Risks are highly dominant in financial institutions. For instance, market, data management, operational and credit risks are among the top risks for banks and capital markets in 2022.
Since risk is this prevalent, it’s critical to develop an effective risk management system that is sufficient to combat, prevent and manage risks effectively. Following the fundamental principles of risk management is how to develop a risk management process that proactively manages economic threats, prevents loss of resources, and protects the organization’s reputation.
However, risk management is never a one-size-fits-all since every organization’s goals, and needs differ. While all financial institutions manage risks differently, nine critical risk management principles are essential for any project.
This article discusses these crucial principles and why they are essential for implementing an effective risk management process.
Let’s start with a quick definition.
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What are risk management principles?
Risk management principles are core values or strategies established to execute risk management activities successfully. They are structured, organized, and practical frameworks that guide financial experts in efficient risk management. Implementing risk management principles allows organizations to identify, control, prevent and recover from financial risks.
Best risk management practices in the finance industry
Specific risk management activities are crucial to developing a practical risk management process. Here are the best tips to successfully prevent, manage and recover from risks as a financial institution.
1. Adopt risk parity
Risk parity is a risk investment approach that focuses on allocating risks rather than capital allocation. Essentially, it adjusts the modern portfolio theory investment approach through leverage. Modern portfolio theory (MPT) diversifies an investment portfolio by optimizing returns and sticking to market risk parameters.
However, with risk parity ETFs, financial investors can use a similar capital proportion of asset classes to diversify based on their preferences. Primarily, risk parity allows investors to leverage alternative diversification and short selling. However, rather than gather allocation based on different classes for optimal risk target, the risk parity approach adopts optimal risk target level to determine their investment practices.
Therefore, adopt a risk parity approach when investing to generate incremental returns and choose various assets for investment. Also, adopting risk parity will allow you to use the same risk distribution strategy for multiple investments.
2. Use transaction fraud detection tools
Transaction fraud, also known as payment fraud, is a common fraudulent practice that exposes financial institutions to risks. Fraudulent people pay for services with stolen payment information, leading to unauthorized transactions. So, financial institutions suffer from this fraudulent practice through charge penalties, processing fees, etc.
Therefore, adopting a fraud detection tool is best to prevent transaction fraud. For example, you can use DataDome, a transaction fraud detection tool, to safeguard websites, mobile apps, and APIs against card tracking, fake account creation, scraping, etc.
Companies can adopt this fraud detection software to protect their business and secure their customers. They’ll also have real-time access to reports that allow them to detect fraudulent activities, recover, and save time on security practices.
3. Identify risks early
Early risk identification can help your team combat emerging risks effectively. It mitigates damage and minimizes the resources and time you spend fixing the damage fraudulent practices, breaches, or error cause. In addition, identifying risks early will help companies control the effects and prevent threats from escalating uncontrollably.
Therefore, adopt various risk management tools to detect risks quickly. You can also organize preventive measures for rapid response when risks are identified.
4. Distribute clear responsibilities
While a project manager can handle risk management practices, they are mostly inclusive. The process involves stakeholders, team members, and other concerned employees. However, while inclusiveness is great, it gets overwhelming if roles are not distributed among the team.
Therefore, clearly define roles among the departments responsible for identifying and mitigating risks. Communicate effectively, and ensure active collaboration. The precise distribution of functions also aids productivity. Essentially, workers are clear on their responsibilities, facilitating the process and boosting efficiency.
5. Practice continuous risk review
Risk management is a continuous activity. Reviewing risk management strategies will keep the organization up-to-date with the resources and practices they need to combat evolving risks.
Therefore, create a schedule that enables regular risk review. Doing this will help you detect potential risks and adopt proactive measures to curb them.
So, keep every team member updated and report changes across each step of the risk management process. Continuous risk review will help you identify loopholes in the risk management system and make necessary changes. It also ensures effective collaboration and communication among team members.
9 best risk management principles in the finance industry
The following are primary financial risk management principles to implement in your organization for successful risk management procedures. Running your organization according to these principles will help you analyze, evaluate, and manage risks effectively.
