at low risk.
[12:16] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! On October 10th, Zurich returns to present Long-Term Property Strategies for a Resilient Future. On October 17th, Resolver will discuss The Future of Risk & Compliance: 5 Key Insights for the Modern Leader.
[12:36] On October 24th, Hub International returns for the fourth installment of their Ready for Tomorrow series, From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures.
[12:50] On October 31st, TÜV SÜD GRC discusses Mastering Property Renewals: Strategies for Success in 2025 with Risk Engineering. On November 4th, I will be hosting a special RIMS Webinar presentation, Lessons from Veterans on Strategic Risk Leadership.
[13:20] On November 14th, Marsh will present Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape. More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members.
[13:38] There is another webinar you should know about. On October 22, 2024 at 1:00 p.m.ET. I will be moderating for my friends at ex judicata If I Leave the Law — A Webcast Series: Landing a Nonlegal Job in Insurance Industry: Risk Management, Brokerage, Claims, & Advisory.
[14:04] Other panelists include leaders from Lockton, Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance, and our friend from the RIMS Public Policy Committee and the RIMS Detroit Chapter, Lynn Haley Pilarski, who works at GM. [14:24] This is a complimentary webinar and it is a chance for you to invite your friends who are in the legal profession, looking to transition to another role, to check out risk management and see what it’s all about. The link is on this page.
[14:43] The Spencer Educational Foundation’s goal is to help build a talent pipeline of risk management and insurance professionals. That is achieved, in part, by a collaboration with risk management and insurance educators across the U.S. and Canada.
[13:57] Whether you want to apply for a grant, participate in the Risk Manager on Campus program, or just learn more about Spencer, visit SpencerEd.org.
[15:08] On that note, applications are being accepted for internship grants. Since 1999, Spencer has awarded over $2.7 million in internship grants to over 540 recipients. To be eligible, risk managers must be based in the United States, Canada, or Bermuda.
[15:26] The application deadline is October 15th, 2024. Awardees are typically notified at the beginning of December. A link to the Internship Grants page is in this episode’s show notes.
[15:40] Back to My Interview with RIMS ERM Conference 2024 Keynote Speaker, John Hagel! John loves Boston. He loves the combination of incredible history and all the universities there. It’s got a youthful culture; the combination of age and youth makes it interesting.
[16:38] For six years, John lived in Boston. For four of those years, he was in a graduate program for both an MBA and a JD from Harvard. He was recruited by Boston Consulting Group to be a consultant and spent two years there. He just didn’t like the cold winters and hot summers.
[17:30] Justin describes the emergence of the RIMS Risk Maturity Model. It serves as a template or guide for how effective ERM can be run. A link to it is on this page. John took the model. It was challenging for him as a solo practitioner; it was hard to apply five pillars to an individual.
[18:15] John found the five pillars and the different levels of maturity enlightening. The model shows the complexity of ERM. It’s not just one pillar and one stage. In terms of maturity, it’s a set of stages. John particularly likes the emphasis on continuous cycles of improvement.
[19:05] John also liked that at the highest level, the focus was future-oriented decision-making, encouraging and helping people to look ahead to future opportunities and risks. The model helps leaders to see that ERM is a continuously improving cycle.
[19:48] No matter how good an ERM program is at any time, there is more to come. John likes the focus on the future and the emphasis on continuous learning. We must learn constantly and never assume we’re experts with all the answers. There are more questions that need answers.
[20:15] The five pillars John mentioned are Strategy Alignment, Culture & Accountability, Risk Management Capabilities, Risk Governance, and Analytics.
[20:44] John’s opening keynote address will cover his research on how the world is changing and the implications for risk management, the big shift with mounting performance pressures as a key factor. He will discuss the new approach to strategy as old approaches are challenged.
[21:24] We need to step back and reflect on what strategy is going to help us manage risk more effectively. We’re in a time when fundamental transformation is essential. He will talk about the role of AI in ERM as a catalyst for change.
[22:08] John will focus on three pillars of the RIMS Risk Maturity Model: Strategy Alignment, Culture & Accountability, and Risk Management Capabilities and how to address them in the rapidly changing world. John will have no visuals. He encourages audience interaction.
[23:14] Justin emphasizes there will be some Q&A time at the end of the session, and that people should take notes during the address. Please come prepared with questions that can enhance the audience’s knowledge.
[24:09] John warns against underestimating the risk of continuing as you are and focusing just on the present. Look into the future to see how risks may be changing over time. In addition to internal risks, look for ways to reduce the risks to your stakeholders, customers, and suppliers.
[25:00] John sees a positive trend of understanding that as the world is changing, more opportunity is emerging. Explore the opportunity. Understanding how technological innovation transforms our opportunities and risks becomes critical.
[25:26] John, we look forward to seeing you on the morning of November 18th in Boston, kicking off our RIMS ERM Conference 2024. You’re going to explain how to embrace change through innovation and the psychology of change. Anyone in risk management will take away a lot!
[26:00] We thank you in advance for being a fantastic keynote!
[26:07] Special thanks to John Hagel for joining us! He will be the opening keynote speaker on November 18th at the RIMS ERM Conference 2024. A link to his website is on this page.
[26:23] Register now for the RIMS ERM Conference 2024, to be held November 18th and 19th in Boston, Massachusetts! Visit RIMS.org/ERM2024 to register.
[26:36] It’s RIMS Plug Time! The RIMS App is available to RIMS members exclusively. Go to the App Store and download the RIMS App with all sorts of RIMS resources and coverage. It’s different from the RIMS Events App. Everyone loves the RIMS App!
[27:11] You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show, or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are in our show notes. RIMScast has a global audience of risk and insurance professionals, legal professionals, students, business leaders, C-Suite executives, and more. Let’s collaborate and help you reach them! Contact [email protected] for more information.
[27:56] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email [email protected] for more information.
[28:14] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today’s risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more.
[28:30] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management.
[28:45] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. You can email Justin at [email protected].
[28:52] Thank you for your continued support and engagement on social media channels! We appreciate all your kind words. Listen every week! Stay safe!
Mentioned in this Episode:
RIMS ERM Conference 2024 will be in Boston, MA Nov. 18‒19 | Register Now
RIMS DEI Council
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RIMS Strategic & Enterprise Risk Center
NEW FOR MEMBERS! RIMS Mobile App
Spencer Internship Grants — Deadline Oct. 15
The Strategic and Enterprise Risk Center
RIMS-CRMP Stories — New interviews featuring DFW RIMS President Emily Casso Ford!
JohnHagel.com
RIMS Webinars:
Long-Term Property Strategies for a Resilient Future | Sponsored by Zurich | Oct. 10, 2024
The Future of Risk & Compliance: 5 Key Insights for the Modern Leader | Sponsored by Resolver | Oct. 17, 2024
If I Leave the Law — A Webcast Series: Landing a Nonlegal Job in Insurance Industry: Risk Management, Brokerage, Claims, & Advisory | Presented by ex judicata | Oct. 22, 2024
From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures | Sponsored by Hub International | Oct. 24, 2024 Mastering Property Renewals: Strategies for Success in 2025 with Risk Engineering | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company | Oct. 31, 2024
Lessons from Veterans on Strategic Risk Leadership | Presented by RIMS | Nov. 4, 2024
Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape | Sponsored by Marsh | Nov. 14, 2024 RIMS.org/Webinars
Upcoming Virtual Workshops:
Fundamentals of Insurance | Oct 9‒10, 2024
Applying and Integrating ERM | Dec 4‒5
See the full calendar of RIMS Virtual Workshops
RIMS-CRMP Prep Workshops
Related RIMScast Episodes:
“Applying ERM Theory with Elise Farnham”
“Maintaining an Award-Winning ERM Program with Michael Zuraw”
“Bigger Risks with the Texas State Office of Risk Management” | Sponsored By Hillwood
Sponsored RIMScast Episodes:
“Navigating Commercial Property Risks with Captives” | Sponsored by Zurich (New!)
