
Risk management is the process of identifying, assessing and controlling financial, legal, strategic and security risks to an organization’s capital and earnings. These threats, or risks, could stem from a wide variety of sources, including financial uncertainty, legal liabilities, strategic management errors, accidents and natural disasters.
If an unforeseen event catches your organization unaware, the impact could be minor, such as a small impact on your overhead costs. In a worst-case scenario, though, it could be catastrophic and have serious ramifications, such as a significant financial burden or even the closure of your business.
To reduce risk, an organization needs to apply resources to minimize, monitor and control the impact of negative events while maximizing positive events. A consistent, systemic and integrated approach to risk management can help determine how best to identify, manage and mitigate significant risks.
At the broadest level, risk management is a system of people, processes and technology that enables an organization to establish objectives in line with values and risks.
A successful risk assessment program must meet legal, contractual, internal, social and ethical goals, as well as monitor new technology-related regulations. By focusing attention on risk and committing the necessary resources to control and mitigate risk, a business will protect itself from uncertainty, reduce costs and increase the likelihood of business continuity and success. Three important steps of the risk management process are risk identification, risk analysis and assessment, and risk mitigation and monitoring.
Risk identification is the process of identifying and assessing threats to an organization, its operations and its workforce. For example, risk identification may include assessing IT security threats such as malware and ransomware, accidents, natural disasters and other potentially harmful events that could disrupt business operations.
Risk analysis involves establishing the probability that a risk event might occur and the potential outcome of each event. Risk evaluation compares the magnitude of each risk and ranks them according to prominence and consequence.
Risk mitigation refers to the process of planning and developing methods and options to reduce threats to project objectives. A project team might implement risk mitigation strategies to identify, monitor and evaluate risks and consequences inherent to completing a specific project, such as new product creation. Risk mitigation also includes the actions put into place to deal with issues and effects of those issues regarding a project.
Risk management is a nonstop process that adapts and changes over time. Repeating and continually monitoring the processes can help assure maximum coverage of known and unknown risks.

Risk response strategies and treatment
There are five commonly accepted strategies for addressing risk. The process begins with an initial consideration of risk avoidance then proceeds to three additional avenues of addressing risk (transfer, spreading and reduction). Ideally, these three avenues are employed in concert with one another as part of a comprehensive strategy. Some residual risk may remain.
What are the most common responses to risk?
Risk avoidance.
Avoidance is a method for mitigating risk by not participating in activities that may negatively affect the organization. Not making an investment or starting a product line are examples of such activities as they avoid the risk of loss.
Risk reduction
This method of risk management attempts to minimize the loss, rather than completely eliminate it. While accepting the risk, it stays focused on keeping the loss contained and preventing it from spreading. An example of this in health insurance is preventative care.
Risk sharing
When risks are shared, the possibility of loss is transferred from the individual to the group. A corporation is a good example of risk sharing — a number of investors pool their capital and each only bears a portion of the risk that the enterprise may fail.
Transferring risk
Contractually transferring a risk to a third-party, such as, insurance to cover possible property damage or injury shifts the risks associated with the property from the owner to the insurance company.
Risk acceptance and retention
After all risk sharing, risk transfer and risk reduction measures have been implemented, some risk will remain since it is virtually impossible to eliminate all risk (except through risk avoidance). This is called residual risk.
Risk management standards set out a specific set of strategic processes that start with the objectives of an organization and intend to identify risks and promote the mitigation of risks through best practice. Standards are often designed by agencies who are working together to promote common goals, to help to ensure high-quality risk management processes. For example, the ISO 31 000 standard on risk management is an international standard that provides principles and guidelines for effective risk management.
While adopting a risk management standard has its advantages, it is not without challenges. The new standard might not easily fit into what you are doing already, so you could have to introduce new ways of working. And the standards might need customizing to your industry or business.
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Risk Assessment

A risk assessment is a process to identify potential hazards and analyze what could happen if a hazard occurs. A business impact analysis (BIA) is the process for determining the potential impacts resulting from the interruption of time sensitive or critical business processes.
There are numerous hazards to consider. For each hazard there are many possible scenarios that could unfold depending on timing, magnitude and location of the hazard. Consider hurricanes:
A Hurricane forecast to make landfall near your business could change direction and go out to sea.

There are many “assets” at risk from hazards. First and foremost, injuries to people should be the first consideration of the risk assessment. Hazard scenarios that could cause significant injuries should be highlighted to ensure that appropriate emergency plans are in place. Many other physical assets may be at risk. These include buildings, information technology, utility systems, machinery, raw materials and finished goods. The potential for environmental impact should also be considered. Consider the impact an incident could have on your relationships with customers, the surrounding community and other stakeholders. Consider situations that would cause customers to lose confidence in your organization and its products or services.
As you conduct the risk assessment, look for vulnerabilities—weaknesses—that would make an asset more susceptible to damage from a hazard. Vulnerabilities include deficiencies in building construction, process systems, security, protection systems and loss prevention programs. They contribute to the severity of damage when an incident occurs. For example, a building without a fire sprinkler system could burn to the ground while a building with a properly designed, installed and maintained fire sprinkler system would suffer limited fire damage.
The impacts from hazards can be reduced by investing in mitigation . If there is a potential for significant impacts, then creating a mitigation strategy should be a high priority.

Risk Assessment Process Diagram - Text Version
Use the Risk Assessment Tool complete your risk assessment. Instructions are provided on the form.
Natural Hazards
- Meteorological -Flooding, Dam/Levee Failure, Severe Thunderstorm (Wind, Rain, Lightning, Hail), Tornado, Windstorm, Hurricanes and Tropical Storms, Winter Storm (Snow/Ice)
- Geological -Earthquake, Tsunami, Landslide, Subsidence/Sinkhole, Volcano
- Biological - Pandemic Disease, Foodborne Illnesses
Human-Caused Hazards
- Accidents -Workplace Accidents, Entrapment/Rescue (Machinery, Water, Confined Space, High Angle), Transportation Accidents (Motor Vehicle, Rail, Water, Air, Pipeline), Structural Failure/Collapse, Mechanical Breakdown
- Intentional Acts - Labor Strike, Demonstrations, Civil Disturbance (Riot), Bomb Threat, Lost/Separated Person, Child Abduction, Kidnapping/Extortion, Hostage Incident, Workplace Violence, Robbery , Sniper Incident, Terrorism (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives), Arson, Cyber/Information Technology (Malware Attack, Hacking, Fraud, Denial of Service, etc.)
Technological Hazards
- Information Technology - Loss of Connectivity, Hardware Failure, Lost/Corrupted Data, Application Failure
- Utility Outage - Communications, Electrical Power, Water, Gas, Steam, Heating/Ventilation/Air Conditioning, Pollution Control System, Sewage System
- Fire/Explosion - Fire (Structure, Wildland), Explosion (Chemical, Gas, or Process failure)
- Hazardous Materials -Hazardous Material spill/release, Radiological Accident, Hazmat Incident off-site, Transportation Accidents, Nuclear Power Plant Incident, Natural Gas Leak Supply
- Chain Interruption - Supplier Failure, Transportation Interruption
Risk Assessment Resources
- Multi-hazard Mapping Information Platform - Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
- Flood Map Service Center - FEMA
- Earthquake Hazards information - United States Geological Survey (USGS)
- Hurricane - FEMA
- Landslide Hazards Program - USGS
- Volcano Hazards Program - USGS
- Protecting Workers from Heat Illness - Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
- Survey Your Workplace for Additional Hazards - OSHA Compliance Assistance Quick Start for General Industry
- Workplace Violence—Issues in Response - Federal Bureau of Investigation
- Risk Assessment Portal , guidance and guidelines - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- Computer Security Resource Center , Special Publications, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Computer Security Division
- United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team
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What is risk management in business?

Business owners, management, investors, and leaders all have to consider risk as a huge part of their work and success. If you’re going to business school, hoping to become a leader, manager, or run your own company, risk management is an essential element. But what is the definition of risk management? If you want to pursue any kind of business degree, it’s extremely important to understand the risks that are involved in any business operation and how to assess and manage them.
Companies can mismanage business risk which can lead them to scandals, financial repercussions, safety breaches, potential strategy issues, management distrust, and more. Mismanaging risk can come when companies rely too much on historical data, when they make their parameters for risk too narrow, when they disregard risks that are obvious or don’t look closely enough for hidden risks, when they don’t communicate well, and when they don’t react well in real-time to issues. Companies need to define managing techniques and risk assessment capabilities as part of their business plan in order to demonstrate their capabilities.
Business risks are often mismanaged when companies don’t understand the purpose or definition behind risk management, or when they simply don’t want to put in the work to manage their business risks well. It can also be connected to time, effort, and money involved with risk management that a company doesn’t want to expend.
As a business owner or leader, it’s extremely important to understand how to strategize how you minimize risk for your organization and ensure that you are being careful and conscious as you make business decisions.
Understanding risk management.
The definition of risk management is the process of finding, assessing, and controlling threats to your company’s financial security. The basic idea behind that definition is that a company will consider all the areas that could result in a problem for them, consider the best ways to handle a problematic situation, and then put controls in place to help keep that risk as low as possible. It also involves handling a problematic situation when it arises. This guide will dive into the examples and define techniques used for risk management to help business owners and leaders bring success to their organization.
How risk management works.
The risk management process can look different for every business and situation. Some companies have entire enterprise risk management teams that focus on strategic risk, risk assessment, risk profiles, risk treatment, and risk preparation for every new product and strategy. Smaller companies may have only one person who focuses on risk assessment or it may simply be a task along with other responsibilities for a company. Before a business begins it’s important that they define and analyze their risk—business owners and investors both need to understand the risk before they really try and make a go of their company.
Management of risk is vital in making sure a company and leadership understand what the potential problems could be, helping them create solutions for those problems and mitigate their risk. A company that has heavy risk or doesn't have the management aspect worked out may find investors are not excited about giving money. They may also find that they run into more problems then they have money or time to fix. Taking risk management seriously can help a company be prepared for the future.
Business owners and investors may measure risk in different ways. One way may be the amount of money that could be lost if a problem arises. Another is the frequency of risk and loss that’s possible. Other risk measurements could be historical, specific scenarios, and customer impact. All of these ways to measure risk can be important for an organization that’s hoping to analyze, mitigate, or minimize potential risks for themselves and investors.
Risk management examples.
It’s easier to understand the strategy for how you manage risk when you learn how management works in real life by real companies. For example, a company may choose to avoid buying a new building because they’re unsure they can sell enough product to make the cost worth it. An investor may decide not to spend money on a company because they believe there is too much competition in the industry or their objectives don't line up well. Car manufacturers try to lessen risk by having extensive quality and safety checks on vehicles before selling them. Another business risk strategy may be when a retailer may release a new product in stages to see how it does with consumers before releasing the full line. Many business leaders use insurance companies to remove risk altogether. Some organizations have to accept risk, like medical companies, and understand that some risk is simply part of their business.

Why risk management is essential in business.
In the business world, managing risk is absolutely essential. Whether you’re a large company with an entire risk management process and strategic risk management department, or a small business owner that looks into risk management yourself, it’s a very important factor for your success. Your overall objective should be to make your company as safe as possible, prepared for the likelihood of a financial, physical, or technological problem.
Risk identification and risk management helps keep your company’s finances and reputation secure. It also can keep your company, the employees, and your customers safe.
Risk management statistics show its importance in business, such as:
62% of organizations have experienced a critical risk event in the past three years
Of the companies that had a critical risk event, they saw the most significant consequences in the following areas: Employee productivity (62%), operational efficiency (59%), employee safety (29%), competitive differentiation (29%), brand and reputation (28%)
Corporations paid $59 billion in penalties for compliance infractions in 2015
On average every organization has 130 security breaches each year
A data security breach can cost your organization anywhere from $1.25 million to $8.19 million
Meeting business objectives.
If businesses can mitigate the potential risks in their way they are better able to meet their business objectives. From financial benchmarks to customer service, risks can get in the way of your objective success.
There are both internal and external risks that can impact your organization with their likelihood of meeting objectives. Internal risks can be your employees, technology, actual physical risks inside a building, and more. External risks include the economy, natural disasters, politics, and more. Your business goals are focused around making sales and earning money, keeping customers satisfied, making sure your employees are safe and happy, among other things. Companies can learn how to mitigate their risks so that they are able to meet their goals.
Risk management can be more complex than just deciding to do or not do something. For example, in some instances the cost of the risk itself might be lower than the cost of prevention. So business owners may choose not to take risk management measures. In other cases, the risk is a necessary risk that the business has to accept and take on in order to move forward. Whatever business you’re in, risk management is complex but vital in your business operations.
Compliance.
Every business and industry has regulations and rules that govern their operation. That means there are legal risks with not meeting business regulations, and it can have great financial repercussions if you don’t comply. There are many kinds of business regulations you have to follow including:
Data protection— failure to comply can end up costing a company more than $14 million
Internal requirements—corporations will have requirements to form a board of directors, have director meetings, updating bylaws, and providing stock options
Compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act—this rule establishes minimum wage, overtime pay, and more
Other requirements—there may be other paperwork and tax requirements required based on your industry and size of corporation
Non-compliance can result in financial issues for your company, problems for customers and employees, as well as a bad mark for your company’s reputation.