1. Integrate risk management across all processes
Integration is among the most critical risk management principles in helping financial organizations manage risks effectively. While many companies separate their financial risk management system from their company policies, it’s crucial to integrate risk management practices with other companies' activities.
Integrating risk management practices at every stage of your company's operations helps the company make better decisions. It also enables organizations to identify mistakes and risks quickly. Consequently, they can make decisions that boost the organization’s growth.
2. Create a customizable risk management strategy
Another crucial attribute of a financial risk management principle is customization. Every financial organization has different needs and structures. Therefore, risk management practices shouldn’t be general. Instead, you must tailor them to fit the company’s objectives and unique structure.
Customizable financial risk management practices make it easier for the company to adapt during changes. Rather than sticking to a specific method, they can structure the existing strategy to suit the company’s risk management needs.
3. Include all members
It’s critical to include every team member in the risk management process. This includes stakeholders, employees, and others influencing the organization’s decision-making process. Bringing everyone together will allow you to examine various views and opinions when developing a risk management strategy that works best for the organization.
Additionally, including the team in the risk management process will enable them to implement the strategies seamlessly across their various departments. They will be updated regularly about changes, and new development, to act accordingly. This way, every member can follow the risk management practices you’ve designed for the organization.
4. Create a dynamic process
Risk management practices should be dynamic. The financial landscape is constantly evolving, and so are the risks involved. Therefore, your financial institution’s risk management process must be flexible enough to accommodate unprecedented changes.
In addition, the company must be able to anticipate, detect, and recover from all types of risk, whether existing, new, or outdated. Therefore, creating a dynamic risk management system will allow the organization to adjust to different risks efficiently.
5. Enable continuous improvement
An effective risk management process is an ongoing activity. Therefore it must be open to changes and continuous improvement as your financial organization’s needs evolve. Also, it’s best to regularly refine risk management practices to improve their effectiveness in combating emerging risks. Therefore, adopt new strategies and techniques to help your organization tackle various risk management issues.
6. Harness technology
Excellent risk management processes must leverage technology to combat financial challenges. Financial experts can harness technology to gather insights about existing risk causes and how to create practical risk management strategies to manage them. Adopting technology will also allow financial institutions to identify, analyze, and review risks efficiently.
So, ensure your risk management practices are technology inclined. Establishing a risk management system that utilizes technology eliminates drudgery while producing more accurate results. It also allows the company to plan for financial risks proactively.
7. Use valuable information
The best risk management processes adopt the most relevant information to create the best results. For example, it adopts past and present data to predict future incidents. It also identifies the errors and shortcomings in past and existing data to make necessary improvements. In addition, a robust risk management system makes information readily available for users who need it.
8. Consider human limitations
An effective risk management process considers the limitations and concerns of the individuals mitigating and controlling the risks. It also evaluates the company’s objectives, infrastructure, and capabilities to adopt the most suitable practices. Considering human abilities and the company’s resources and goals will help the team build a risk management process that is practical and effective.
9. Create a structure
Excellent risk management processes are organized and comprehensive. They help users prioritize information and operations by arranging the data according to their level of importance.
For example, a well-structured risk management system will allow users to focus on higher risks before less severe risks. Consequently, the organization can manage risks effectively to safeguard the company against losses.
Control risks in your financial institution
Financial institutions are primarily associated with risks. However, adopting specific principles can help companies manage risks effectively. For example, the best financial risk management system is integrated, customizable, inclusive, and dynamic. In addition, it is open to continuous improvement, is technology-focused, well-structured, and considers human limitations. Therefore, apply these crucial principles to establish a risk management process that works for your financial institution.
Author Bio:
Lydia Iseh is a professional writer with more than 5 years of experience in creating top-notch SEO content that provides value to the reader. She is a verified author on over 100 websites, a feat she achieved by producing informative and captivating pieces. When she’s not writing, she can be found relaxing at the beach or catching up on a TV show. You can reach her through bit.ly/3g0B8sS or via email at lydiaiseh@gmail.com to discuss your content needs.