“Breaking Down Silos: AXA XL’s New Approach to Casualty Insurance” | (New!)
“Weathering Today’s Property Claims Management Challenges” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Storm Prep 2024: The Growing Impact of Convective Storms and Hail” | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company
“Partnering Against Cyberrisk” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Harnessing the Power of Data and Analytics for Effective Risk Management” | Sponsored by Marsh
“Accident Prevention — The Winning Formula For Construction and Insurance” | Sponsored by Otoos
“Platinum Protection: Underwriting and Risk Engineering's Role in Protecting Commercial Properties” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Elevating RMIS — The Archer Way” | Sponsored by Archer
“Alliant’s P&C Outlook For 2024” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Why Subrogation is the New Arbitration” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyclone Season: Proactive Preparation for Loss Minimization” | Sponsored by Prudent Insurance Brokers Ltd.
“Subrogation and the Competitive Advantage” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyberrisk Outlook 2023” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Chemical Industry: How To Succeed Amid Emerging Risks and a Challenging Market” | Sponsored by TÜV SÜD
“Insuring the Future of the Environment” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Insights into the Gig Economy and its Contractors” | Sponsored by Zurich
“The Importance of Disaster Planning Relationships” | Sponsored by ServiceMaster
RIMS Publications, Content, and Links:
RIMS Membership — Whether you are a new member or need to transition, be a part of the global risk management community!
RIMS Virtual Workshops
On-Demand Webinars
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RISK PAC | RIMS Advocacy
RIMS Events, Education, and Services:
RIMS Risk Maturity Model®
RIMS Events App Apple | Google Play
Sponsor RIMScast: Contact [email protected] or [email protected] for more information.
Want to Learn More?
Keep up with the podcast on RIMS.org, and listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Have a question or suggestion? Email: [email protected].
Join the Conversation!
Follow @RIMSorg on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
About our guest: John Hagel, Silicon Valley Veteran, Entrepreneur, and Founder of Beyond Our Edge, LLC
John Hagel on LinkedIn
Social Shareables (Edited For Social Media Use):
Digital technology is exponentially improving over time. What’s competitive today becomes obsolete a couple of days from now or a couple of years from now. — John Hagel
There’s a lot of risk from the mounting performance pressure. One of the consequences of all this is that it increases the risk of the status quo. Doing what you’ve done before becomes more and more risky — John Hagel
I did find the RIMS Risk Maturity Model enlightening in terms of the five pillars that come into it and the different levels of maturity, helping people to see that this is complex. It’s not just one pillar and one stage. — John Hagel
Don’t underestimate the risk of continuing as you are and focusing on the present. Look to the future to see how risks may be changing. In addition to internal organizational risks, look for ways to reduce the risks to your stakeholders, customers, and suppliers. — John Hagel
Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.
In this episode, Justin interviews Britt Embry, VP of Communications, RIMS Greater Bluegrass Chapter; Nancy Brooks, Executive Director of NAMI Louisville; and Tony Quinones, Director of Risk Strategies and Compliance of Walt Disney World® Resort and Disney Cruise Line. Britt discusses the Greater Bluegrass RIMS Chapter’s Power of Partnership Conference, on October 8th and 9th. Nancy shares an overview of her keynote speech on mental health and risk management for the conference. Then Tony describes his career and how he used continual learning to expand his career from claims to risk strategies and compliance, with a side of mentorship. Get ready for some excellent tips on partnership, mental health, and risk, and developing your risk management career.
Key Takeaways:
[:01] About RIMS.
[:15] About this episode. We have three guests; one from the Greater Bluegrass Chapter of RIMS, one from the National Alliance on Mental Illness, and last, but not least, Tony Quinones, Director for Risk Strategies and Compliance at Walt Disney World® Resort and Disney Cruise Line.
[:48] RIMS Events! We are less than a week away from the start of one of my favorite events, the RIMS Canada Conference 2024, which will be from October 6th through the 9th in Vancouver. Register at RIMSCanadaConference.ca.
[1:05] We want you to join us in Boston, Massachusetts on November 18th and 19th for the RIMS ERM Conference 2024. The full agenda is live. It runs the gamut of ERM. Check it out and register. A link is on this page! RIMS.org/ERM2024.
[1:21] All RIMS Regional Conference Information can be found through the Events page of RIMS.org.
[1:26] RIMS Virtual Offerings! The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be hosted along with George Mason University from December 3rd through the 5th. Links to these courses can be found on the Certification Page of RIMS.org and through this episode’s show notes.
[1:44] RIMS Virtual Workshops! On October 9th and 10th, Chris Hansen returns to deliver Fundamentals of Insurance. He’s very popular in the Worker’s Comp space.
[1:59] Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting recently joined us here on RIMScast. This is the last call for her session on October 3rd and 4th, Fundamentals of Risk Management. Other dates for Fall and Winter are available on the Virtual Workshops calendar of RIMS.org/virtualworkshops.
[2:19] RIMS Webinars! Also, be sure to check out the full schedule of RIMS webinars at RIMS.org/webinars. Remember, registration is free for all RIMS members, one of the many value-adds for a RIMS membership.
[2:36] Interviews! We will kick off this episode of RIMScast with two guests. Britt Embry is the VP of Communications for the RIMS Greater Bluegrass Chapter. They have a two-day event on October 8th and 9th in Louisville, Kentucky, The Power of Partnership.
[2:57] Registration is supposed to close today, October 1st, but as you’ll hear in the interview, you may still be able to register past today, if you play your cards right!
[3:08] We will also be joined by one of the speakers presenting on October 9th, Nancy Brooks, the Executive Director of NAMI Louisville. We’ll get a brief preview of her session on mental health in risk management, and how mental health awareness is evolving in the risk space.
[3:29] Britt Embry and Nancy Brooks, welcome to RIMScast!
[3:38] Britt, let me congratulate you for winning the Chapter of the Year award at RISKWORLD 2024! Britt says the RIMS Greater Louisville Chapter went full steam; it’s a new chapter, the 80th RIMS chapter! They got much excitement from the risk management and insurance community!
[4:21] It paid off! Britt is very appreciative of all the sponsors, vendors, and participants in the Power of Partnership Conference. Britt says it was a lot of hard work but the chapter is very excited to receive the Chapter of the Year Award.
[4:37] The RIMS Greater Louisville Chapter is growing like weeds! They are close to 100 members with the chapter and RIMS nationally. They’re pushing through to make a difference!
[5:04] The chapter is about two-and-a-half years old. They’re excited to support risk management and insurance throughout the state of Kentucky and some of Indiana, as well.
[5:30] This episode comes out on October 1st. That’s one week before the opening of the Power of Partnership. Today is the last day for registration. If you want an exception after today, please email the chapter at [email protected]. The link is on this page.
[6:22] Nancy Brooks is here because she will be one of the marquee speakers at the Power of Partnership event. Nancy says as we assess the risk, including the safety and well-being of an individual, it results in us understanding how mental health impacts everything we do.
[6:56] Nancy will highlight that in her presentation and focus on mental health in risk management and how the potential to reduce insurance rates and provide more benefits for employees impacts their mental well-being as well.
[7:38] One of NAMI’s messages is “You are not alone.” NAMI recognizes that the mental health journey is complicated. It’s not the same as someone who comes down with a diagnosis that’s more “acceptable.” With mental illness, there’s a tendency to hide, so they need a trusted ally.
[8:10] NAMI supports families and individuals who are affected by mental illness.