Risk management techniques.
There are many techniques your company can utilize to lower your company’s risk. It’s important to carefully consider the risks and risk management techniques that will be best for your company. Some of these techniques include:
- Avoiding Risk. Avoiding risk is usually the most effective measure of risk management. Just like the name implies, with this technique you just avoid the risk completely. If you are successful, there’s 0% chance you’ll have a loss from that risk factor. That’s why avoidance is usually the first risk management technique used. Risk avoidance can be seen in businesses doing background checks on employees to avoid potential problems. It can also be seen in an investor deciding not to put money in an industry that is seeing economic loss.
- Transferring risk. Transferring risk is when a company knows that they have risk that they can’t avoid, and they want to hire an insurance or other third-party company to help them mitigate their risk. There are many examples of transferring risk—a company purchases insurance for their building or products to help keep them safe in the event of a fire, theft, flood, etc. Another example of transferring risk is when a company creates contracts with employees or clients through a legal company that helps offset any risk that might come in the future.
- Preventing loss. Preventing loss is when a company understands that there is some risk that they can’t avoid, but they put preventative measures in place to help reduce the impact of risk. For example, a company may store their inventory in a warehouse, which means it’s susceptible to theft or fire. They prevent the risk and loss by putting up security cameras and hiring a security guard. Another company may require passwords on their computers to prevent data and security breaches of their company information.
- Retaining risk. This technique involves handling risk within your own company instead of relying on outside sources. Companies use this technique because they often believe that they can handle risks themselves instead of paying for an insurance company or other vendor. An example of retaining risk is an organization that has an internal IT department that runs their computer security, rather than utilizing a 3rd party company or software. It can also be seen in a company that opts not to buy an insurance policy for a certain danger because they believe they would be ahead to save money on their policy, and that the cost would be less if the danger actually happened than paying regularly for the policy.
- Spreading risk. Spreading risk happens primarily for insurance companies who opt to work with other insurance companies to spread out the risk of large clients. For example, an oil supertanker purchases insurance. The company would then spread out the insurance through other companies so in the event of a disaster the cost and risk is spread out through multiple companies.
Risk is an inevitable part of business, but it’s important to make a plan for your risk management process so your company stays safe. Business leaders and owners alike need to understand and have a plan for risk management in order to be successful.
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Business risk is common in among all business types, thus the importance of effective risk management cannot be overstated. Business risk affects a business's ability to operate properly and succeed financially. Therefore, understanding business risk is essential for all types of business managers. Let's take a closer look.
Business Risk Definition
Avoiding risk is an impossible task for businesses, but controlling and properly managing risk is achievable. Before we continue with this, it is important that we understand the term 'business risk'.
Business risk is defined as any threat or force preventing a business from reaching its financial goals or causing a business to fail.
Forces that create business risk can come from internal sources, such as a poor management structure, bad publicity, theft, or the loss of talented employees. E xternal forces may also be at play, such as the increasing prices of raw materials needed for production, increased competition, changes in customer demand, natural disasters, or changes to government or market policy.
Such forces make it impossible for businesses to avoid risk completely as they are unpredictable and can’t be controlled by the business. However, there are steps that can be taken by businesses in order to avoid these risks. An example is creating a risk management strategy.
Types of Risk in Business
There are five main types of risk in business:
- Strategic risk
- Operational risk
- Financial risk
- Compliance risk
- Reputation risk
Read along to understand each type with examples!

1. Strategic risk
This risk arises when a previously laid-out business strategy becomes less effective or becomes no longer effective in a way that impacts business profit generation and growth, thus limiting businesses from reaching their set goals.
The risk can occur with changes in technology, the entrance of new competitors, changes in the business strategy of a direct competitor, or waning customer interest. To overcome this risk, businesses have to adapt their strategy.
Strategic risk occurs when a business's direct competitor cuts down the prices of its products or services, thus affecting the business originally positioned as a low-cost provider.
2. Operational risk
This is a risk that arises inside the business, hence it can be termed an internal risk. Operational risk arises from the business's daily activity. This can include technical failure, inappropriate decision-making, or employee-related issues. However, it is important to note that sometimes operational risks may be due to external events such as natural disasters, power outages, etc.
A major event involving the multinational bank HSBC occurred when an anti-laundering team failed to adequately stop a money-laundering effort involving Mexican drug cartels and some of the bank's employees in 2012. The company was made to pay a fine of around $1.92 billion to regulators.
3. Financial risk
Although all types of business risks have an impact on the business's finances, the financial type, as the term suggests, means the risk of sudden financial loss. This may arise due to changes in market conditions, providing credit to customers, and company debt.
An example of financial risk is selling your business's product on credit to 60 percent of your regular customers. This puts your business at great financial risk due to the fact that your customers may not or may not be able to pay for the services offered to them on credit.
4. Compliance risk
This type of business risk is common in highly regulated industries. Compliance risk arises from businesses not following industry operations regulations in their state. Compliance risk may also arise upon introduction of new business operation regulations, which can significantly affect a business's strategy.
Compliance risk might occur when a food business expands its services from one geographical region to another, say from Africa to Europe. Since each geographical region has its own unique food regulations, the ones in Africa differ from those in Europe. This may force the business to set up a subsidiary in order to comply with local regulations, which could cost the business a significant amount of money.
5. Reputation risk
The reputation of a company is important. A company with a ruined reputation is at risk of losing public backing and customers, thus negatively impacting its brand loyalty.
An example of reputation risk is a business's continued inability to meet customer expectations with poor quality products or services. Sub-standard product may put the business at a risk of getting a bad reputation through customer reviews.
Business Risk Causes
There are three main categories for business risk causes:
Natural causes
Human causes
Economic causes
1. Natural causes
Risk may occur due to natural causes, or non-man-made factors that hamper the operations of a business. This may include natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, etc. Businesses can defend against this risk by taking out insurance coverage to soften the effects of these disasters on their activities.
2. Human causes
Business risk due to human causes refers to human factors affecting the operations of a business. These factors may include employee issues, strikes, ineffective business management , poor decision-making, or changing consumer choices.
3. Economic causes
Economic factors may contribute to risk that limits businesses from reaching their financial goals. This may include increased cost of raw materials and labour, competition, market regulations, government policies, increasing interest rates, etc.
Accessing Business Risk
Business risks are generally unavoidable, hence the need for regular assessments. Businesses should aim to identify these risks and address them immediately. Assessing business risks can be divided into three steps:
Identify risks: recognise all the potential risks that the business may face. This can be done through brainstorming, industry analysis, and internal audits.
Evaluate risks: determine risk's potential impact on the business. This can be done by assigning a score to each risk based on its likelihood and potential impact.
Prioritize risks: arrange the risks in order of importance based on their impact and likelihood. The highest priority risks should be addressed first, as they pose the greatest threat to the business.
It is important to remember that assessing business risk is only the first step in the risk management process. Read on to find out more about business risk management.
Managing Business Risk
While the goal of assessing business risk is to understand the risk, managing business risk's goal is to reduce the impact of that uncertainty. Below are ways to manage business risks:
Prepare a business plan that outlines future possibilities of market changes and the steps the business can take to mitigate their effects.
Invest in training of employees to deal with unsatisfied customers or natural disasters (e.g. flooding).
Employ experts and consultants who have specialised knowledge on how to deal with business risks.
Prioritise business risks on a scale of likely occurrence.
Insure business assets.
Diversification , also known as selling new products in different markets, might minimise the risk of competitors taking the business's market share.
Create a risk management team for your business.
Give a credit limit to high-risk customers.
Provide quality assurance for your products to protect your reputation.
Stay update d about the market, consumer interest, and your competitors and regulations, and embrace changes in the market.
Business risk is impossible to avoid, so understanding and constantly accessing the likelihood of potential risks is important in managing your risk. Risk, no matter the form taken, impacts the firm's financial goals and can cause a business to fail.
Business Risk Examples
In the table below, you can find three examples of business risks along with risk level, probability, impact on the business and what a company should do to minimise the effects of each risk
Table 1 - Business Risks Examples, StudySmarter
Business Risks - Key Takeaways
Business risk is defined as any threat or force causing failure or preventing a business from reaching its financial goals.
Forces that create business risk may come from internal sources, such as a poor management structure, bad publicity, theft, or the loss of talented employees.
External forces may also be at play, such as increasing prices of raw materials needed for production, increased competition, changes in customer demand, natural disasters, or changes to government or market policy.
There are five main types of risk a business may face:
Reputation risk.
The three causes of business risks are:
Economic causes.
Business risks can be managed by creating a business plan, training employees, using experts or consultants, diversification , and embracing changes in the market.
Frequently Asked Questions about Business Risks
--> how to assess a business risk.
Assessing risk as a part of risk management can be divided into three steps:
Identify risks: recognise all the potential risks that the business may face.
Evaluate risks: determine risk's potential impact on the business.
Prioritize risks: arrange the risks in order of importance based on their impact and likelihood.
--> How do you manage a business risk?
Managing business risk can be divided into the following steps:
- Risk assessment : identifying, assessing, prioritising all potential risks
- Risk mitigation: developing and implementing strategies to reduce risks impact
- Monitoring and reviewing: regular evaluation of risk mitigation plans and strategies
- Communication: informing all stakeholders about the risk management plan
--> What is the risk definition in business?
Business risk is defined as any threat or force preventing a business from reaching its financial goals or causing a business to fail.
--> What are examples of business risk?
Some examples of business risks are:
- supply chain disruption
- competition increase
- fines and penalties paid for not following the law
--> What are types of business risk?
There are five main types of business risks:
Final Business Risks Quiz
Define business risk
Show answer
Business risk is defined as any threat or force affecting or limiting a business from reaching its financial goal, or any force that will cause a business to fail. Business risk encompasses any internal or external factor that can cause a business to not meet its financial goal.
Show question
Forces of business risk can be:
Internal and external
Give two examples of internal forces of business risk
Business owners decisions and business management structure
Give three examples of external forces of business risk
market competition, changes in customers demand and changes to government or market policies.
Business risk can be completely avoided:
Which of the following is not a form of a business risk:
Employee risk
Explain reputation risk
The reputation of a company is important for its business practices. A company with ruined reputation, is at risk losing the public backing and its customers, thus negatively impacting its brand loyalty.
_______ risk is a type of business risk which arises from the business daily activity such as technical failure, wrong decision-making, lawsuit, business management model or issues from employees.
Operation risk
Operation risk can sometimes arise due to natural disasters?
Explain compliance risk
This type of business risk is common in highly regulated industries. Compliance risk arises from businesses not following their industry regulations or regulations of operation in the state they operate in. Compliance risk can also be due to the introduction of new business operation regulations which will significantly affect a business strategy.
What are the three causes of business risk?
The three causes of business risks are -
Market competition is an example of the …… cause of business risk
Economic causes
Give five ways to assess business risk
Check and identify various sources that can promote business risk
Start planning/implementing a strategy to deal with the potential business risk
Involve your employees in the identification and dealing with potential business risk
Identify business risks already experienced by direct competitors and create a to strategy to deal with them
Create a catalogue of business risk already faced and their solutions as they may resurface again
In what ways can business risk be managed?
Below are ways to manage business risks -
Business risks that are avoidable should be avoided
Prevent business risk from happening by controlling forces within the business control that can lead to a business risk
Prepare strategies to contain potential business risks
Prioritize business risk on a scale of likely occurrence
Insure business assets
Create a risk management team for your business
Explain strategic risk
This risk arises when an already laid out business strategy becomes less effective or becomes no longer effective in a way that affects business profit generation and growth, thus limiting businesses from reaching their set goals. This is usually brought about by changes in technology, entrant of a new competitor, changes in the business strategy of a direct competitor, rising cost of raw materials needed in production, change in customers’ interest. To overcome this risk, businesses have to adapt their strategy to reduce the effect of the strategic risk.
An example of strategic risk is experienced when a business direct competitor cuts down the prices of its products or services, thus affecting your business which was originally positioned as a low-cost provider.
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What Is Business Planning?
Why business planning isn't just for startups.
Susan Ward wrote about small businesses for The Balance for 18 years. She has run an IT consulting firm and designed and presented courses on how to promote small businesses.
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Business planning takes place when the key stakeholders in a business sit down and flesh out all the goals , strategies, and actions that they envision taking to ensure the business’s survival, prosperity, and growth.
Here are some strategies for business planning and the ways it can benefit your business.
Business planning can play out in many different ways. Anytime upper management comes together to plan for the success of a business, it is a form of business planning. Business planning commonly involves collecting ideas in a formal business plan that outlines a summary of the business's current state, as well as the state of the broader market, along with detailed steps the business will take to improve performance in the coming period.
Business plans aren't just about money. The business plan outlines the general planning needed to start and run a successful business, and that includes profits, but it also goes beyond that. A plan should account for everything from scoping out the competition and figuring out how your new business will fit into the industry to assessing employee morale and planning for how to retain talent.
How Does Business Planning Work?
Every new business needs a business plan —a blueprint of how you will develop your new business, backed by research, that demonstrates how the business idea is viable. If your new business idea requires investment capital, you will have a better chance of obtaining debt or equity financing from financial institutions, angel investors , or venture capitalists if you have a solid business plan to back up your ideas.
Businesses should prepare a business plan, even if they don't need to attract investors or secure loans.
Post-Startup Business Planning
The business plan isn’t a set-it-and-forget-it planning exercise. It should be a living document that is updated throughout the life cycle of your business.
Once the business has officially started, business planning will shift to setting and meeting goals and targets. Business planning is most effective when it’s done on a consistent schedule that revisits existing goals and projects throughout the year, perhaps even monthly. In addition to reviewing short-term goals throughout the year, it's also important to establish a clear vision and lay the path for your long-term success.
Daily business planning is an incredibly effective way for individuals to focus on achieving both their own goals and the goals of the organization.
Sales Forecasting
The sales forecast is a key section of the business plan that needs to be constantly tracked and updated. The sales forecast is an estimate of the sales of goods and services your business is likely to achieve over the forecasted period, along with the estimated profit from those sales. The forecast should take into account trends in your industry, the general economy, and the projected needs of your primary customers.
Cash Flow Analysis
Another crucial component of business planning is cash flow analysis. Avoiding extended cash flow shortages is vital for businesses, and many business failures can be blamed on cash flow problems.
Your business may have a large, lucrative order on the books, but if it can't be invoiced until the job is completed, then you may run into cash flow problems. That scenario can get even worse if you have to hire staff, purchase inventory, and make other expenditures in the meantime to complete the project.
Performing regular cash flow projections is an important part of business planning. If managed properly, cash flow shortages can be covered by additional financing or equity investment.
Business Contingency Planning
In addition to business planning for profit and growth, your business should have a contingency plan. Contingency business planning (also known as business continuity planning or disaster planning) is the type of business planning that deals with crises and worst-case scenarios. A business contingency plan helps businesses deal with sudden emergencies, unexpected events, and new information that could disrupt your business.
The goals of a contingency plan are to:
- Provide for the safety and security of yourself, your employees, and your customers in the event of a fire, flood, robbery, data breach, illness, or some other disaster
- Ensure that your business can resume operations after an emergency as quickly as possible
Business Succession Planning
If your business is a family enterprise or you have specific plans for who you want to take over in the event of your retirement or illness, then you should have a plan in place to hand over control of the business . The issues of management, ownership, and taxes can cause a great deal of discord within families unless a succession plan is in place that clearly outlines the process.
Key Takeaways
- Business planning is when key stakeholders review the state of their business and plan for how they will improve the business in the future.
- Business planning isn't a one-off event—it should be an ongoing practice of self-assessment and planning.
- Business planning isn't just about improving sales; it can also address safety during natural disasters or the transfer of power after an owner retires.
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What is a Risk? 10 definitions from different industries and standards

