Organisations need to re-think approach to people risk, says Airmic

Airmic, the UK risk management association, has called on organisations to take a more integrated approach to managing people risk and is encouraging risk professionals, human resource and benefits managers to work more closely together to manage people-related risks.

Managing Risk – The Human Factor, published today in association with Arthur D. Little, Willis Towers Watson and Zurich, warns that organisations are entering an era of unprecedented volatility with regards to people risk and the most successful organisations will be those which take a new and more sophisticated approach.

The guide is the first of its kind and presents a new perspective for managing people-related risks. Rather than creating a new risk category, it applies a people-centred view to show how a broad range of existing risks, traditionally treated as separate and managed by different processes can be integrated into a coherent framework.

It includes practical advice on how risk and HR professionals can work together to take people risk out of its siloes, and how risk professionals can add strategic value to an organisation’s employee benefits strategy.

When successful, the approach outlined in the report will provide new insights, offer additional opportunities to control risk and increase the value derived from risk management activities, the report says.

“Risk professionals have tended to think about people risk as risk to employees, whereas HR professionals tend to view it as the risk to the organisation from human factors,” comments Julia Graham, Airmic’s deputy CEO and technical director. “Both perspectives are equally important, so it was surprising to us how little interaction there is between the two functions. Risk and HR can really support each other and enhance the strategic value of their roles.”

To download the report CLICK HERE