[8:30] In her keynote, Nancy will include a discussion on general mental well-being and share tools for self-care that everyone can use. She will note some signs and symptoms to help individuals identify in their workplace that someone’s struggling with a mental health condition.
[8:56] These signs and symptoms can also show up in our loved ones and inner circle. It helps to know those signs and symptoms and reduce the stigma, reducing barriers to communication.
[9:18] Nancy will focus on how mental health relates to risk management, employees, and injured workers.
[9:39] Britt says registration is open to all risk professionals. You pay a little extra if you are not a chapter member. They would love to have you as a member and get your insight into the organization, as well.
[10:04] Greater Bluegrass is connecting all the various types of risk management and insurance that they see in the state of Kentucky, from distilleries to healthcare, to restaurants, and everything in between. To have everyone’s insight and knowledge is amazing!
[10:35] NAMI Louisville is very experienced in doing workplace training through its Stigma-Free Workplace Partnerships. Any business that comes to the event can ask to have NAMI Louisville send someone to their workplace for different types of training, including suicide prevention.
[11:04] The Power of Partnership will be on October 8th and 9th in Louisville, Kentucky. Britt and Nancy will be there. There are links in this episode’s show notes for anyone who wants to and should attend. Britt and Nancy, I want to thank you both. It sounds like it will be fabulous!
[11:24] Marquee Interview! I am joined by Tony Quinones, the Director for Risk Strategies and Compliance at Walt Disney World® Resort and Disney Cruise Line. Tony, welcome to RIMScast!
[12:01] At Walt Disney World® Resort and Disney Cruise Line, it’s always booking season and vacation season. Now it’s the beginning of the holiday season.
[12:17] Out of college and for most of his career, Tony worked in claims. He started in liability with State Farm Insurance. He hadn’t studied insurance in college but he was attracted by a job posting. He meant to work for a time, then go back to school to be a history teacher.
[12:50] Twenty-two years later, here he is, talking to Justin about his career and his current role in risk management. Tony says he’s had a good time and the profession has been good to him.
[13:20] His claims background knowledge helps him handle challenges in his risk management role. He worked in claims until three years ago when he formally transitioned to risk strategies and compliance. He always took opportunities to expand his knowledge of risk management.
[14:17] Disney Cruise Line feels like a floating resort. Tony has a set of responsibilities around compliance training and data analytics. The analytics teams support safety, operations, and claims partners.
[14:54] The environmental, safety, and operations teams address the risks inherent to the Maritime laws, and regulations in the U.S. and internationally. Tony’s analytics teams work with them in every aspect to support them with the best information possible to do their roles.
[15:43] A cruise ship is a floating city. Tony doesn’t oversee the waste management but he says the machinery is amazing. They are conscientious to do the best they can for the environment.
[16:08] Tony has a staff of approximately 70 cast members under his supervision. Any that have responsibilities strictly on the ships are crew members. The Risk Management Division has about 150 members in partnership with the areas of safety, environmental, and operations.
[17:14] It’s a well-oiled machine of information and partnership back and forth, with some of the strongest protocols and audits to help make sure it’s one of the safest environments for crew, cast, and guests.
[17:33] The Walt Disney World® Resort and Disney Cruise Line ERM program is overseen at the corporate level. Tony’s team supports the ERM initiatives with their day-to-day operations.
[18:01] Tony thinks it’s important to work in unison with the corporate side. There is risk management alignment across the company.
[18:37] About dealing with catastrophes, Tony says having a contingency plan is great but make sure that it’s flexible for the situation at hand. Have robust communication systems. Know which partners you need to reach out to for certain situations and communications.
[19:02] You need to have the right roles in the room and at the table so that decisions can be made and communication can be spread out effectively and efficiently. There aren’t catastrophes happening all the time but have continuous training and be aware of the what-ifs.
[19:26] You might not be ready for a specific incident but the memory of going through the action plan and reacting will apply to most incidents and having those three things puts you into a situation where you are ready for the unexpected and to respond effectively and efficiently.
[20:01] How do storms affect Disney Cruise Line? Everyone goes through practices and knows what they are doing. They walk through the contingency plans and action plans to solidify them in muscle memory.
[20:57] Tony recounts the rebound after the pandemic. Having key partnerships with the operations partners across the company was key. As Walt Disney World® Resort and Disney Cruise Lines re-opened slowly and surely, they saw their guests come back to resume normalcy.
[21:59] Tony says risk management was impacted by the pandemic but they still had work to do. At that time, he was still on the claims side. While the resort and cruise line were closed, they built for what they knew would come back. Claims built up slowly with attendance.
[22:38] Once the hiccup of the pandemic was over, Tony says they were in a good place to be there for their guests and cast members, for worker’s comp.
[23:10] Tony recalls how the resorts reopened, a park or a resort at a time. Some services weren’t available right at the time of the park opening. Some new experiences were added, like mobile check-in and self-check-in. They explored technology during the interruption.
[24:35] Tony takes opportunities to walk the parks and the ships to see the conditions of the properties in case something comes up in a report. He wants to make sure that what he is offering his partners is what they need.
[25:44] Whenever Disney gets in the news, Tony checks to see what is the context. He is confident in what Disney does and why they do it.
[26:14] Quick Break! The Spencer Educational Foundation’s goal is to help build a talent pipeline of risk management and insurance professionals. That is achieved, in part, by a collaboration with risk management and insurance educators across the U.S. and Canada.
[26:31] Whether you want to apply for a grant, participate in the Risk Manager on Campus program, or just learn more about Spencer, visit SpencerEd.org.
[25:42] On that note, applications are being accepted for internship grants. The application deadline is October 15th, 2024. Awardees are typically notified at the beginning of December. A link to the Internship Grants page is in this episode’s show notes.
[27:02] We Conclude My Interview with Tony Quinones of Disney!
[27:15] Through October 15th, we are in National Hispanic Heritage Month. At Disney, there are cast-run burgs. Tony belongs to the Latin American Burg. He also does anything he can within the RISKWORLD diversity platforms and to be part of the Hispanic heritage within the industry.
[28:23] Latin American professionals need to take advantage of the opportunities in risk management in general, and insurance. There are not a lot of Hispanic or Latino Americans in the industry but there are a lot of opportunities, maybe more than when he started.
[28:47] There’s still a way to go. There are so many specialties within risk management. It’s not just a risk manager. There’s insurance and so many different areas of risk. Tony wants Latinos to find a niche where their talents can grow. Maybe risk management is meant for you.
[29:29] Many colleges are offering a risk management program. If you’re a young Latino going into college, Tony invites you to consider risk management as an avenue for your education.
[29:49] Tony is bilingual and that has served him in his career. He needed it almost daily when he was handling claims. Tony suggests that whatever other language you speak, double down on it and use it to your advantage.
[30:30] Tony is on the RISKWORLD ACPC, the Annual Conference Planning Committee. They are planning RISKWORLD 2025 in Chicago. He recalls the great program and breakout sessions of RISKWORLD 2024 in San Diego. Put RISKWORLD on your bucket list! It’s a great opportunity!
[32:06] Tony relates the RISKWORLD DE&I Studio to the evolution of the risk profession overall. It speaks to the younger generation in risk management, just entering the workforce. The DE&I Studio was exciting and attracted many people who wanted to know more about DE&I.
[33:03] The DE&I Studio is a place where different communities are immediately acknowledged and included. Tony hopes it continues to grow as they continue to put the RISKWORLD conferences together.
[33:36] Any chance Tony gets, not just with the Latin American community, but in general, with the younger workforce coming into risk management, to mentor, he does it. He is involved with mentorship at Disney, called Mano a Mano, which is focused on mentoring the Latin community.
[34:02] Tony is also part of Rise Professional, a mentorship program helping those just coming into the risk management profession. Anytime he can share his knowledge and experience to contribute the most, such as being on a platform like RIMScast, he will do it.