The term Risk is used in many ways and is given different definitions depending on the field and context. Common to most definitions of risk is uncertainty and undesirable outcomes . stakeholdermap.com
Download this list 10 risk definitions
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Business risk is an event, circumstance or condition that may result in an organization failing to achieve its objectives or adversely affect its strategy. For example, a risk that a company might fail to improve sales, reduce costs or successfully launch a new product under development.
Most business risks impact a company’s financial statements. If a company doesn’t correctly record the financial impact of a business risk, its financial statements will be materially misstated. Therefore, business risks are assessed by auditors as part of risk assessment activities and to design audit procedures to detect the possible misstatements in the financial statements.
Improving Technology
Businesses are exposed to the risk of being left behind in the race for constantly improving technology. Their methods, techniques and products will become outdated thus resulting in lost sales or inefficient production. A new method of production may lead to superior quality products resulting in impairment of inventory already held by a business. The corresponding risk of material misstatement is that inventory is overstated in balance sheet and cost of sales understated in income statement.
Laws and Regulations
Laws and regulations are almost entirely out of a company’s control. Due to changing legislation and volatile political environment, businesses are constantly at risk of higher taxes, ever stringent regulations and risk of inadvertently breaching laws. These may lead to a range of material misstatements in the financial statements. For example, those related to taxation, legal obligations and provisions etc.
Competition
Fierce competition may result in a company finding it difficult to stay in business. If the company’s financial statements are prepared on going concern basis, there is a risk that the company might not actually be a going concern and therefore the financial statements will be materially misstated.
Businesses are at risk of fraud being committed by management, employees or those outside the organization. Fraud will most likely result in financial impact and therefore may result in a risk of material misstatement in the financial statements.
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- Business Continuity Plan Basics
- Understanding BCPs
- Benefits of BCPs
- How to Create a BCP
- BCP & Impact Analysis
- BCP vs. Disaster Recovery Plan
Frequently Asked Questions
- Business Continuity Plan FAQs
The Bottom Line
- Investopedia
What Is a Business Continuity Plan (BCP), and How Does It Work?
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What Is a Business Continuity Plan (BCP)?
A business continuity plan (BCP) is a system of prevention and recovery from potential threats to a company. The plan ensures that personnel and assets are protected and are able to function quickly in the event of a disaster.
Key Takeaways
- Business continuity plans (BCPs) are prevention and recovery systems for potential threats, such as natural disasters or cyber-attacks.
- BCP is designed to protect personnel and assets and make sure they can function quickly when disaster strikes.
- BCPs should be tested to ensure there are no weaknesses, which can be identified and corrected.
Understanding Business Continuity Plans (BCPs)
BCP involves defining any and all risks that can affect the company's operations, making it an important part of the organization's risk management strategy. Risks may include natural disasters—fire, flood, or weather-related events—and cyber-attacks . Once the risks are identified, the plan should also include:
- Determining how those risks will affect operations
- Implementing safeguards and procedures to mitigate the risks
- Testing procedures to ensure they work
- Reviewing the process to make sure that it is up to date
BCPs are an important part of any business. Threats and disruptions mean a loss of revenue and higher costs, which leads to a drop in profitability. And businesses can't rely on insurance alone because it doesn't cover all the costs and the customers who move to the competition. It is generally conceived in advance and involves input from key stakeholders and personnel.
Business impact analysis, recovery, organization, and training are all steps corporations need to follow when creating a Business Continuity Plan.
Benefits of a Business Continuity Plan
Businesses are prone to a host of disasters that vary in degree from minor to catastrophic. Business continuity planning is typically meant to help a company continue operating in the event of major disasters such as fires. BCPs are different from a disaster recovery plan, which focuses on the recovery of a company's IT system after a crisis.
Consider a finance company based in a major city. It may put a BCP in place by taking steps including backing up its computer and client files offsite. If something were to happen to the company's corporate office, its satellite offices would still have access to important information.
An important point to note is that BCP may not be as effective if a large portion of the population is affected, as in the case of a disease outbreak. Nonetheless, BCPs can improve risk management—preventing disruptions from spreading. They can also help mitigate downtime of networks or technology, saving the company money.
How to Create a Business Continuity Plan
There are several steps many companies must follow to develop a solid BCP. They include:
- Business Impact Analysis : Here, the business will identify functions and related resources that are time-sensitive. (More on this below.)
- Recovery : In this portion, the business must identify and implement steps to recover critical business functions.
- Organization : A continuity team must be created. This team will devise a plan to manage the disruption.
- Training : The continuity team must be trained and tested. Members of the team should also complete exercises that go over the plan and strategies.
Companies may also find it useful to come up with a checklist that includes key details such as emergency contact information, a list of resources the continuity team may need, where backup data and other required information are housed or stored, and other important personnel.
Along with testing the continuity team, the company should also test the BCP itself. It should be tested several times to ensure it can be applied to many different risk scenarios . This will help identify any weaknesses in the plan which can then be identified and corrected.
In order for a business continuity plan to be successful, all employees—even those who aren't on the continuity team—must be aware of the plan.
Business Continuity Impact Analysis
An important part of developing a BCP is a business continuity impact analysis. It identifies the effects of disruption of business functions and processes. It also uses the information to make decisions about recovery priorities and strategies.
FEMA provides an operational and financial impact worksheet to help run a business continuity analysis. The worksheet should be completed by business function and process managers who are well acquainted with the business. These worksheets will summarize the following:
- The impacts—both financial and operational—that stem from the loss of individual business functions and process
- Identifying when the loss of a function or process would result in the identified business impacts
Completing the analysis can help companies identify and prioritize the processes that have the most impact on the business's financial and operational functions. The point at which they must be recovered is generally known as the “recovery time objective.”
Business Continuity Plan vs. Disaster Recovery Plan
BCPs and disaster recovery plans are similar in nature, the latter focuses on technology and information technology (IT) infrastructure. BCPs are more encompassing—focusing on the entire organization, such as customer service and supply chain.
BCPs focus on reducing overall costs or losses, while disaster recovery plans look only at technology downtimes and related costs. Disaster recovery plans tend to involve only IT personnel—which create and manage the policy. However, BCPs tend to have more personnel trained on the potential processes.
Why Is Business Continuity Plan (BCP) Important?
Businesses are prone to a host of disasters that vary in degree from minor to catastrophic and business continuity plans (BCPs) are an important part of any business. BCP is typically meant to help a company continue operating in the event of threats and disruptions. This could result in a loss of revenue and higher costs, which leads to a drop in profitability. And businesses can't rely on insurance alone because it doesn't cover all the costs and the customers who move to the competition.
What Should a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) Include?
Business continuity plans involve identifying any and all risks that can affect the company's operations. The plan should also determine how those risks will affect operations and implement safeguards and procedures to mitigate the risks. There should also be testing procedures to ensure these safeguards and procedures work. Finally, there should be a review process to make sure that the plan is up to date.
What Is Business Continuity Impact Analysis?
An important part of developing a BCP is a business continuity impact analysis which identifies the effects of disruption of business functions and processes. It also uses the information to make decisions about recovery priorities and strategies.
FEMA provides an operational and financial impact worksheet to help run a business continuity analysis.
These worksheets summarize the impacts—both financial and operational—that stem from the loss of individual business functions and processes. They also identify when the loss of a function or process would result in the identified business impacts.
Business continuity plans (BCPs) are created to help speed up the recovery of an organization filling a threat or disaster. The plan puts in place mechanisms and functions to allow personnel and assets to minimize company downtime. BCPs cover all organizational risks should a disaster happen, such as flood or fire.
Federal Emergency Management Agency. " Business Process Analysis and Business Impact Analysis User Guide ," Pages 15 - 17. Accessed Sept. 5, 2021.
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Business Risk


