How Risk Governance Can Relieve Holiday Pressure

by Carl Pritchard

With the holidays consuming a significant amount of our individual time and energy in the weeks ahead, it's important to recognize that effective risk governance actually takes some of the seasonal pressure off. The holidays also present a wonderful opportunity to reinforce what effective risk managers already know -- if we can get the rest of the organization to know the risk posture and tolerances, we managers can enjoy the holidays, too! The relationship between effective governance and relaxation is a simple one. The more we can get others to take appropriate risk action on our behalf, the smaller the need for our presence to reinforce what constitutes risk-appropriate behavior. The keys to efficacy here are those of clear communication and definitive criteria.