[34:34] Tony thinks the most important thing for anyone who has been in the industry is to give mentorship. That’s the way to give back, one-on-one with professionals entering the industry. It’s the most value for your time.
[35:16] Tony’s advice to people entering or considering entering the risk profession is that it can provide a consistent and stable platform, similar to other traditional professions. If you’re a professional looking to transition, this is a great industry.
[35:46] If you’re in college trying to figure out your future, take a couple of risk management courses. Look at the programs colleges have for it. Tony’s great 20-plus-year career started in one little avenue of risk management. He’s learned something new every year.
[36:13] It’s an industry that can take you to so many different places and you’ll never be bored.
[36:39] Tony is a big Disney fan. He has been on a couple of Disney cruises on vacation, and he loves it. Once in a while, he just wants to go to a beach somewhere and take a little different vacation so he doesn’t have to worry about work. The brand is still there on a Disney Cruise.
[37:19] Tony, it has been a real pleasure to meet you. Thank you for being a member of our RIMS RISKWORLD ACPC. We hope to connect at RISKWORLD 2025 in Chicago Illinois, celebrating RIMS’s 75th Anniversary! We appreciate your leadership there. Thanks for joining us!
[37:45] Special thanks to Tony Quinones for all of his time and insight! Special thanks to Nancy Brooks of NAMI Louisville and Britt Embry of the Greater Bluegrass Chapter of RIMS!
[37:59] This is the last call for registration for the Power of Partnership Event on October 8th and 9th in Lousiville, Kentucky, hosted by the Greater Louisville Chapter of RIMS!
[38:09] Email [email protected] to register and be sure to tell them that you heard about the opportunity here, on RIMScast! More links about the event are in this episode’s show notes.
[38:24] It’s RIMS Plug Time! The RIMS App is available to RIMS members exclusively. Go to the App Store and download the RIMS App with all sorts of RIMS resources and coverage. It’s different from the RIMS Events App. Everyone loves the RIMS App!
[38:57] You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show, or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are in our show notes. RIMScast has a global audience of risk and insurance professionals, legal professionals, students, business leaders, C-Suite executives, and more. Let’s collaborate and help you reach them! Contact [email protected] for more information.
[39:40] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email [email protected] for more information.
[39:57] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today’s risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more.
[40:13] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management.
[40:27] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. You can email Justin at [email protected].
[40:34] Thank you for your continued support and engagement on social media channels! We appreciate all your kind words. Listen every week! Stay safe!
Mentioned in this Episode:
RIMS Greater Bluegrass Chapter Annual Meeting & Conference — Oct 8‒9 | Last call for Registration | Also email here: [email protected]
RIMS ERM Conference 2024 will be in Boston, MA Nov. 18‒19 | Register Now
RIMS Canada Conference 2024 — Oct. 6‒9 | Last call for Registration!
RIMS DEI Council
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RIMS Strategic & Enterprise Risk Center
NEW FOR MEMBERS! RIMS Mobile App
Spencer Internship Grants — Deadline Oct. 15
The Strategic and Enterprise Risk Center
RIMS-CRMP Stories — New interviews featuring DFW RIMS President Emily Casso Ford!
NAMI Louisville
National Hispanic American Heritage Month
RIMS Webinars:
Mastering ERM: Leveraging Internal and External Risk Factors for Strategic Advantage | Sponsored by Diligent | Oct. 3, 2024
Long-Term Property Strategies for a Resilient Future | Sponsored by Zurich | Oct. 10, 2024
From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures | Sponsored by Hub International | Oct. 24, 2024
Lessons from Veterans on Strategic Risk Leadership | Presented by RIMS | Nov. 4, 2024
Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape | Sponsored by Marsh | Nov. 14, 2024 RIMS.org/Webinars
Upcoming Virtual Workshops:
Fundamentals of Risk Management | Oct 3‒4, 2024
Fundamentals of Insurance | Oct 9‒10, 2024
Applying and Integrating ERM | Dec 4‒5
See the full calendar of RIMS Virtual Workshops
RIMS-CRMP Prep Workshops
Related RIMScast Episodes:
Applying ERM Theory with Elise Farnham
Maintaining an Award-Winning ERM Program with Michael Zuraw
LAAIA Atlanta Chapter President Jose Aponte
Sponsored RIMScast Episodes:
“Navigating Commercial Property Risks with Captives” | Sponsored by Zurich (New!)
“Breaking Down Silos: AXA XL’s New Approach to Casualty Insurance” | (New!)
“Weathering Today’s Property C
Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.
This episode of RIMScast is proudly sponsored by Hillwood. Hillwood is a leading multinational real estate development company and part of the Perot family of companies. For more information, visit Hillwood.com.
In the spirit of #InternationalPodcastDay on Sept. 30, RIMScast was produced live and onsite at the DFW RIMS Fall Conference in Irving, Texas on Sept. 19. You can hear the electricity on the floor of the Irving Convention Center as RIMS members, risk professionals and vendors from the greater Dallas Fort Worth area convened to learn, share knowledge, and network.
Former and current DFW RIMS Presidents join RIMScast today to discuss the state of risk in DFW, Safety, and ERM trends they are noticing, and why this event marks the closing chapter in one book and prepares for an all-new one in 2025.
Key Takeaways:
[:01] About Hillwood, the proud sponsor of this episode of RIMScast.
[:15] About this episode, coming to you live from Irving Texas at the DFW RIMS 2024 Fall Conference and Spa Event. This is the Texas risk roundup; we’re juggling risks and lassoing opportunities.
[:46] This episode is sponsored by Hillwood, a Perot company. Learn more at Hillwood.com.
[:52] It’s an exciting event. It’s also the end of an era for the DFW RIMS Chapter and we’ll talk about that.
[1:07] Events! Visit GreaterBluegrass.RIMS.org to learn more about the Greater Bluegrass Chapter of RIMS and their upcoming annual conference and meeting event, on October 8th and 9th. They’ve got some great speakers lined up. Check out their website and LinkedIn.
[1:35] Last call for the RIMS Western Regional Conference, September 29th through October 1st at the Sun River Resort in Oregon. Register at RIMSWesternRegional.com.
[1:47] The RIMS Canada Conference 2024 is coming up, October 6th through the 9th in Vancouver. Visit RIMSCanadaConference.ca to register.
[1:57] The 2024 RIMS ERM Conference will be held in Boston, Massachusetts on November 18th and 19th. Visit RIMS.org/ERM2024.
[2:10] Interviews! My first guest is the Ex Officio of the DFW RIMS Chapter, LaToya Lee. She is Vice President of Crew Safety at Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers. LaToya Lee, welcome to RIMScast!
[2:33] The DFW RIMS 2024 Fall Conference and Spa Event at the Irving Convention Center is Texas-themed with a carnival. It is electrifying! Justin and LaToya met at the Risk Manager Exclusive Forum Lunch at the conference. It was a lunch for risk managers to speak freely.
[3:43] At the luncheon, LaToya raised an excellent point about an emerging risk from social media. Raising Cane’s has so many employees who are young people on Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat. Raising Cane’s has great policies and procedures to prevent employees from posting.
[5:01] Most employees don’t bring their phones to the restaurant, but if they do, they must store them in their lockers. Raising Cane’s has about 840 locations in the U.S. About 800 are corporate-owned with a few franchise partners. LaToya is the Vice President of Crew Safety.
[5:57] As a fast-casual. Quick-service restaurant, with four menu items, Raising Cane’s is a people business. The Raising Cane’s culture is a fun, cool culture, with disco balls and smiling faces. The crew is in shorts. It’s a family-oriented business. They cater to all.
[7:29] The growth of Raising Cane’s is astronomical. When LaToya started, there were 248 restaurants. LaToya will soon be celebrating her 9th anniversary with Raising Cane’s and there are 800-plus restaurants now.
