Risk management challenges #1: Facilitating and executing risk meetings

As a risk management coach I see first hand some of the challenges organisations have when it comes to risk management. Many of the challenges are recurring and seem to be present regardless of times and trends. Other challenges come with changes in standards and expectations from stakeholders.

A classic challenge many of you may recognise is the challenge of facilitating and executing risk meetings in an efficient way. Sure, everyone can call for a meeting, make people engage in a discussion about identified risks, their level and what to do about them. However, many experience doubts about the quality of the output from the meetings. Are these risks really relevant? Did you pinpoint the actual problems? Couldn’t the positive risks have been more specified? Have you created enough engagement to actually drive the closing of actions forward? Which risks do we know about that aren’t highlighted? And why? Ok, so now we have a list of risks – and then what?

Facilitating risk meetings calls for a number of qualities. From my own experience, some of the most important things are to understand the high level purposes of the organisation and see these purposes in conjunction with each individual’s own agenda. As well as to listen, yet challenge what is being said. Further on it is important to establish alliances with certain risk owners, and use their behaviour and choices as a role model for others.

I am sure you can recognise my focus points, yet have different perspectives. My focus points are based on the experiences I have, and the organisations I’ve been part of, as well as my own personal preferences. Your perspective has equally been developed during your years of experience in the field, your background and the cultures you have been working in.

When I hold courses and risk management training events, I find that the most useful part of the courses often are the parts where we are able to, as a group of equals, have an open discussion and share our experiences related to a specific topic. Even though I’m the «teacher», I learn a lot and experience quite a few eye-openers when my participants share their thoughts, perspectives and experiences. Often I go home thinking we should be able to have more parts with sharing across the group and fewer parts with theory and lectures.

For about a year now, I have been wanting to do something different from my classroom courses. In May it will finally be a reality: You are hereby invited to participate in my Mastermind session in Alicante from 22nd to 25th of May. I have called it Risk-based thinking, for quality and risk management professionals, and my objective is to create a space where we can meet and openly discuss specific challenges we have in our day-to-day work related to risk management, and pick each others brains on ways to improve and better approach our individual challenges.

Each participant will bring one specific challenge they have to the table, and during the four days we will work hard to collectively infuse our peers with new thoughts, support their current approaches and/or give them alternative methods to solve their challenges. The goal is that each participant can go home with a well proven plan for handling challenges they’ve brought to the table during the Mastermind session. The expected bonus is that we all end up with a widened perspective on how we conduct our work and how we can improve our value for our organisations.

During the Mastermind we will use four main approaches:

1. Hot seat – all focus is on you and your challenges, until the group understands the specifics of your situation and your goals.

2. Theory – I will prepare theory sessions based on the topics and challenges you are interested in working with. We will use these sessions as a base for discussion, but not as something to comply with.

3. Peer support – working in smaller groups to outline specific plans and solutions will support each participant in getting the expected value from the Mastermind.

4. Networking – it has been scientifically proven that we work better in teams when we have a relation to, and develop trust towards our peers. Food and wine will be provided. :)

You are welcome to join me in Alicante!

I will be creating a few posts about the Mastermind: Risk-based thinking, for quality and risk management professionals in the coming weeks. Each post will discuss different challenges I experience that my peers have in their work with risk management, and in each post I will reward anyone who comments with a 10% discount on the Mastermind, or on any of my risk management coaching services. The offer is valid until 31st of March 2018. If you’re not comfortable with commenting here, please feel free to send the comment to my e-mail.