Ability to quantify risks

Risk management is the process of identifying, assessing and managing potential issues that could have a negative impact on an organization’s business operations and financial performance. It involves being mindful of potential risks and what could go wrong — both the expected and the unexpected. Risk managers must be aware of all forms of risk…

Risk management requires constant education and keeping up with relevant news, trends and issues. Not so long ago, no one had heard of ransomware. Now, it’s one of the greatest cybersecurity threats that companies face. News sites and industry journals should be regular reading material for risk managers.

After preparing the ranked list of risks, a risk manager then needs to lead the process of planning how to manage them. That could include accepting risks that are deemed reasonable based on an organization’s agreed-upon risk appetite and risk tolerance or adopting strategies to mitigate risks so they pose less of a business threat. In other…

All the problem-solving skills in the world are useless if managers can’t rouse the troops. Risk managers need good people management and leadership skills to inspire and incentivize staff members. In some cases, risk management might require upsetting the apple cart, and managers need the respect of their team through the inevitable challenges.

Risk managers also need to be able to solve problems. While some risks might require passing the issue on to someone above a risk manager’s pay grade, others often will be left to the risk manager to solve. As a result, they need to like getting their hands dirty from a problem-solving standpoint.

This goes hand in hand with the leadership skills. Risk managers must be able to build relationships — and not just with their immediate subordinates. They should also be able to do so with their superiors, as well as other corporate executives and department heads.