[8:04] As DFW RIMS Ex Officio, LaToya says the conference turnout is simply amazing. The attendees, vendors, and speakers are phenomenal. The topics of ERM, Work Comp, Property Damage, and Nuclear Verdicts, are everything you want in a one-day conference.
[8:37] What excites LaToya for the next year’s conference is the growth. Having all of the Texas Chapters coming together for one conference in San Antonio is going to be amazing!
[8:55] LaToya, it has been such a pleasure to meet you! I look forward to seeing you in San Antonio and at RISKWORLD 2025! Thank you so much!
[9:10] We are joined by former DFW RIMS Chapter President and a RIMS Global Board Director, Penni Chambers. Hello, Penni!
[9:46] Penni grew up in Texas and has lassoing skills! She moderated a session with the State Office of Risk Management. It was one of the favorite sessions she has moderated. It was lassoing the panelists, keeping them on track, and not going over time, with audience questions!
[10:40] Justin notes that it is International Podcast Day, and this is a special live episode. There’s electricity here at the Conference!
[11:09] Penni thinks the growth of risk management in Texas is in part because of the economic growth in Texas, with big Fortune 500 companies coming into the region. North Texas has grown. The Dallas membership for the DFW RIMS Chapter grows with the companies coming in.
[11:35] Their risk managers want to get to know other risk managers. There is a camaraderie among peers. The marketing effort of the chapter spans decades. The fall conference gives everyone a chance to reconnect and meet new people at events leading up to the conference.
[12:36] It’s exciting to Penni as a seasoned professional to see these young faces and new faces at the Conference. It’s incredible! It’s also bittersweet to Penni that this is the last DFW RIMS Fall Conference, after decades of conferences.
[13:22] Next year, DFW RIMS will team up with the Huston, San Antonio, and Central Texas RIMS Chapters to host the first-ever Texas Regional RIMS Conference, August 4th through 6th, in San Antonio near the Alamo, on the river walk. San Antonio is a beautiful place to kick it off!
[14:21] Penni is excited because she will get to meet members from other chapters. She says the collaboration that’s going to come from this is going to be phenomenal!
[14:53] Penni says they are planning this conference in collaboration with Global RIMS. It’s super exciting. It’s the first time Global RIMS has done something like it for a regional conference. It’s going to be a “drop-dead stunner” of a conference!
[15:17] It has been such a pleasure to sit with you in person to do one of these interviews for International Podcast Day! You did a wonderful job moderating this morning. I want to thank you and thank Hillwood for being our sponsor for this episode! I’ll see you at RISKWORLD 2025!
[15:44] I wanted to close out this RIMScast episode with some symmetry. We had two former DFW RIMS Presidents on the show today. We will close it out with the current DFW RIMS President, Emily Casso Ford, who has been fantastic to work with.
[16:05] Emily has led sessions and in many ways has been the face of the conference. I wanted to hear from her directly, not just about DFW RIMS but also to discuss her experiences in the ERM space. She leads ERM at Globe Life.
[16:23] We’re also going to talk about her experience with the RIMS-CRMP and how it is impacting her overall organization. Let’s get to it!
[16:37] I’m joined by the President of the DFW RIMS Chapter, Emily Casso Ford! Welcome to RIMScast! We have had such a great time for these last 36 hours or so! We’re talking at the very end of the final DFW RIMS Annual Conference. How does it feel, now that you’re done?
[17:06] Emily says she feels fantastic! She gives a shout-out to the Conference Chair, Chapter Vice President Marissa Holland, who did an outstanding job! This conference is our best yet!
[18:12] Emily gives an overview of her work at Globe Life for the last two-and-a-half years. She started as an island of one leading an ERM function, explaining to C-Suite and board why risk management matters. The board believed in it and demanded that the ERM function expand.
[18:41] Emily started hiring. She had great buy-in from the top. She spearheaded a program in a company that just needed to get around a table and talk about what the risks are and what they look like. Emily refers to ERM as getting comfortable talking about the elephant in the room.
[19:18] Emily started a Risk Liaison Program to work with areas of the organization that weren’t represented on the ERM Committee. She asked the members of the ERM Committee to identify the leaders on their teams who understand the emerging risks on the horizon.
[19:52] These people, the Risk Liaisons, would come together to have good conversations about what those emerging risks look like. They are up to 43 Risk Liaisons, from all across the enterprise of over 3,000 full-time employees. Globe Life is a $6 billion company.
[20:30] All the functions of the company are represented among the Risk Liaisons. Emily’s goal was to pass the mic and give people a voice who hadn’t had a voice or a seat at the table to share the insight and perspectives they have. They are closer to the work that’s being done.
[21:02] They sometimes see the risks coming faster than the folks in upper leadership do. Emily wants to champion that and give them a voice.
[21:21] Emily says the ERM team wants to make sure they share the risks with the board in the right way, giving them the information they need and desire. That changes from quarter to quarter. They are constantly on a trajectory or increased maturity.
[22:16] Some of you listening may recognize Emily Casso Ford as one of our more recent RIMS-CRMP Story interviewees. Emily has an update. Her entire ERM team at Globe Life has now earned the certification of RIMS-CRMP. She’s very proud of each member of the team.
[23:00] Emily’s boss, the SVP of Risk at Globe Life, provided the impetus for the team members to obtain the RIMS-CRMP. The Globe Life Chief Risk Officer fully supported the ERM team members each getting the RIMS-CRMP certification. It showcases their expertise in the industry.
[23:39] The Make-a-Wish Foundation received at least $5,500 in donations at the DFW RIMS Conference this year. A match is expected from a generous benefactor.
[24:04] This has been a great way to close out a wonderful tradition and start a new one. I want to thank you for inviting me! It’s a real privilege to be here! I want to thank Hillwood, a Perot Company, for sponsoring this episode.
[24:26] Emily, you’re doing a great job as President of the DFW RIMS Branch! We look forward to more great work from you!
[24:36] Special thanks to all of my RIMScast guests here who attended the DFW RIMS Annual Fall Conference and Spa Event. A very special thank you to Marissa Holland, DFW RIMS Vice President. As Emily said, she was the unsung hero of this year’s event. She’s fantastic!
[24:55] Visit DFWRIMS.org for more information and to learn more about the Texas RIMS Regional 2025 Conference, which will be held in San Antonio from August 4th through the 6th.
[25:06] We are very grateful for our sponsor, Hillwood, a Perot Company. Visit Hillwood.com for more information. A link is on this page.
[25:18] It’s RIMS Plug Time! The RIMS App is available to RIMS members exclusively. Go to the App Store and download the RIMS App with all sorts of RIMS resources and coverage. It’s different from the RIMS Events App. Everyone loves the RIMS App!
[25:50] You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show, or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are in our show notes. RIMScast has a global audience of risk and insurance professionals, legal professionals, students, business leaders, C-Suite executives, and more. Let’s collaborate and help you reach them! Contact [email protected] for more information.
[26:31] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email [email protected] for more information.
[26:48] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today’s risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more.
[27:04] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management.
[27:17] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. You can email Justin at [email protected].
[27:24] Thank you for your continued support and engagement on social media channels! We appreciate all your kind words. Listen every week! Stay safe!
Mentioned in this Episode:
About our sponsor, Hillwood: Hillwood.com
RIMS ERM Conference 2024 will be in Boston, MA Nov. 18‒19 | Register Now
RIMS Western Regional — Sept 29‒Oct 1, Oregon | Registration is open!
RIMS Canada Conference 2024 — Oct. 6‒9 | Registration is open!