Business Risk Definition
Business risk is the risk associated with running a business. The risk can be higher or lower from time to time. But it will be there as long as you run a business or want to operate and expand.
Multi-faceted factors can influence business risk. For example, if a firm isn’t able to produce the units to make profits, there is a considerable business risk. Even if the fixed expenses are usually given before, there are costs that a business can’t avoid – e.g., electricity charges, rent, overhead costs Overhead Costs Overhead cost are those cost that is not related directly on the production activity and are therefore considered as indirect costs that have to be paid even if there is no production. Examples include rent payable, utilities payable, insurance payable, salaries payable to office staff, office supplies, etc. read more , labor charges, etc.
Table of contents
#1 – strategic risk:, #2 – operational risk:, #3 – reputational risk:, #4 – compliance risk:, how do you measure business risk, how do we reduce business risk, recommended articles, types of business risk.
Since business risk can happen in multi-faceted ways, there are many business risks. Let’s have a look at them one by one –

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It is the first type of business risk. Strategy is a significant part of every business. And if the top management isn’t able to decide the right strategy, there’s always a chance to fall back. For example, when a company introduces a new product to the market, the existing customers of the previous product may not accept it. The top management needs to understand that this is an issue of wrong targeting. The business needs to know which customer segment to aim at before introducing new products. If a new product doesn’t sell well, there’s always a more significant business risk of running out of business.
Operational risk is the second necessary type of business risk. But it has nothing to do with external circumstances; instead, it’s all about internal failures. For example, if a business process fails or machinery stops working, the business won’t be able to produce any goods/products. As a result, the business won’t be able to sell the products and make money. While strategic risk is pretty challenging to solve, operational risk Operational Risk Operational risk is the business uncertainty a company comes across in the industry while executing its everyday business operations. Such risks arise due to internal system breakdown, technical issues, external factors, managerial problems, human errors or information gap. read more can be solved by replacing the machinery or providing the right resources to start the business process.
It is also a critical type of business risk. If a company loses its goodwill Goodwill In accounting, goodwill is an intangible asset that is generated when one company purchases another company for a price that is greater than the sum of the company's net identifiable assets at the time of acquisition. It is determined by subtracting the fair value of the company's net identifiable assets from the total purchase price. read more in the market, it is a big chance to lose its customer base. For example, if a car company is blamed for launching cars without proper safety features, it would be a reputational risk for the company. The best option, in that case, is to take back all the cars and return each one after installing the safety features. The more accepting the company would be, in this case, the more it would be able to save its reputation.
It is another type of business risk. To run a business, a business needs to follow certain guidelines or legislation. If a business cannot follow such norms or regulations, it is difficult for a business to exist for long. First, it’s best to check the legal and environmental practices before forming a business entity. Otherwise, the business will face unprecedented challenges and unnecessary lawsuits later on.
Business risk can be measured by using ratios that fit a business’s situation. For example, we can see the contribution margin Contribution Margin The contribution margin is a metric that shows how much a company's net sales contribute to fixed expenses and net profit after covering the variable expenses. As a result, we deduct the total variable expenses from the net sales when computing the contribution. read more to find out how much sales we need to increase to increase the profit.
You can also use the operating leverage Operating Leverage Operating Leverage is an accounting metric that helps the analyst in analyzing how a company’s operations are related to the company’s revenues. The ratio gives details about how much of a revenue increase will the company have with a specific percentage of sales increase – which puts the predictability of sales into the forefront. read more ratio and degree of operating leverage to help find out the company’s business risk.
But it differs as per the situation, and not all situations will suit similar ratios. For example, if we want to know the strategic risk, we need to look at a new product’s demand vs. supply ratio. If the demand is much lesser than the supply, there’s something wrong with the strategy and vice versa.
- First, the business should reduce costs as much as possible. Some costs are unnecessary for businesses. For example, instead of hiring full-time employees, a considerable cost would be reduced if they hire employees on a contract. Another example of cost reduction might be using the shift formula. If the business works 24*7, and the employees work on shifts, the production every month would be huge, but the cost of rent would be similar.
- Second, the business should construct its capital structure so that it doesn’t need to pay a hefty sum of money every month to pay off the debt. If a business assumes that its business risk is going through the roof, it should be trying to create a capital structure through equity financing Equity Financing Equity financing is the process of the sale of an ownership interest to various investors to raise funds for business objectives. The money raised from the market does not have to be repaid, unlike debt financing which has a definite repayment schedule. read more only.
This article has been a guide to what business risk is. Here we discuss the four types of business risk, measurement of business risk, and how to reduce the same. You may also learn more about Corporate Finance from the following recommended articles –
- Risk Control
- Types of Financial Risk
- Business Risk vs. Financial Risk Differences
- Systematic Risk vs. Unsystematic Risk

Very fine article it helped a lot, very easy wording with good examples

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What Is a Business Plan? Definition and Planning Essentials Explained
Posted february 21, 2022 by kody wirth.

What is a business plan? It’s the roadmap for your business. The outline of your goals, objectives, and the steps you’ll take to get there. It describes the structure of your organization, how it operates, as well as the financial expectations and actual performance.
A business plan can help you explore ideas, successfully start a business, manage operations, and pursue growth. In short, a business plan is a lot of different things. It’s more than just a stack of paper and can be one of your most effective tools as a business owner.
Let’s explore the basics of business planning, the structure of a traditional plan, your planning options, and how you can use your plan to succeed.
What is a business plan?
A business plan is a document that explains how your business operates. It summarizes your business structure, objectives, milestones, and financial performance. Again, it’s a guide that helps you, and anyone else, better understand how your business will succeed.
Why do you need a business plan?
The primary purpose of a business plan is to help you understand the direction of your business and the steps it will take to get there. Having a solid business plan can help you grow up to 30% faster and according to our own 2021 Small Business research working on a business plan increases confidence regarding business health—even in the midst of a crisis.
These benefits are directly connected to how writing a business plan makes you more informed and better prepares you for entrepreneurship. It helps you reduce risk and avoid pursuing potentially poor ideas. You’ll also be able to more easily uncover your business’s potential. By regularly returning to your plan you can understand what parts of your strategy are working and those that are not.
That just scratches the surface for why having a plan is valuable. Check out our full write-up for fifteen more reasons why you need a business plan .
What can you do with your plan?
So what can you do with a business plan once you’ve created it? It can be all too easy to write a plan and just let it be. Here are just a few ways you can leverage your plan to benefit your business.
Test an idea
Writing a plan isn’t just for those that are ready to start a business. It’s just as valuable for those that have an idea and want to determine if it’s actually possible or not. By writing a plan to explore the validity of an idea, you are working through the process of understanding what it would take to be successful.
The market and competitive research alone can tell you a lot about your idea. Is the marketplace too crowded? Is the solution you have in mind not really needed? Add in the exploration of milestones, potential expenses, and the sales needed to attain profitability and you can paint a pretty clear picture of the potential of your business.
Document your strategy and goals
For those starting or managing a business understanding where you’re going and how you’re going to get there are vital. Writing your plan helps you do that. It ensures that you are considering all aspects of your business, know what milestones you need to hit, and can effectively make adjustments if that doesn’t happen.
With a plan in place, you’ll have an idea of where you want your business to go as well as how you’ve performed in the past. This alone better prepares you to take on challenges, review what you’ve done before, and make the right adjustments.
Pursue funding
Even if you do not intend to pursue funding right away, having a business plan will prepare you for it. It will ensure that you have all of the information necessary to submit a loan application and pitch to investors. So, rather than scrambling to gather documentation and write a cohesive plan once it’s relevant, you can instead keep your plan up-to-date and attempt to attain funding. Just add a use of funds report to your financial plan and you’ll be ready to go.
The benefits of having a plan don’t stop there. You can then use your business plan to help you manage the funding you receive. You’ll not only be able to easily track and forecast how you’ll use your funds but easily report on how it’s been used.
Better manage your business
A solid business plan isn’t meant to be something you do once and forget about. Instead, it should be a useful tool that you can regularly use to analyze performance, make strategic decisions, and anticipate future scenarios. It’s a document that you should regularly update and adjust as you go to better fit the actual state of your business.
Doing so makes it easier to understand what’s working and what’s not. It helps you understand if you’re truly reaching your goals or if you need to make further adjustments. Having your plan in place makes that process quicker, more informative, and leaves you with far more time to actually spend running your business.

What should your business plan include?
The content and structure of your business plan should include anything that will help you use it effectively. That being said, there are some key elements that you should cover and that investors will expect to see.
Executive summary
The executive summary is a simple overview of your business and your overall plan. It should serve as a standalone document that provides enough detail for anyone—including yourself, team members, or investors—to fully understand your business strategy. Make sure to cover the problem you’re solving, a description of your product or service, your target market, organizational structure, a financial summary, and any necessary funding requirements.
This will be the first part of your plan but it’s easiest to write it after you’ve created your full plan.
Products & Services
When describing your products or services, you need to start by outlining the problem you’re solving and why what you offer is valuable. This is where you’ll also address current competition in the market and any competitive advantages your products or services bring to the table. Lastly, be sure to outline the steps or milestones that you’ll need to hit to successfully launch your business. If you’ve already hit some initial milestones, like taking pre-orders or early funding, be sure to include it here to further prove the validity of your business.
Market analysis
A market analysis is a qualitative and quantitative assessment of the current market you’re entering or competing in. It helps you understand the overall state and potential of the industry, who your ideal customers are, the positioning of your competition, and how you intend to position your own business. This helps you better explore the long-term trends of the market, what challenges to expect, and how you will need to initially introduce and even price your products or services.
Check out our full guide for how to conduct a market analysis in just four easy steps .
Marketing & sales
Here you detail how you intend to reach your target market. This includes your sales activities, general pricing plan, and the beginnings of your marketing strategy. If you have any branding elements, sample marketing campaigns, or messaging available—this is the place to add it.
Additionally, it may be wise to include a SWOT analysis that demonstrates your business or specific product/service position. This will showcase how you intend to leverage sales and marketing channels to deal with competitive threats and take advantage of any opportunities.
Check out our full write-up to learn how to create a cohesive marketing strategy for your business.
Organization & management
This section addresses the legal structure of your business, your current team, and any gaps that need to be filled. Depending on your business type and longevity, you’ll also need to include your location, ownership information, and business history. Basically, add any information that helps explain your organizational structure and how you operate. This section is particularly important for pitching to investors but should be included even if attempted funding is not in your immediate future.
Financial projections
Possibly the most important piece of your plan, your financials section is vital for showcasing the viability of your business. It also helps you establish a baseline to measure against and makes it easier to make ongoing strategic decisions as your business grows. This may seem complex on the surface, but it can be far easier than you think.
Focus on building solid forecasts, keep your categories simple, and lean on assumptions. You can always return to this section to add more details and refine your financial statements as you operate.
Here are the statements you should include in your financial plan:
- Sales and revenue projections
- Profit and loss statement
- Cash flow statement
- Balance sheet
The appendix is where you add additional detail, documentation, or extended notes that support the other sections of your plan. Don’t worry about adding this section at first and only add documentation that you think will be beneficial for anyone reading your plan.
Types of business plans explained
While all business plans cover similar categories, the style and function fully depend on how you intend to use your plan. So, to get the most out of your plan, it’s best to find a format that suits your needs. Here are a few common business plan types worth considering.
Traditional business plan
The tried-and-true traditional business plan is a formal document meant to be used for external purposes. Typically this is the type of plan you’ll need when applying for funding or pitching to investors. It can also be used when training or hiring employees, working with vendors, or any other situation where the full details of your business must be understood by another individual.
This type of business plan follows the outline above and can be anywhere from 10-50 pages depending on the amount of detail included, the complexity of your business, and what you include in your appendix. We recommend only starting with this business plan format if you plan to immediately pursue funding and already have a solid handle on your business information.
Business model canvas
The business model canvas is a one-page template designed to demystify the business planning process. It removes the need for a traditional, copy-heavy business plan, in favor of a single-page outline that can help you and outside parties better explore your business idea.
The structure ditches a linear structure in favor of a cell-based template. It encourages you to build connections between every element of your business. It’s faster to write out and update, and much easier for you, your team, and anyone else to visualize your business operations. This is really best for those exploring their business idea for the first time, but keep in mind that it can be difficult to actually validate your idea this way as well as adapt it into a full plan.
One-page business plan
The true middle ground between the business model canvas and a traditional business plan is the one-page business plan. This format is a simplified version of the traditional plan that focuses on the core aspects of your business. It basically serves as a beefed-up pitch document and can be finished as quickly as the business model canvas.
By starting with a one-page plan, you give yourself a minimal document to build from. You’ll typically stick with bullet points and single sentences making it much easier to elaborate or expand sections into a longer-form business plan. This plan type is useful for those exploring ideas, needing to validate their business model, or who need an internal plan to help them run and manage their business.
Now, the option that we here at LivePlan recommend is the Lean Plan . This is less of a specific document type and more of a methodology. It takes the simplicity and styling of the one-page business plan and turns it into a process for you to continuously plan, test, review, refine, and take action based on performance.
It holds all of the benefits of the single-page plan, including the potential to complete it in as little as 27-minutes . However, it’s even easier to convert into a full plan thanks to how heavily it’s tied to your financials. The overall goal of Lean Planning isn’t to just produce documents that you use once and shelve. Instead, the Lean Planning process helps you build a healthier company that thrives in times of growth and stable through times of crisis.
It’s faster, keeps your plan concise, and ensures that your plan is always up-to-date.
Try the LivePlan Method for Lean Business Planning
Now that you know the basics of business planning, it’s time to get started. Again we recommend leveraging a Lean Plan for a faster, easier, and far more useful planning process.
To get familiar with the Lean Plan format, you can download our free Lean Plan template . However, if you want to elevate your ability to create and use your lean plan even further, you may want to explore LivePlan.
It features step-by-step guidance that ensures you cover everything necessary while reducing the time spent on formatting and presenting. You’ll also gain access to financial forecasting tools that propel you through the process. Finally, it will transform your plan into a management tool that will help you easily compare your forecasts to your actual results.
Check out how LivePlan streamlines Lean Planning by downloading our Kickstart Your Business ebook .
Posted in Business Plan Writing
Risk Management
The identification, analysis and response to risk factors affecting a business
What is Risk Management?
Risk management encompasses the identification, analysis, and response to risk factors that form part of the life of a business . Effective risk management means attempting to control, as much as possible, future outcomes by acting proactively rather than reactively. Therefore, effective risk management offers the potential to reduce both the possibility of a risk occurring and its potential impact.

