In this episode of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the GRC Technology Galaxy, Michael Rasmussen is joined by Gary Lynam, Managing Director for EMEA at Protecht, to trace the unlikely but influential journey of one of the GRC universe’s quiet constants.

The conversation begins in Australia, a place with an outsized impact on modern risk thinking, exploring how the AS/NZS 4360 Standard laid the groundwork for what would later become ISO 31000, and how that legacy continues to shape Protecht’s philosophy today. From those roots, they unpack Protecht’s evolution from a strong mid-market specialist into a global platform increasingly serving large, complex enterprises.

Gary and Michael dig into the difference between real risk management and checkbox compliance theater, discussing where organizations go wrong, what good risk management actually looks like in practice, and where Protecht fits across domains such as enterprise risk, operational risk, resilience, controls, and regulatory obligations. They also explore Protecht’s Marketplace model and how it differentiates the platform by allowing organizations to grow risk capability without forcing a one-size-fits-all approach.

The discussion then turns to Protecht’s AI journey, including Cognita, and how the company is approaching AI deliberately as a decision-support capability grounded in risk expertise, not hype. Finally, Gary shares what to expect over the next one to two years, from platform evolution to market direction, and where Protecht sees itself heading as risk management continues to mature globally.

In a galaxy crowded with frameworks, dashboards, and compliance noise, this episode offers a reassuring message straight from the Guide itself: Don’t panic.