RIMS Greater Bluegrass Chapter Annual Meeting & Conference — Oct 8‒9 | Last call for Registration
RIMS DEI Council
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RIMS Strategic & Enterprise Risk Center
NEW FOR MEMBERS! RIMS Mobile App
Spencer Internship Grants — Deadline Oct. 15
The Strategic and Enterprise Risk Center
RIMS-CRMP Stories — New interviews featuring DFW RIMS President Emily Casso Ford!
RIMS Webinars:
The Future of RMIS: Beyond Traditional Approaches | Sponsored by Archer | Sept. 26, 2024
Mastering ERM: Leveraging Internal and External Risk Factors for Strategic Advantage | Sponsored by Diligent | Oct. 3, 2024
Long-Term Property Strategies for a Resilient Future | Sponsored by Zurich | Oct. 10, 2024
From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures | Sponsored by Hub International | Oct. 24, 2024
Lessons from Veterans on Strategic Risk Leadership | Presented by RIMS | Nov. 4, 2024
Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape | Sponsored by Marsh | Nov. 14, 2024 RIMS.org/Webinars
Upcoming Virtual Workshops:
Applying and Integrating ERM | Sept 25‒26 and Dec 4‒5
Fundamentals of Risk Management | Oct 3‒4, 2024
Fundamentals of Insurance | Oct 9‒10, 2024
See the full calendar of RIMS Virtual Workshops
RIMS-CRMP Prep Workshops
Related RIMScast Episodes: “Bigger Risks with the Texas State Office of Risk Management” | Sponsored By Hillwood
Sponsored RIMScast Episodes:
“Weathering Today’s Property Claims Management Challenges” | Sponsored by AXA XL (New!)
“Storm Prep 2024: The Growing Impact of Convective Storms and Hail” | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company (New!)
“Partnering Against Cyberrisk” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Harnessing the Power of Data and Analytics for Effective Risk Management” | Sponsored by Marsh
“Accident Prevention — The Winning Formula For Construction and Insurance” | Sponsored by Otoos
“Platinum Protection: Underwriting and Risk Engineering's Role in Protecting Commercial Properties” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Elevating RMIS — The Archer Way” | Sponsored by Archer
“Alliant’s P&C Outlook For 2024” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Why Subrogation is the New Arbitration” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyclone Season: Proactive Preparation for Loss Minimization” | Sponsored by Prudent Insurance Brokers Ltd.
“Subrogation and the Competitive Advantage” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyberrisk Outlook 2023” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Chemical Industry: How To Succeed Amid Emerging Risks and a Challenging Market” | Sponsored by TÜV SÜD
“Insuring the Future of the Environment” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Insights into the Gig Economy and its Contractors” | Sponsored by Zurich
“The Importance of Disaster Planning Relationships” | Sponsored by ServiceMaster
RIMS Publications, Content, and Links:
RIMS Membership — Whether you are a new member or need to transition, be a part of the global risk management community!
RIMS Virtual Workshops
On-Demand Webinars
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RISK PAC | RIMS Advocacy
RIMS Events, Education, and Services:
RIMS Risk Maturity Model®
RIMS Events App Apple | Google Play
Sponsor RIMScast: Contact [email protected] or [email protected] for more information.
Want to Learn More?
Keep up with the podcast on RIMS.org and listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Have a question or suggestion? Email: [email protected].
Join the Conversation!
Follow @RIMSorg on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
About our guests: LaToya Lee, Vice President of Crew Safety at Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers and DFW RIMS Ex Officio
Penni Chambers, Vice President of Risk Management at Hillwood. Penni is also a former DFW RIMS President. She is currently a RIMS Board Director.
Emily Casso Ford, Esq., RIMS-CRMP, VP of Enterprise Risk at Globe Life. Emily is also the DFW RIMS President.
Postables (Edited For Social Media Use):
Kids like to be on their cell phones. They like TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat. At Raising Cane’s, we have good policies and procedures to help guide our young crew to be the best fry cook cashiers they can be, put their cell phones up, and stay off social media. — LaToya Lee
It’s exciting to me as a seasoned professional to see these young faces and new faces at the DFW RIMS Conference. This is incredible! — Penni Chambers
The people who are in that first line are closer to the work that’s being done and they sometimes see the risks coming faster than the folks in upper leadership do. We want to champion that. We want to give them a voice. — Emily Casso Ford, Esq.
As our function grows, we are constantly on a trajectory of increased maturity. — Emily Casso Ford, Esq.
Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.
Justin Smulison interviews Michael Zuraw about his career in risk management, including how the CHIPS Act impacts him and what it takes to lead ERM at a semiconductor manufacturer.
Justin asks about Michael’s RIMS ERM Award win, how new leadership at Onsemi has reacted to the program, how involved new leadership is in ERM, and how the program has changed since the win. Michael tells about his ERM 2024 sessions and how he likes his work with the SERMC.
Listen for ERM tips for improvement for your organization.
Key Takeaways:
[:01] About RIMS.
[:15] About this episode. Our guest is Michael Zuraw of On Semiconductor. He’s a past recipient of the ERM Award of Distinction. We will discuss what it takes to maintain an award-winning ERM program.
[:41] Events! This is the last call for the RIMS Chicago Chapter’s Chicagoland Risk Forum, which will be held on September 19th, 2024 at the Old Post office. There is no charge for risk management professionals or risk department staff! Register at ChicagolandRiskForum.org.
[1:05] We are just a few weeks away from the RIMS Canada Conference 2024 which will be held from October 6th through the 9th in Vancouver. Visit RIMSCanadaConference.ca to register.
[1:19] Registration is also open for the RIMS Western Regional, which will be held from September 29th through October 1st at the Sun River Resort in Oregon. Register at RIMSWesternRegional.com.
[1:33] We want you to join us in Boston on November 18th and 19th for the RIMS ERM Conference 2024. The full agenda is live. It runs the gamut of ERM. Check it out! A link to register is on this page.
[1:49] All RIMS regional conference information can be found on the Events page at RIMS.org.
[1:55] RIMS-CRMP-FED! The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be hosted along with George Mason University from December 3rd through the 5th. Links to these courses can be found through the certification page of RIMS.org and this episode’s show notes.
[2:12] RIMS Virtual Workshops! On October 9th and 10th, Chris Hansen returns to deliver Fundamentals of Insurance. He’s very popular in the Workers’ Comp space.
[2:30] In our prior episode, we had Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting join us. She will be leading two upcoming courses for us. On September 25th and 26th, we’ve got Applying and Integrating ERM and on October 3rd and 4th, we have Fundamentals of Risk Management.
[2:47] Other dates for the Fall and Winter are available on the Virtual Workshops Calendar of RIMS.org/virtualworkshops.
[2:56] Interview! Our guest today, Michael Zuraw, is a member of our Strategic and Enterprise Risk Management Council and is the Senior Director for Global Enterprise Risk Management at On Semiconductor.
[3:16] I met Michael at the RIMS ERM Conference 2019 in New Orleans, where he accepted an ERM Global Award of Distinction honor for the program he leads at Onsemi. I wanted to catch up with him now and see how the program is evolving under new company leadership.
[3:38] Michael will be presenting or co-presenting three sessions at the RIMS ERM Conference 2024 in Boston, so we’ll talk all about that and we’ll get his philosophies on what it takes to keep an award-winning ERM program going strong in 2024. Michael Zuraw, welcome to RIMScast!
[4:21] Michael shares his memories of the RIMS ERM Conference 2019 at the Roosevelt Hotel in New Orleans. That was his first RIMS ERM event. He notes how collaborative ERM professionals are, whatever their industry or employer.
[5:30] Justin and Michael collaborated on an interview for the ERM Q&A series. A link is in this interview’s show notes. Since then, they have met at RISKWORLD and ERM Conferences. Michael feels honored to serve on the RIMS Strategic and Enterprise Risk Management Council.