Risk Management Structures
Risk management structures are tailored to do more than just point out existing risks. A good risk management structure should also calculate the uncertainties and predict their influence on a business. Consequently, the result is a choice between accepting risks or rejecting them. Acceptance or rejection of risks is dependent on the tolerance levels that a business has already defined for itself.
If a business sets up risk management as a disciplined and continuous process for the purpose of identifying and resolving risks, then the risk management structures can be used to support other risk mitigation systems. They include planning, organization, cost control, and budgeting . In such a case, the business will not usually experience many surprises, because the focus is on proactive risk management.
Response to Risks
Response to risks usually takes one of the following forms:
- Avoidance : A business strives to eliminate a particular risk by getting rid of its cause.
- Mitigation : Decreasing the projected financial value associated with a risk by lowering the possibility of the occurrence of the risk.
- Acceptance : In some cases, a business may be forced to accept a risk. This option is possible if a business entity develops contingencies to mitigate the impact of the risk, should it occur.
When creating contingencies, a business needs to engage in a problem-solving approach. The result is a well-detailed plan that can be executed as soon as the need arises. Such a plan will enable a business organization to handle barriers or blockage to its success because it can deal with risks as soon as they arise.
Importance of Risk Management
Risk management is an important process because it empowers a business with the necessary tools so that it can adequately identify and deal with potential risks. Once a risk has been identified, it is then easy to mitigate it. In addition, risk management provides a business with a basis upon which it can undertake sound decision-making.
For a business, assessment and management of risks is the best way to prepare for eventualities that may come in the way of progress and growth. When a business evaluates its plan for handling potential threats and then develops structures to address them, it improves its odds of becoming a successful entity.
In addition, progressive risk management ensures risks of a high priority are dealt with as aggressively as possible. Moreover, the management will have the necessary information that they can use to make informed decisions and ensure that the business remains profitable.
Risk Analysis Process
Risk analysis is a qualitative problem-solving approach that uses various tools of assessment to work out and rank risks for the purpose of assessing and resolving them. Here is the risk analysis process:
1. Identify existing risks
Risk identification mainly involves brainstorming. A business gathers its employees together so that they can review all the various sources of risk. The next step is to arrange all the identified risks in order of priority. Because it is not possible to mitigate all existing risks, prioritization ensures that those risks that can affect a business significantly are dealt with more urgently.
2. Assess the risks
In many cases, problem resolution involves identifying the problem and then finding an appropriate solution. However, prior to figuring out how best to handle risks, a business should locate the cause of the risks by asking the question, “What caused such a risk and how could it influence the business?”
3. Develop an appropriate response
Once a business entity is set on assessing likely remedies to mitigate identified risks and prevent their recurrence, it needs to ask the following questions: What measures can be taken to prevent the identified risk from recurring? In addition, what is the best thing to do if it does recur?
4. Develop preventive mechanisms for identified risks
Here, the ideas that were found to be useful in mitigating risks are developed into a number of tasks and then into contingency plans that can be deployed in the future. If risks occur, the plans can be put to action.
Our business ventures encounter many risks that can affect their survival and growth. As a result, it is important to understand the basic principles of risk management and how they can be used to help mitigate the effects of risks on business entities.
More Resources
Thank you for reading CFI’s guide to Risk Management. To keep learning and advancing your career, the following CFI resources will be helpful:
- Idiosyncratic Risk
- Loss Aversion
- Risk Averse
- See all risk management resources
- Share this article
Strategic Risk Management 101: The Director’s Guide

What Is Strategic Risk?
- The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants ( ACCA ), who identify as the global body for professional accountants, defines strategic risks as “those that arise from the fundamental decisions that directors take concerning an organization's objectives.”
- Deloitte looks further than this; their definition of strategic risk encompasses risks that threaten business strategy decisions as well as those that arise from them. Deloitte defines strategic risks as “ those that either affect or are created by business strategy decisions. ”
- A paper published by a panel of US academics agrees. The paper notes that a definition of strategic risk that focuses only on risks generated by external factors “creates… problems.”
This approach neglects the significant risks that can originate within the organization; for example, quality failings are brought about through poor governance, risk and compliance processes.
It also includes trends in external factors as a source of strategic risk, something the paper’s authors take issue with, arguing that predictable trends shouldn’t be a source of risk; instead, it is deviations from these trends that can cause risks.
Of course, defining trends as a non-risk assumes that organizations have the insight and data to identify these trends and spot any deviations. Being able to achieve this demands that you adopt best practice governance intel strategies and understand the broader risk landscape.
Strategic risks are the significant risks that need to sit at the top of every board’s priority list.
- Competitive risk
- Change risk
- Regulatory risk
- Reputational risk
- Political risk
- Governance risk
- Financial risk
- Economic risk
- Operational risk
How Are Approaches to Strategic Risk Changing?
- A move from purely quantitative to qualitative risk management. Historically, strategic risk assessment was based purely or largely on quantitative factors; financial indicators, for instance, as we’ve noted above.
Increasingly, organizations have realized that some of their most relevant risks may only show a financial impact several years down the line or that the risk may be significant in some ways but the direct financial impact minimal. As a result, boards have started to measure strategic risk in purely financial terms and the context of softer metrics like reputation . As ethical considerations and broader CSR and ESG move up the corporate agenda, these metrics drive customer and stakeholder decisions and play an increasing role in the strategic risk matrix.
- A shift from defining process to usable insight. As companies tackled the issue of strategic risk management for the first time or upped their focus on strategic risk, they concentrated on the process. There’s no doubt that implementing the right processes forms an essential bedrock for your strategic risk management program. But once these are in place, your focus can evolve. With the right processes underpinning your approach, directors can turn attention to how they use the actionable insights they gain from the data and insights their process delivers. This is the next step in the strategic risk planning journey.
- Integrating strategic risk management with business strategy. The concept of integrated risk management (IRM) isn’t new, but organizations today are integrating strategic risk assessment and analysis more into their overall business strategy and planning.
Strategic decision and risk management approaches are increasingly interwoven, with risk management programs being used to inform the design and execution of business strategy. Again successfully doing this is contingent upon having the right processes in place and drawing on the data that these processes deliver to inform your decision-making .
The Board's Role in Leading and Enabling GRC
How to build a strategic risk plan, 6 steps to building a strategic risk plan:.
- Define your business’s objectives and strategy. As above, some of your risks will stem from your strategic decisions; others may impact them. Identifying your strategy and aims is an essential first step.
- Determine the measures you will use to monitor performance. How will you measure compliance with your strategic processes and progress towards your goals? Establish the performance indicators you will use to define success.
- Identify the risks that may impact your ability to achieve the KPIs in step 2. What factors threaten your success? These could be internal, like the failure of a core piece of equipment, or external, like a breakdown in your supply chain .
- Prioritize these risks ; which are critical, and which can be circumvented? What tolerance is there to results outside of your ideal?
- Put in place reporting that measures your strategic risks and response to them. Best practice reporting on governance, risk and compliance gives you the insight you need to defend your organization against strategic risk. Assess the processes, software and measures you have in place to gather this reporting and monitoring.
- Revisit and refresh your plan regularly. Implementing a strategic risk plan isn’t a “one time” job but needs regular review, in tandem with strategic risk assessment. As internal processes and the external landscape evolve, so should your approach to mitigating and managing your strategic risks.
The Board’s Role in Strategic Risk Management
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The Rising Tide of ESG – Navigating the Road Ahead

Board and Executive Collaboration: Components of a Secure Platform for the Evolving Workplace

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Home Resources Business What is Risk Mitigation? Definition, Plan, and Strategies
What is Risk Mitigation? Definition, Plan, and Strategies

