Time to Shift From Risk Management to Risk Mitigation

In the past, risk management was often seen as a way to protect an organization from harm. But in today’s uncertain world, it’s more important than ever to understand the origins of risks and turn them into an opportunity. This means taking a proactive approach to risk management.

In today’s ever-changing environment, where organizations need to analyze and monitor large volumes of data, the concept of risk has become inevitable and unpredictable. While internal auditors define risks and implement relevant controls based on their audit reviews to prevent these risks from materializing, they are well aware that the manual work done today is far from accurate, resulting in numerous risks falling through the cracks. Moreover, the complex environment organizations now operate in will eventually demand the integration of innovative technology to effectively meet regulatory obligations, leaving them exposed to risk that will inflict personal responsibility implications.

If disruption is inevitable and conventional methods are insufficient to meet the demands, what approach positions organizations to thrive in the long term? How can we be the clever card player at the table when the house always wins?

The answer lies in Automated Risk Mitigation, eliminating the need to define risks in order to identify and mitigate them. Risk identification with automated controls delivers the most value in enabling risk mitigation by:

The Benefits of Automation

• Identifying risks: Automation can help organizations to collect 100% of the data and analyze it to identify potential anomalies and risks. According to Gartner, 60% of organizations that use automated risk management tools are able to identify more risks than they could before.

• Assess risks: Automation can help organizations to assess the root cause of the risk and the impact of potential risks. In a 2022 report, PwC found that organizations that use automated risk management tools can improve the accuracy of their risk assessments by up to 20%.

• Control risks: Automation can help organizations to implement controls to reduce the likelihood or impact of risk events. In a 2023 report, Deloitte found that organizations that use automated risk management tools can increase the effectiveness of their risk controls by up to 15%.
• Continuously monitoring and reviewing risks: Automation can help organizations to continuously monitor and review risks to ensure that they are effectively mitigated. Gartner research shows that organizations that use automated risk management tools are able to continuously monitor and review risks more effectively than they could before.

The business landscape today is dynamic, requiring organizations to respond rapidly and accurately to increasingly complex risks. Traditional manual approaches to risk management are time-consuming, prone to errors, and unable to keep pace with the volume and velocity of data. The integration of innovative technologies, such as AI and automation, offers a transformative solution. By leveraging AI-powered algorithms and machine learning capabilities, internal auditors can analyze vast amounts of data in real-time, identifying patterns, anomalies, and emerging risks that may have gone unnoticed using traditional methods. This advanced level of risk detection and analysis empowers organizations to make informed decisions, implement timely risk mitigation strategies, and stay ahead of potential threats. Furthermore, the adoption of AI-driven risk management not only enhances operational efficiency but also frees up valuable resources, enabling internal auditors to focus on higher-value tasks such as strategic planning, fostering innovation, and providing valuable insights to support organizational growth.