[6:15] Michael is the co-author of two upcoming RIMS Executive Reports and White Papers. The first is part of a series of scenario-planning guides, about the Pre-Mortem Exercise to unlock some risk identification and help to manage biases and risks that might cause you to fail.
[7:00] The second paper is on risk interdependencies or interconnectedness. Risks don’t stay in silos. We have risk registers by which we manage and organize risks, but generally, we underestimate risk because we don’t account for the cascading effect of risk events.
[7:45] Justin will update the show notes for this episode to reflect when these two papers come out. After September, listeners can check out the show notes and download these papers.
[8:15] Michael has been in ERM at Onsemi for 10 years. His bachelor’s and master’s degrees are in electrical engineering. He worked in telecom before semiconductors. He worked on the business management side.
[8:45] When Onsemi formalized its ERM program, it named a Chief Risk Officer. Michael had a conversation with him. If risk is going to be treated as part of a strategy, Michael was interested. If it was a governance or reporting function, it wasn’t for Michael.
[9:08] The Chief Risk Officer had a similar philosophy. He delegated putting the program together to Michael and supported him with what he needed. Michael had a lot of freedom. He’s been doing it ever since.
[9:54] Michael discusses how the CHIPS Act impacts Onsemi. They have a government affairs group to focus on that. Michael is always looking at what parts of their manufacturing and infrastructure need to expand.
[10:25] The CHIPS Act provides an incentive for doing more pieces in the U.S. There are similar programs in other countries where Onsemi has a footprint. Onsemi is in 10 countries with 20-plus manufacturing sites and more, including sales and support functions.
[10:50] Michael says they’re always reviewing their footprint, where they need to expand, and how. Expanding the manufacturing of semiconductors takes tens of millions of dollars and years to build. When there is government support, every semiconductor company takes note.
[11:46] Onsemi is a tech-heavy, engineering-heavy global company with 30,000 employees. You have to get very analytical with the engineering group.
[12:33] Engineers are trained to solve problems full-speed ahead, using key assumptions they have in their heads. Michael is asking the organization to step back and hear what those assumptions are first. An assumption may be based 90% in fact but 10% in uncertainty.
[13:19] Michael asks the organization to discuss the 10% probability that the opposite is true. That’s where the risk lies. Can they make that 10% likelihood into 2%? That’s risk mitigation.
[13:34] In tech-heavy industries, we acknowledge and respect engineering training to solve problems, drive solutions, and work within their vocabulary. How do we put a risk framework into that model so the company’s risk profile can be improved? It takes time.
[14:02] Is Michael a patient person? It depends! More often than not.
[14:53] When Michael won the ERM Global Award of Distinction for the ERM program at Onsemi, the Chief Risk Officer called the Chairman of the Board and the Risk Committee to let them know of the Award. It was vindication that the company was going in the right direction.
[15:34] The Risk department felt they were seeing the positive impact of the ERM Program. They saw the industry felt the emerging risk topic they submitted with their application was innovative and positive.
[15:55] That program within the ERM Program was well-regarded within the company and led people to think about the future and get into an open discussion. People wanted to participate.
[16:30] About four years ago, Onsemi’s long-time COO retired and new leadership came in. Michael tells how the ERM Program changed with the new leadership. They were much more focused on accountability and ownership. They wanted to remove self-reporting.
[18:47] It’s RIMS Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! On September 19th, Origami Risk returns to deliver Leveraging Integrated Risk Management For Strategic Advantage. On September 26th, Archer returns to discuss The Future of RMIS: Beyond Traditional Approaches.
[19:07] On October 3rd, Diligent will host Mastering ERM: Leveraging Internal and External Risk Factors for Strategic Advantage. On October 10th, Zurich returns to present Long-Term Property Strategies for a Resilient Future.
[19:24] On October 24th, HUB International returns for the fourth installment of their Ready for Tomorrow series, From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures.
[19:37] On November 4th, Justin will be hosting a special RIMS Webinar Presentation, Lessons from Veterans on Strategic Risk Leadership. That session will feature insights and perspectives from risk managers who had previously served in the U.S. Armed Services.
[19:56] More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. As always, registration is complimentary for RIMS members.
[20:08] The Spencer Educational Foundation’s goal is to help build a talent pipeline of risk management and insurance professionals. That is achieved, in part, by a collaboration with risk management and insurance educators across the U.S. and Canada.
[20:23] Whether you want to apply for a grant, participate in the Risk Manager on Campus program, or just learn more about Spencer, visit SpencerEd.org.
[20:33] On that note, applications are being accepted for internship grants. Since 1999, Spenser has awarded over $2.7 million in internship grants to over 540 recipients. To be eligible, risk managers must be based in the United States, Canada, or Bermuda.
[20:51] The application deadline is October 15th, 2024. Awardees are typically notified at the beginning of December. A link to the Internship Grants page is in this episode’s show notes.
[21:05] Let’s Return to My Interview with Michael Zuraw!
[21:23] The program shifted with new management to an open 45-minute interview. Michael doesn’t ask individuals about any specific risk but starts them talking about their concerns relative to company strategy and execution.
[21:42] It’s much more challenging to analyze the input from the interview but it identifies items the company might otherwise miss.
[21:52] The issues are ranked and tiered. Then it comes down to assigning ownership and accountability. Leaders pick out issues each year and assign cross-functional teams with action plans to address them. Bonus goals are tied to the plans.
[22:16] Depending on what the company, the board, and the risk committees want to focus on, the teams must be comfortable with making adjustments. The program and ERM managers can be successful as the shifts happen. Be open-minded to new approaches and ideas. Be flexible.
[23:10] Onsemi just finished its fourth cycle of interviews and action teams, as the ERM program is in its 10th year. In its first five years, it had reached maturity. Then under new management, it took time to adapt to the interviews and analyze the data.
[23:48] Michael says, now in our fourth cycle of interviews, our maturity level is back up. We have good interactions with the board and several committees within the board. We have an executive risk committee that we function very well with. We’re much more efficient in doing it.
[24:11] Onsemi has integrated some AI processing of interviews. Michael has himself and a staff of two. As they get more efficient, they conduct better interviews because they’re not worried about taking notes and getting the notes right.
[24:35] As the ERM program matures, the ERM managers get better at their jobs and their interviewees get better at identifying risks.
[24:52] At the ERM Conference on November 18th Michael will lead two sessions. He will lead the “Dancing with Uncertainty” morning session. Michael says this is a discussion on decision process, decision-making, decision quality, and risk.
[25:26] It’s not uncommon for executives to believe that the higher the title, the better the decision-making skill. Michael disagrees. There is an approach of discipline in decision-making that allows you to understand uncertainty and how it leads to risk.
[26:00] Michael often says that if everyone in your company, from janitor to CEO and everyone in between, were 20% more disciplined in how they make decisions, your company would be doing quite a bit better. So, what discipline can be applied to decision-making to reduce risk?
[26:29] In the afternoon, a member of Michael’s staff, Alicia Tuckett, will present “The Illusion of Insight: Why Risk Interviews Fail to Deliver,” on how to do open-ended interviews, analyze the conversational input, and turn it into risk statements, risk categories, and data to analyze.
[29:23] Michael hopes to solicit the crowd for ideas to evolve the ERM program even more.
[29:33] Michael will host another session that day with his SERMC colleague Denise Sobczak, “Pre-Mortem or Post-Mortem. If You Were a Patient, Which Would You Choose?” on scenario planning to weed out risks by thinking of everything that might go wrong before it does.
[31:11] Michael calls having a Pre-Mortem a great tool. It’s efficient and not expensive to run. It doesn’t take much time. It’s one of the biggest bang-for-the-buck scenario approaches for risk management.