Published December 7, 2022 | Written by Femi Lewis Reviewed by Brooke Davis

Every business will be presented with risks. From natural hazards, inflation, employee relations, market changes, and more, every business—large or small—will have to deal with the consequences of possible risks becoming actual events. Therefore, it is important to acknowledge the presence of threats within any organization and create strategic plans to prevent them from becoming a reality.
The solution: risk mitigation.
Read on to learn more about this solution, as we’ll unpack the definition, benefits, strategies, and more.
- What Is Risk Mitigation?
Risk Mitigation Examples
- Why Is Risk Mitigation Important?
- What Are Four Types of Risk Mitigation Strategies
- How to Mitigate Risk
- Tips For Successful Risk Mitigation
- How Legal Templates Can Help You
What Is Risk Mitigation?
Risk mitigation is the process through which businesses prepare for threats and minimize their effects on business operations. With a risk mitigation strategy in place, organizations can ensure business continuity and prepare in advance for the aftermath of a negative event.
Mitigation is not about avoiding risks. However, its purpose is to support business owners in their ability to deal with the presence of threats as they arise and minimize disruptions.
These are all examples of risk mitigation—business tactics used to decrease risk and remain sustainable. These potential threats can be specific to an industry due to a natural disaster or a transforming business climate. Therefore, investing the time to consider risk is just as important as developing and rolling out a business plan —it’s a part of an ongoing effort to prioritize strategic decisions and optimize for growth.
Top Risks for Small Businesses
There are many variables related to business risk. While some are specific to an industry and others are related to a location, there are some common risks that many small businesses face. Here are a few:
- An employee making a mistake that can compromise a company’s financial viability, equipment safety, or performance efficiency.
- A natural disaster such as a hurricane or extreme snowstorm impacts a business’s ability to operate effectively.
- Fraudulent activity, such as stealing money or emergency scams, will create uncertainty and put a business at risk.
- Security. Cyber experts often say, “it’s not if you’ll be breached; it’s when.” One of the greatest risks businesses consistently face is having their data compromised. Thus, customers’ information is exposed and this raises liability concerns. Customers can hold businesses legally liable for cyber breaches—which is why many companies opt for cyber liability insurance as part of their risk mitigation efforts.
- Default . When a business takes a loan for a large sum of money, they are placing the company at risk of not being able to pay the loan.
- Liquidity . If a business cannot turn its assets into cash, it will experience liquidity assets.
- Currency . When a company does business internationally, they have to consider the value of the foreign currency as well. If it depreciates, this leads to exchange rate risk, which can harm the profitability of a company.
- Compliance. When a company’s reputation or financial standing is compromised due to not following external or internal laws, this is an example of compliance risk.
- Legal . When a company does not follow local, state, or federal laws, this can have economic as well as reputational consequences. Examples of legal risks include contractual, disputes, and regulatory.
- Strategic. Any business with a faulty strategy is bound to face risks such as unachieved goals and financial strain.
Why Is Risk Mitigation Important?
Profit-driven activities are not the only way that businesses remain sustainable. Business organizations must acknowledge that servicing their customers and remaining competitive within their industry also rests on their ability to be prepared when disasters strike. A risk mitigation plan can provide a cost estimate of impending risks and help businesses stay afloat in case of interruptions.
Here are some reasons a risk management process is so important to a business’s bottom line:
- Just as the world is ever-evolving, so are businesses. Factors such as employee turnover, climate change, and business interruptions all translate to enhanced risks. The key is to take the necessary steps to protect a business from jeopardy. As risks increase, so does the threat of it becoming a reality.
- For entrepreneurs, catastrophes—big or small—are often not anticipated but can have a lasting impact on their viability. Risk mitigation helps businesses identify and prioritize problems that could arise in their business. All it takes is a strategy and a plan.
- When entrepreneurs ignore risk factors, they increase the likelihood that they will experience a problem that will negatively impact their business. Risks becoming a reality without a continuity plan can cost time and money and, in some cases, impact a small business’s short- or long-term viability.
- Proper risk mitigation reduces stress within an organization. When a business is experiencing severe stress, it can negatively impact the organization’s members. Ultimately, this impacts an entrepreneur’s ability to innovate and focus on growth.
What Are Four Types of Risk Mitigation Strategies
Risks are present in every business. There’s no way to avoid their existence. However, every business owner must create a strategy and plan to deal with risks and consequences. After all, effective risk management distinguishes smart entrepreneurs from those who are irresponsible.
The best way to manage risk mitigation: using an effective strategy.
Mitigation strategies support businesses in acknowledging the presence of risk and then creating a plan to deal with the associated costs. Below are four risk mitigation strategies.
1. Risk Acceptance
Businesses acknowledge the presence of a risk but take no action to mitigate it. This strategy is used when the cost of mitigating risk has the potential to exceed the cost of the risk. However, if the risk does occur, the business owner will have to manage its presence. Acceptance can be presented in ways such as:
- Financial
- Compliance
- Security and fraud
- Operations
- Competition
- Reputation
2. Risk Avoidance
What better way to eliminate a risk than to change plans? When businesses use the risk avoidance strategy, they understand that there is potential for a huge impact on the organization or a specific project. Instead of dealing with the risk, the organization decides to avoid it by shifting gears in its operational plans.
3. Risk Transference
Using a contract or policy, a business will shift its risk from itself to another party. For instance, a company that purchases cyber security insurance takes away the risk of being sued by customers impacted by a data breach. If a company experiences a data breach, it can use its cyber security insurance to cover legal liabilities. This is just one example of risk transfer, and the costs associated with it depend on the type and frequency of the risk.
4. Risk Reduction
Businesses can limit the effect of a risk by taking specific steps to understand its potential threat to their business. For example, a company with offices in a flood zone would have an evacuation plan and necessary insurance to protect its ability to bounce back in the event of a flood. Or, to further avoid the risk of a flood and its consequences, a company may decide to relocate.
How to Mitigate Risk
Once a business has identified its risk mitigation strategy, it is time to develop an action plan. In a risk mitigation plan, there are several distinct steps that every business should follow. Here’s why: every business needs a plan that is unique to its business model .
Step 1: Identify and Assess the Risk
The first step in mitigating risk is identifying a company’s vulnerability. Risks associated with a business exist for various reasons, such as industry, location, and employee needs. Therefore, identifying risks and assessing their impact is essential to estimate costs and secure business viability. In a risk assessment, a business will assess the risk and measures that can be taken to reduce the impact of a threat.
Step 2: Prioritize Risk
Once a business has identified and assessed its risks, it’s time to move on to the next step. Businesses will rank their rinks in order of severity. Often, a business will be willing to accept certain risks to protect from other liabilities. This allows a business to prepare for business continuity and effectively mitigate risks to benefit future projects.
Step 3: Track Risks
As a business evolves, so will its liabilities. As a result, monitoring risks is vital to a company’s livelihood and must be tracked to meet business continuity requirements.
Step 4: Evaluate Progress
How effective is a business risk mitigation plan? In this step, businesses must analyze the effectiveness of their plan. As businesses evolve, it is important to evaluate their plan. The evaluation process will support the needs of the business when managing risks. Businesses must regularly evaluate and analyze their plan to ensure that they will meet the needs of the business.
Tips For Successful Risk Mitigation
When a business is developing its risk mitigation strategy and action plan, it is crucial that your team practices equitable decision-making. Here are some tips to make the process solution-based:
How Legal Templates Can Help You
It is not uncommon for new business owners to ask, “what is risk mitigation” and “do I really need to do this now?” The short answer is yes . Every business needs to identify and evaluate risks that could possibly impact their livelihood.
Risk mitigation supports business owners in being prepared for events that they do not expect to occur. By identifying risks associated with your business and developing an action plan, you will protect your business’s ability to remain viable.
Taking the necessary steps to acknowledge potential risks will support entrepreneurs by saving them time, money, and stress when problems arise. Not to mention, every business needs to protect its reputation and customers.
So w hy not start with a business continuity plan? Legal Templates provides intuitive templates that can help you draw up your document in minutes. It’s a small and important step to help you mitigate risks and minimize business disruptions.

Small Business Writer
Femi Lewis is a New York City-based writer specializing in entrepreneurship and content marketing. Her work has appeared on digital platforms such as The Balance, The Balance Small Business,...
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What Is A Risk Management Plan? [Steps & Examples]
Risk management is all about planning: planning for what might go wrong if x happens; planning y as a reaction for when something does, in fact, go wrong. Depending on what you’re working on at your business, you are up against a unique variety of potential risks.
In order for your business to succeed, it’s important to continuously evolve – and there are always ways to improve and expand your business. We’ve come to know these temporary initiatives with distinct deliverables as “projects.”
Some common examples of projects an organization may take on include:
- Building or closing a facility
- Re-branding
- Developing or discontinuing a product or service
- Migrating to a new software
- Expanding or reducing service to a particular industry
- Training a new group of employees
Taking a risk-based approach to new projects means thinking about the implications of any new project on all other areas of your organization. The best place to start is by creating a risk management plan to steer your team and organization in the right direction throughout the course of the project.
This guide will explain “what is a risk management plan?” Describe the purpose of a risk management plan, share what should be included in a risk management plan and provide examples of everything along the way.
Table of Contents
What is a risk management plan?
A risk management plan is a term used to describe a key project management process. A risk management plan enables project managers to see ahead to potential risks and reduce their negative impact. A new project welcomes in new opportunities but also potential risks so a risk management plan is a must for risk project managers.
In order to effectively manage the project and lead their project team to a successful outcome, they may develop and defer to a project risk management plan throughout the duration of the project.

What is the purpose of a risk management plan?
The purpose of a risk management plan is to help you identify, evaluate and plan for possible risks that may arise within the project management process. Think of it as a blueprint walking you through every stage of construction, including potential areas where demolition may be needed, external contractors may be hired, or budget may be stretched.
What is included in a risk management plan?
Risk Identification
Identifying the risks that may be associated with taking on a new project or continuing an existing one should be the first step to developing your risk management plan. Failure to conduct risk identification and identify risks ahead of time can lead to a number of negative financial outcomes that don’t reduce the impact of the risk, especially those that are high risk:
- Inadequate employee training can lead to incompetence’s, which can lead to disgruntled customers and ultimately loss of business.
- Building a new facility in a flood-prone area without purchasing flood insurance can lead to substantial sunken costs.
- Investing R&D into a new product that fails to excite the market takes a toll on your business valuation, which can turn investors away.
The list goes on. Ultimately, formalizing the process of identifying new risks lets you take a step back and notice systemic risks that may not have otherwise been uncovered had the proper time not been invested in this key part of risk analysis.
Project risk assessment
Next, for a project manager, it’s important to think about the implications of any new or existing project on all other areas of your organization. Conducting a project management risk assessment on that project will help reveal those implications ahead of time so you can effectively prevent undue risk. It’s important to be sure to assess risk in a uniform fashion. One of the best ways for a risk owner to do this is by prioritizing data and risk metric collection.
Risk assessment matrix
A risk assessment matrix is the best way for a risk project manager to collect and aggregate data used during your risk assessment. It’s created to help you identify the overlapping activities that crowd your risk management plan. The risk assessment matrix is essential in determining and defining the level and the implications of any particular risk.
Start by addressing a particular business area. Then, include a description of a risk that may be associated with that business area. Continue on by completing a risk analysis: identify the source of the risk, what could go wrong, and the impact of the risk. Then, you’ll need to decide the likelihood and assurance of the risk occurring.
Many organizations use a high-medium-low scale when assessing risk, but this actually isn’t best practice. High-medium and low scales make it difficult and time-consuming to quantify, aggregate, and objectively rank information. With only three options to choose from, they’ll likely feel conflicted about which one to choose. In reality, best practice favors a 1-10 scale, with 10 having the most unfavorable consequences to the organization.
This is something that helps to prioritize risks. You find out more about this process here .
Let’s take a look at the line items to assess a risk associated with re-opening an office amidst the pandemic:
- Risk: Inadequate policies to prevent the spread of the virus to employees and/or visitors.
- Risk analysis: what can go wrong?
- Employees become uncomfortable wearing their mask for too long and decide to remove it while conversing with colleagues. Virus is then spread throughout the workforce.
- Customer refuses to wear a mask out of principle and must be asked to leave the premises, causing a scene.
- Employees and/or customers do not stay 6 feet apart from one another.

Risk Appetite Response Plan
After you’ve identified and assessed your risks the next step of any risk analysis project focuses on determining how you will respond to those risks. Risk response involves developing strategic options that can increase positive outcomes and reduce risk.
Your risk response plan should determine which actions you take in order to experience the most positive outcome and also consider your own risk appetite and tolerance levels . Critical elements that will help define your risk response are risk mitigation and risk monitoring.
Risk Mitigation
The efforts you take (or plan on taking) to control the risk being assessed should be included within your risk assessment matrix. This part of the project management risk process is referred to as mitigation . Risk mitigation is defined as the process of reducing a risk event and minimizing the likelihood of a potential risk.
Considering the above scenario, here are a few mitigations that might be developed and included within your matrix and overall plan:
- Enforcing strict consequences for employees who are caught not wearing their mask. Dedicating particular areas outside where employees can go to take a break from wearing their mask at lunch.
- Hanging signs on the front door that refuse people entry without a mask. Stationing employees at the front door who do not let anyone in without a mask.
- Placing dots six feet apart from one another to instruct people on where to stand in line and prevent crowding.
As you can see these help to create a contingency plan against negative impact.
What is a Risk Register?
A Risk Register is a document that contains all of the information we’ve mentioned thus far: the risks you’ve identified and assessed, as well as the results and risk response plan. Many people choose to create a Risk Register to steer them throughout every project, particularly throughout the monitoring phase.
Risk Monitoring
Monitoring risk over the course of the project should be an ongoing and proactive part of risk analysis. It involves project management to conduct consistent testing by the risk owner throughout the project, metric collection, and incidents remediation to certify that your efforts are on track to be completed, aligned with your strategic goals, and allowing your mitigating controls to remain effective. Continually monitoring your risks also allows you to identify and address emerging trends to determine whether or not you’re making progress on more long-term initiatives.
Risk monitoring helps you create key connections between risks, business units, mitigation activities, and more. This way, you’re able to paint a more cohesive picture of your organization as a whole. Completing your monitoring activities within LogicManager, a comprehensive GRC platform , you inherently break down organizational silos and ultimately eliminate the chances of missing critical pieces of information.
Learn more about how our interconnected platform can help you streamline your risk monitoring activities here .
Reporting On Your Risk Management Plan
If you’re a project manager, it’s likely that you have a more holistic, bird’s eye view of the project’s progress than the rest of your project team. While they’re focused on completing day-to-day tasks to complete a larger initiative, you’re looking at the bigger picture.
One of the best ways to communicate that bigger picture to your project team is through reports. Presenting information about your project – as well as everyone’s alignment with your risk management plan – demonstrates effectiveness and strong leadership, and can rally the support of various stakeholders.
Examples of reports for your risk management plan
It’s important that these risk reports are engaging and easily digestible so that your project team has a clear understanding of where their efforts and the work of their team members stands. LogicManager’s risk reports are built on powerful taxonomy technology that centralizes information and breaks down silos. Our software comes with a wide range of reports that enable you to do anything from checking the status of outstanding tasks and reviewing incidents, to proving compliance and ensuring policies are up to date.
Achieve your risk management plan with LogicManager
As a Project Manager, risk is just one of your many duties; but it’s an integral one. Identifying the risks that may threaten the successful completion of your capital, strategic and tactical goals is the only way to ensure everything stays on trajectory.
But you’re also responsible for prioritizing and tracking the status of the project (and possibly many others) all the while respecting your project team’s time, the quality of the results, and your budget. Reporting is a must as you communicate the risks, opportunities, and needs of projects to stakeholders like your project team, senior management, and the board.
Without project risk management software , staying on time, on budget, and on scope is difficult.
- Spreadsheets and emails make information hard to collect, update and share.
- Engaging the proper business units and subject matter experts requires an unnecessary amount of effort without an automated system.
- Knowing where to start a project risk assessment is a headache without a framework of project risk management tools.
- Reporting is inefficient when you have to hunt down information across disparate systems.
It’s a hard job, but LogicManager makes it easy by erasing all your pain points at once.
- Prioritize your organization’s most critical projects and identify potential risks with intuitive and objective project risk assessments.
- Create and link mitigation activities to the risks, resources, and processes they impact with taxonomy technology.
- Confidently embark on new projects with one standardized framework.
- Enhance collaboration and communication across the enterprise with automated workflows, notifications, and reminders.
- Maintain your responsibilities and track the status of your projects with easily accessible to-do lists.
- Align with industry best practices like ISO by leveraging ready-made libraries of standards and regulations.
- Track project incidents and outline steps towards maturity with integrated incident management capabilities.
- Effectively communicate status, timeline, and risks to the board with ready-made, highly configurable reports, and dashboards.
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What Is a Business Contingency Plan and How to Create One

Business Contingency Plan Definition
A business contingency plan identifies potential risks to your business and outlines the steps or course of action your management team and employees would need to take to combat them. Risks can include a global pandemic, natural disaster, loss of a key employee, supply chain breakdown, a new competitor, and more. You can think of a business contingency plan as a Plan B or disaster recovery plan. It gives your business something to fall back on in case things don’t go as planned.
In a perfect world, your business would be immune from disaster. Unfortunately, this is not the case. A disaster such as COVID-19 can strike when you least expect it and leave you in a difficult situation. Unexpected events are virtually a guarantee in business.
That’s where a business contingency plan comes in. Just as your business plan helped you launch your business, a business contingency plan can ensure your organization is well-prepared when times get tough. Let’s dive deeper into what a business contingency plan is and how you can create one.
What Is a Business Contingency Plan?
A business contingency plan is essentially a strategy that outlines the steps or course of action your management team and employees would need to take in the event of a disaster. You can think of it as a Plan B or disaster recovery plan. It gives you something to fall back on in case things don’t go as planned.
Without a business contingency plan, you put your business at risk for a great deal of damage and lost productivity. It may be the difference between continuing operations and completely shutting down. Unfortunately, many organizations forgo business contingency plans because they’d rather put all their time and energy into Plan A. They don’t realize that a Plan B will help them achieve success, rather than hinder it.
The importance of a contingency plan should not be overlooked. After all, if your competitor has a strong business contingency plan in place and you do not, who is likely to survive when a disaster hits? Your competitor.
By putting time and thought into your plan, you can overcome obstacles and keep business stable in the midst of a crisis. Not only does a disaster recovery plan minimize the impact of unforeseen events, but it also creates a plan for running your business after the disaster comes to an end.
When Should You Develop a Business Contingency Plan?
Most organizations focus on contingency planning during their annual planning meeting. At this time, they discuss their strategies for success for the upcoming year and identify what risks they need to prepare for. Some organizations, however, prefer to plan for the unexpected throughout the year as they believe it’s an effective way to cope with various issues.
For example, if you notice a new competitor stealing a great deal of your market share in the middle of the year, you may come up with a contingency plan for that particular situation right then. It wouldn’t make sense to wait until the next annual meeting to tackle a problem happening now.
How to Create a Business Contingency Plan
The keys to a strong contingency plan are thoughtful brainstorming sessions and strong research. If you’d like to create a business contingency plan for your business, here are some steps to follow.
Step 1: Consider Major Risks
Think about the nature of your business, the types of products and services you provide, and the customers you serve. What types of events would negatively impact your organization as well as your employees, equipment , and other resources?
During this step, it’s a good idea to hold multiple meetings with your management team and key employees. If you have the funds, investing in a business consultant who can steer you toward the right direction may be worthwhile. Your risks will likely fall into these categories.
People are the lifeblood of your business. Without them, you’d have a tough time earning money and meeting your goals. Consider the management team and employees at your organization. Are there specific people that are essential to your business? What would you do if they unexpectedly quit, sustain an injury, or pass away? Is there one person that knows how to do a certain task that nobody else knows how to do?
These days, technology plays a vital role in any organization. If you’re a sales-oriented business, what would you do if your customer relationship management ( CRM ) system breaks down? If you offer software development services, how would you operate if a specific program stopped working? Jot down a list of all the technologies and equipment you need to function optimally.
Chances are you have inventory you’d like to safeguard in the event of a disaster. If you sell women’s clothing, for example, this may be the merchandise in your warehouse. If you offer a service like home health care, your inventory may consist of stethoscopes, alcohol wipes, and other tools your nurses take on client visits.
There are federal and local laws that your business must follow. Consider what they are as well as any potential lawsuits that you may be susceptible to. You may want to consult an attorney to make sure you have all the legalities of your business covered.
Some of the most common examples of risks include:
- Your top sales representative quits
- A fire strikes
- A less expensive competitor enters the market
- Your computer system breaks down
- A hacker steals your client’s personal information
Step 2: Prioritize Risks
Once you’ve compiled your list of risks, it’ll be time to prioritize them. So how do you do that? Go through each risk on your list and figure out how likely it is to happen. Then, determine how much it will impact your business if it were to arise. The risks that have a greater probability of occurring and have the potential to cause the most damage should be at the top of your priority list.
Step 3: Develop a Contingency Plan for Each Risk
After your risks have been prioritized, you’ll need to develop a separate plan of action for each one. Begin with the top priority risks and make your way down to the ones that are lower priority. Each contingency plan you create should outline what you’ll do to prepare for that risk and the steps you’ll take to keep damage to a minimum.
Here’s a business contingency plan example: Let’s say your business involves a call center and one of your risks is that many employees are likely to call out at the same time. You need these employees on the phones or your business will slow down and lose money. In this scenario, you may prepare by creating a “backup list” of employees who can fill in on short notice.
Your “backup list” employees are people that will gladly pick up an extra shift at a moment’s notice. You’ll have them to call and cover for any employees that don’t show up. By creating a contingency plan for each risk, you can achieve some much-needed peace of mind and alleviate stress when you don’t have all the resources you need to succeed.
Step 4: Share and Modify the Plan
Your business contingency plan is no good if you’re the only one who knows about it. As soon as you’ve finalized it, store in a place that your management team and employees can easily access. Also, host a meeting to present it to everyone and address any questions or concerns they may have. You’ll likely find that sharing your business contingency plan with others opens your eyes to new ideas and insights that can improve it.
It’s important to note that your business contingency plan is not set in stone. Unfortunately, it’s not one of those things that you create once and never touch again. As your business evolves and times goes on, you may identify new risks and solutions for your plan. Set up a time every quarter or year to review and modify your business contingency plan as necessary.
Business Contingency Plan Templates and Examples
If you’re new to this concept and need some guidance, this business contingency plan template can be invaluable. You can use it to create a game plan for each risk that you need to strategize for.
Blank Template

When choosing a business contingency plan template to follow, it can be helpful to pick between a few different visual options. Each template below from Creately offers a completely different visual experience and outlines different examples of business contingency plans. One may work better for you than another based on your business needs and your personal style preferences. Take a look at each template and see which one is easiest for you to follow visually.

Where Does a Business Contingency Fit Into Your Overall Business Plan?
Although a business contingency plan is vital for every business, it’s only one piece of your overall business plan. The other components for your plan should include financial planning, strategic planning, and succession planning . When a business contingency plan is paired with them, you can get a good understanding of where your business is headed.
You’ll find that contingency planning complements your financial and strategic planning. After all, your overall vision may not come to fruition if you don’t have a backup plan. A business contingency plan takes a proactive approach to business management and can allow you to survive just about any crisis.
Business Contingency Plan vs. Business Continuity Plan
A business contingency plan is used to identify any potential business risks and clearly identifies what steps need to be taken by staff if one of those risks ever becomes a reality. A business continuity plan sounds similar in name and like a business contingency plan, aims to mitigate risks to the company. Business continuity plans outline a process that can help a company both prevent and recover from any major threats to the company. Ideally, this type of plan will help protect both staff and company assets in the event of some kind of emergency.
The Bottom Line
While you may not realize the importance of a business contingency plan when things are going well, you’ll be so glad you have one when an unforeseen circumstance arises.
If you’d like to protect the health and safety of your employees and customers, minimize interruptions and financial loss , and be able to resume operations quickly, you need a business contingency plan. In today’s unpredictable economic climate and competitive landscape, having a Plan B is not a luxury. It’s a necessity.

Anna Baluch
Anna Baluch is a freelance writer from Cleveland, Ohio, who enjoys writing about a variety of small business and personal finance topics. Her work can be seen on LendingTree, Credit Karma, Nav, Freedom Debt Relief, and a number of other well-known publications. When she’s not writing, she can be seen volunteering and trying new restaurants.
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The U.S. takes emergency measures to protect all deposits at Silicon Valley Bank

Bobby Allyn

A worker tells people that the Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif., is closed on March 10. Federal regulators took extraordinary measures on Sunday to backstop all deposits at SVB after the lender's spectacular collapse. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption
A worker tells people that the Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif., is closed on March 10. Federal regulators took extraordinary measures on Sunday to backstop all deposits at SVB after the lender's spectacular collapse.
The Biden administration has announced that customers of Silicon Valley Bank will have full access to their deposits, an extraordinary move by federal officials to backstop billions of dollars in uninsured money amid fears that the bank's collapse could lead to greater panic.
Federal regulators said Sunday that it was taking the emergency measures to prevent contagion at other small and regional banks in the wake of Silicon Valley Bank's sudden implosion.

A Silicon Valley lender collapsed after a run on the bank. Here's what to know
In the United Kingdom, meanwhile, the British Treasury and the Bank of England announced early Monday that they had facilitated the sale of Silicon Valley Bank UK to HSBC, Europe's biggest bank, The Associated Press reported. The move ensured the security of an estimated $8.1 billion of deposits. British officials worked throughout the weekend to find a buyer for the UK subsidiary of the California-based bank. Its collapse was the second-largest bank failure in history.
The U.S. rescue plan involves tapping a deep reserve of bank-funded federal insurance money, not taxpayer dollars, according to officials.
The regulators said customers of Silicon Valley Bank will be able to access all of their money starting Monday.
Deposits at Signature Bank, which was shut by New York regulators on Sunday, would also be backstopped.
The closure of Signature represents the third U.S. bank to topple in just one week, after California-based Silvergate, a top lender in the crypto market, decided to wind down its operations and pay back depositors.
"Today we are taking decisive actions to protect the U.S. economy by strengthening public confidence in our banking system," federal officials said in the statement on Sunday. "This step will ensure that the U.S. banking system continues to perform its vital roles of protecting deposits and providing access to credit to households and businesses in a manner that promotes strong and sustainable economic growth."