[31:22] At the ERM Conference 2023, Denise co-presented on the scenario planning sessions. You are in for quality discussions at the RIMS ERM Conference 2024, for all sessions. Michael’s insight will be invaluable.
[32:02] Justin tells Michael it has been such a pleasure to have him here on RIMScast! Justin will update this episode’s show notes with the links to Michael’s two papers coming in the Fall. He looks forward to seeing Michael on November 18th and 19th.
[32:19] Justin thanks Michael for being such a valuable contributor to the SERMC at RIMS. Michael says he learns something new every time he gets together with the council.
[32:42] Special thanks again to Michael Zuraw for joining us here on RIMScast. Michael has two RIMS reports that will be published on the Risk Knowledge page of RIMS.org in the next couple of weeks. Check back then on this episode’s show notes for the updated links.
[33:03] Michael will be presenting or co-presenting three sessions at the RIMS ERM Conference 2024 on November 18th, starting in the morning with “Dancing with Uncertainty,” and then in the afternoon with “The Illusion of Insight: Why Risk Interviews Fail to Deliver.”
[33:24] Michael will help close out the day with “Pre-Mortem or Post-Mortem. If You Were a Patient, Which Would You Choose?”
[33:31] There is also a link in this interview’s show notes to Michael’s ERM Q&A based on his 2019 win of the ERM Award of Distinction.
[33:44] There are lots of resources here today, especially for all you ERM fans out there! Check them out!
[33:50] It’s RIMS plug time! The RIMS App is available to RIMS members exclusively. Go to the App Store and download the RIMS App with all sorts of RIMS resources and coverage. It’s different from the RIMS Events App. Everyone loves the RIMS App!
[34:23] You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show, or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are in our show notes. RIMScast has a global audience of risk and insurance professionals, legal professionals, students, business leaders, C-Suite executives, and more. Let’s collaborate and help you reach them! Contact [email protected] for more information.
[35:08] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email [email protected] for more information.
[35:26] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today’s risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more.
[35:42] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management.
[35:56] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. You can email Justin at [email protected].
[36:03] Thank you for your continued support and engagement on social media channels! We appreciate all your kind words. Listen every week! Stay safe!
Mentioned in this Episode:
RIMS ERM Conference 2024 will be in Boston, MA Nov. 18‒19 | Register Now
DFW RIMS 2024 Fall Conference and Spa Event | Sept 19‒20
Chicagoland Risk Forum 2024 — Presented by RIMS Chicago Chapter — Sept. 19, 2024
RIMS Western Regional — Sept 29‒Oct 1, Oregon | Registration is open!
RIMS Canada Conference 2024 — Oct. 6‒9 | Registration is open!
RIMS DEI Council
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RIMS Strategic & Enterprise Risk Center
NEW FOR MEMBERS! RIMS Mobile App
RISK PAC | RIMS Advocacy
Spencer Internship Grants — Deadline Oct. 15
The Strategic and Enterprise Risk Center
Truly Long-Term Strategic Risk Management in Focus — RIMS Q&A with Michael Zuraw (2019)
RIMS Webinars:
Leveraging Integrated Risk Management For Strategic Advantage | Sponsored by Origami Risk | Sept. 19, 2024
The Future of RMIS: Beyond Traditional Approaches | Sponsored by Archer | Sept. 26, 2024
Mastering ERM: Leveraging Internal and External Risk Factors for Strategic Advantage | Sponsored by Diligent | Oct. 3, 2024
Long-Term Property Strategies for a Resilient Future | Sponsored by Zurich | Oct. 10, 2024
From AI to the SEC: The Future of D&O Litigation and Regulatory Exposures | Sponsored by Hub International | Oct. 24, 2024
Lessons from Veterans on Strategic Risk Leadership | Presented by RIMS | Nov. 4, 2024
Risk Perception and Management: Insights for a Changing Landscape | Sponsored by Marsh | Nov. 14, 2024 RIMS.org/Webinars
Upcoming Virtual Workshops:
Applying and Integrating ERM | Sept 25‒26 and Dec 4‒5
Fundamentals of Risk Management | Oct 3‒4, 2024
Fundamentals of Insurance | Oct 9-10, 2024
See the full calendar of RIMS Virtual Workshops
RIMS-CRMP Prep Workshops
Related RIMScast Episodes:
“Applying ERM Theory with Elise Farnham”
“On Risk Appetite and Tolerance” with the RIMS SERMC
“Climate Disclosures with Jana Utter”
“Scenario Planning with the RIMS SERMC”
“Recipes for Success with Wendy’s CRO Bob Bowman”
“All Roads Lead to ERM”
“ERM’s Value Proposition with Chris Mandel”
Sponsored RIMScast Episodes:
“Weathering Today’s Property Claims Management Challenges” | Sponsored by AXA XL (New!)
“Storm Prep 2024: The Growing Impact of Convective Storms and Hail” | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company (New!)
“Partnering Against Cyberrisk” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Harnessing the Power of Data and Analytics for Effective Risk Management” | Sponsored by Marsh
“Accident Prevention — The Winning Formula For Construction and Insurance” | Sponsored by Otoos
“Platinum Protection: Underwriting and Risk Engineering's Role in Protecting Commercial Properties” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Elevating RMIS — The Archer Way” | Sponsored by Archer
“Alliant’s P&C Outlook For 2024” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Why Subrogation is the New Arbitration” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyclone Season: Proactive Preparation for Loss Minimization” | Sponsored by Prudent Insurance Brokers Ltd.
“Subrogation and the Competitive Advantage” | Sponsored by Fleet Response
“Cyberrisk Outlook 2023” | Sponsored by Alliant
“Chemical Industry: How To Succeed Amid Emerging Risks and a Challenging Market” | Sponsored by TÜV SÜD
“Insuring the Future of the Environment” | Sponsored by AXA XL
“Insights into the Gig Economy and its Contractors” | Sponsored by Zurich
“The Importance of Disaster Planning Relationships” | Sponsored by ServiceMaster
RIMS Publications, Content, and Links:
RIMS Membership — Whether you are a new member or need to transition, be a part of the global risk management community!
RIMS Virtual Workshops
On-Demand Webinars
RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)
RIMS-CRMP Stories — New interviews featuring DFW RIMS President Emily Casso Ford!
RIMS Events, Education, and Services:
RIMS Risk Maturity Model®
RIMS Events App Apple | Google Play
Sponsor RIMScast: Contact [email protected] or [email protected] for more information.
Want to Learn More?
Keep up with the podcast on RIMS.org and listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Have a question or suggestion? Email: [email protected].
Join the Conversation!
Follow @RIMSorg on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
About our guest:
Michael Zuraw, Senior Director of Global Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) at onsemi / ON Semiconductor
Tweetables (Edited For Social Media Use):
Uncertainty underlies every decision. An assumption may be 90% dead-on. There’s a 10% probability that exactly the opposite is true and we should discuss that. That’s where the risk lies. Can we make that 10% likelihood into 2%? That’s what risk mitigation is. — Michael Zuraw
Now in our fourth cycle of interviews, our maturity level is back up. We have good interactions with the board and several committees within the board, as well. We have an executive risk committee that we function very well with. We’re much more efficient. — Michael Zuraw
As we mature in the program, we get better at our jobs and our interviewees get better at identifying risks. — Michael Zuraw
If everyone in your company, from janitor to CEO and everyone in between, were 20% more disciplined in how they make decisions, your company would be doing quite a bit better. — Michael Zuraw
The podcast currently has 315 episodes available.
4,236 Listeners
3,167 Listeners
16,799 Listeners
3,861 Listeners
988 Listeners
59,233 Listeners
111,359 Listeners
56,368 Listeners
13,938 Listeners
986 Listeners
5,787 Listeners
772 Listeners
7,680 Listeners
1,957 Listeners
9,022 Listeners