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen takes her seat for a House Ways and Means Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on March 10. On Sunday, the Treasury Department and other financial regulators including the Federal Reserve, announced emergency measures to protect depositors at Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. Drew Angerer/Getty Images hide caption
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen takes her seat for a House Ways and Means Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on March 10. On Sunday, the Treasury Department and other financial regulators including the Federal Reserve, announced emergency measures to protect depositors at Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.
U.S. steps come amid contagion fears
Until the announcement, there was widespread fear among depositors of Silicon Valley Bank, since federal insurance covers accounts up to $250,000 and more than 90% of the bank's deposits were above that cap. Most customers of the bank were tech startups and firms tied to the venture capital world.
But administration officials and financial regulators worked through the weekend, according to the senior Treasury Department official, to shore up confidence in the banking sector before Monday.
Banking analysts worried that Silicon Valley Bank's rapid insolvency would trigger uncertainty among depositors of other small and regional banks, leading federal officials to take steps on Sunday aimed at fending off other potential bank runs that could inflict deeper economic damage.
In a separate statement, President Biden said those "responsible for this mess" will be held accountable. He plans on delivering remarks on Monday on how the U.S. can continue to maintain a resilient banking system.

A notice informing of Silicon Valley Bank's closure hangs at the bank's headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif., on March 10. The bank suffered a swift demise after fears of its financial health led to a rush of depositors looking to withdraw their funds. Noah Berger/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
A notice informing of Silicon Valley Bank's closure hangs at the bank's headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif., on March 10. The bank suffered a swift demise after fears of its financial health led to a rush of depositors looking to withdraw their funds.
Stock and bond investors of SVB will not be protected
The move on Sunday effectively waives the $250,000 ceiling on federal deposit insurance for Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.
The deposits will be supported by insurance funds, not taxpayer money.
A senior Treasury official on Sunday stressed Silicon Valley Bank's investors will not be provided with any relief by Sunday's actions.
"The bank's equity and bondholders are being wiped out. They took a risk as owners of those securities. They will take the losses," the official said.

Silicon Valley Bank failure could wipe out 'a whole generation of startups'
The Federal Reserve also announced on Sunday that it is taking new steps to make funding available to banks to cushion any potential risk prompted by Friday's collapse of Silicon Valley Bank.
"Today we are taking decisive actions to protect the U.S. economy by strengthening public confidence in our banking system," the officials said on Sunday.
Regulators act amid fears of contagion
The rapid meltdown of Silicon Valley Bank happened at a stunning pace, as did the government's response.
The lender's stock price plummeted on Thursday, and trading of its shares was halted early on Friday. Hours later, California banking regulators shuttered the bank, and appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation as receiver over nearly $175 billion in customer deposits.
During the pandemic, the tech sector's boom led to a surge in deposits at Silicon Valley Bank. The bank then invested a large chunk of the cash into long-term government securities.
The value of those securities began to drop after the Federal Reserve started raising interest rates aggressively to fight inflation.
Those rate hikes came just as there was contraction in funding for startups. Tech companies were spending company cash fast, and they were having a hard time replenishing the funding in the face of a challenging fundraising market.
That, in turn, led to startups pulling out more and more cash from Silicon Valley Bank, forcing the lender to sell part of its bond holds at a steep loss of $1.8 billion.
The announcement of the bond sale sparked more depositors to pull out their funds, effectively leading to a run on the bank.
Venture capitalists, including Peter Thiel's prominent Founders Fund, advised customers to pull deposits out of the bank, adding momentum to a bank run that set off the bank's swift collapse.

People walk through the parking lot at the Silicon Valley Bank headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif., on March 10. SVB saw a surge in deposits during the tech boom, but was forced to sell some of its bond holdings at a steep loss after seeing an increase in deposit withdrawals. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption
People walk through the parking lot at the Silicon Valley Bank headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif., on March 10. SVB saw a surge in deposits during the tech boom, but was forced to sell some of its bond holdings at a steep loss after seeing an increase in deposit withdrawals.
Tech CEOs were pleading for help
As federal officials scrambled over the weekend to try to prevent a larger financial fallout from the bank's demise, the venture capitalist community took to Twitter with doomsday predictions, claiming the failure to back up deposits could lead to catastrophe for tech startups and venture capital firms.
More than 5,000 startup CEOs and founders pleaded with federal officials for support, as reports circulated of startup founders unsure of how they would be able to pay employees if their money was tied up in the insolvent Silicon Valley Bank.
"We are not asking for a bailout for the bank equity holders or its management; we are asking you to save innovation in the American economy," the founders and CEOs wrote in their petition. " Silicon Valley Bank's failure has a real risk of systemic contagion."
Signature Bank becomes next casualty of banking turmoil after SVB

March 12 (Reuters) - State regulators closed New York-based Signature Bank (SBNY.O) on Sunday, the third largest failure in U.S. banking history, two days after authorities shuttered Silicon Valley Bank (SIVB.O) in a collapse that stranded billions in deposits.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) took control of Signature, which had $110.36 billion in assets and $88.59 billion in deposits at the end of last year, according to New York state's Department of Financial Services.
All of the depositors of Signature Bank and Silicon Valley Bank will be made whole, and "no losses will be borne by the taxpayer," the U.S. Treasury Department and other bank regulators said in a joint statement.
Employees appeared to gather at the company's Manhattan headquarters for meetings on Sunday, ordering catering from Carmine's, an Italian restaurant, and Starbucks coffee, according to a Reuters reporter on the scene. People trickled out of the building after the news of the closure was announced.
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Representatives for the lender did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Signature's failure followed Silicon Valley Bank's Friday shutdown, the second largest in U.S. history behind Washington Mutual, which collapsed during the 2008 financial crisis.
Investors were unnerved by the speed at which startup-focused SVB, the 16th largest lender in the U.S., was toppled by customer withdrawals. The episode last week erased more than $100 billion in market value from U.S. banks, prompting swift action from government officials over the weekend to try and restore confidence in the financial system.
The FDIC established a "bridge" successor bank on Sunday which will enable customers to access their funds on Monday. Signature Bank's depositors and borrowers will automatically become customers of the bridge bank, the FDIC said.
The regulator named former Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB.O) Chief Executive Greg Carmichael as CEO of the bridge bank.
Silicon Valley Bank customers will have access to their deposits starting on Monday, U.S. officials said on Sunday. The federal government also announced actions to shore up deposits and try and stem any broader fallout.
Signature was a commercial bank with private client offices in New York, Connecticut, California, Nevada and North Carolina, and had nine national business lines including commercial real estate and digital asset banking.
As of September, almost a quarter of its deposits came from the cryptocurrency sector, but the bank announced in December that it would shrink its crypto-related deposits by $8 billion.
Signature Bank announced in February that its chief executive officer, Joseph DePaolo, would transition into a senior adviser role in 2023 and would be succeeded by the bank’s chief operating officer, Eric Howell. DePaolo has served as president and CEO since Signature's inception in 2001.
The bank had a long-standing relationship with former President Donald Trump and his family, providing Trump and his business with checking accounts and financing several of the family's ventures. Signature Bank cut ties with Trump in 2021 following the deadly Jan. 6 riots on Capitol Hill, and urged Trump to resign.
In a statement, New York Governor Kathy Hochul said she hoped the U.S. government's actions on Sunday would provide "increased confidence in the stability of our banking system."
"Many depositors at these banks are small businesses, including those driving the innovation economy, and their success is key to New York's robust economy," she said.
Officials said on Sunday shareholders and certain unsecured debtholders of Signature Bank, as well as those of Silicon Valley Bank, would not be protected, and that senior management of both banks has been removed.
Any losses to the FDIC's Deposit Insurance Fund used to support uninsured depositors will be recovered by a special assessment on banks, as required by law, officials said.
(This story has been corrected to add dropped word 'billion' in paragraph 2)
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Thomson Reuters
Hannah Lang covers financial technology and cryptocurrency, including the businesses that drive the industry and policy developments that govern the sector. Hannah previously worked at American Banker where she covered bank regulation and the Federal Reserve. She graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park and lives in Washington, DC.
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European banks are unlikely to find themselves compelled to liquidate their bond holdings at a loss like their U.S. peer Silicon Valley Bank (SIVBV.UL), Moody's Investors Service said on Monday.
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Business risk is the exposure a company or organization has to factor (s) that will lower its profits or lead it to fail. Anything that threatens a company's ability to achieve its financial...
Business risk is the threat that internal and external forces may converge to create an environment in which a firm is no longer viable. Business risk is different from financial risk, which occurs when a company employs significant debt in its capital structure. A variety of tools and frameworks exist to help understand and measure business risk.
Risk management is the process of identifying, assessing and controlling financial, legal, strategic and security risks to an organization's capital and earnings. These threats, or risks, could stem from a wide variety of sources, including financial uncertainty, legal liabilities, strategic management errors, accidents and natural disasters.
A business impact analysis (BIA) is the process for determining the potential impacts resulting from the interruption of time sensitive or critical business processes. There are numerous hazards to consider. For each hazard there are many possible scenarios that could unfold depending on timing, magnitude and location of the hazard.
Business risks are often mismanaged when companies don't understand the purpose or definition behind risk management, or when they simply don't want to put in the work to manage their business risks well. It can also be connected to time, effort, and money involved with risk management that a company doesn't want to expend.
A risk management plan documents the whole process, including identification, evaluation, and risk mitigation. It also includes risk control monitoring, cost-benefit analysis, and financial impacts. In contrast, a risk assessment is a specific part of the risk management process.
Business risk is defined as any threat or force preventing a business from reaching its financial goals or causing a business to fail. Forces that create business risk can come from internal sources, such as a poor management structure, bad publicity, theft, or the loss of talented employees.
Business planning is when key stakeholders review the state of their business and plan for how they will improve the business in the future. Business planning isn't a one-off event—it should be an ongoing practice of self-assessment and planning.
PRINCE2 Glossary of terms. [Risk is] A possible event that could cause harm or loss, or affect the ability to achieve objectives. A risk is measured by the probability of a threat, the vulnerability of the asset to that threat, and the impact it would have if it occurred. Risk can also be defined as uncertainty of outcome, and can be used in ...
Business riskis an event, circumstance or condition that may result in an organization failing to achieve its objectives or adversely affect its strategy. For example, a risk that a company might fail to improve sales, reduce costs or successfully launch a new product under development. Most business risks impact a company's financial statements.
A business continuity plan (BCP) is a system of prevention and recovery from potential threats to a company. The plan ensures that personnel and assets are protected and are able to function...
What is a business risk? A business risk threatens a company's financial goals. Business risks can be categorized as internal or external risks and can include: Political changes Cybersecurity threats Threats to reputation Mergers and acquisitions Health crises Location hazards
Business Risk Definition Business risk is the risk associated with running a business. The risk can be higher or lower from time to time. But it will be there as long as you run a business or want to operate and expand. Multi-faceted factors can influence business risk.
A business plan is a document that explains how your business operates. It summarizes your business structure, objectives, milestones, and financial performance. Again, it's a guide that helps you, and anyone else, better understand how your business will succeed. Why do you need a business plan?
Risk management is an important process because it empowers a business with the necessary tools so that it can adequately identify and deal with potential risks. Once a risk has been identified, it is then easy to mitigate it. In addition, risk management provides a business with a basis upon which it can undertake sound decision-making.
6 Steps to Building a Strategic Risk Plan: Define your business's objectives and strategy. As above, some of your risks will stem from your strategic decisions; others may impact them. Identifying your strategy and aims is an essential first step. Determine the measures you will use to monitor performance.
Risk mitigation is the process through which businesses prepare for threats and minimize their effects on business operations. With a risk mitigation strategy in place, organizations can ensure business continuity and prepare in advance for the aftermath of a negative event. Mitigation is not about avoiding risks.
A risk management plan is a term used to describe a key project management process. A risk management plan enables project managers to see ahead to potential risks and reduce their negative impact. A new project welcomes in new opportunities but also potential risks so a risk management plan is a must for risk project managers.
Risk of fraud and theft. Audit risk is the risk that the auditor expresses an inappropriate audit opinion on the financial statements. Audit risk therefore includes any factors that may cause a material misstatement or omission in the financial statements. Whereas business risks relate to the organization and its stakeholders, audit risk ...
A business contingency plan is used to identify any potential business risks and clearly identifies what steps need to be taken by staff if one of those risks ever becomes a reality. A business continuity plan sounds similar in name and like a business contingency plan, aims to mitigate risks to the company. Business continuity plans outline a ...
The Federal Reserve also announced on Sunday that it is taking new steps to make funding available to banks to cushion any potential risk prompted by Friday's collapse of Silicon Valley Bank.
State regulators closed New York-based Signature Bank on Sunday, the third largest failure in U.S. banking history, two days after authorities shuttered Silicon Valley Bank in a collapse that ...