The title of this week’s essay is tongue-in-cheek, because everyone manages risk all the time, including business leaders. CEOs might tell you they’re thinking about how to maximize business profits for shareholders—and, in our current economic system, they totally are—but that’s about
Thanks, Mark! "Soft skills" (in quotes because I'm not really a fan of this term) remain important no matter how good the argument, if that argument is appealing to other humans.
The ridiculous rise of specialty consulting and outsourcing has reinforced my favorite expressions from my work days. Organizations engage outsiders thinking the secret answers might be there. "A prophet is never welcome in their own hometown." Most organizations already possess the knowledge they need to move forward but are not built to listen up and down levels. Companies that foster good communication can largely avoid or at least limit loss of cohesiveness that bringing in the experts often engenders. They can save a lot of time and money also.
You wrote: '"A prophet is never welcome in their own hometown." Most organizations already possess the knowledge they need to move forward but are not built to listen up and down levels.'
This is very true. Other reasons organizations engage outsiders are to get an outside perspective specifically to add fresh views to the existing dialogue (this is a great reason to have a consultant!), or to amplify the best views from on-the-ground staff (because of the listening issue you called out above), or to do unpleasant work or make unpopular recommendations and then leave.
In the company I work for, it is all about risk management, and effective risk management is not just about identifying threats but also about aligning with business objectives. It's a matter of selling your perspective in a way that demonstrates its value and ROI while fostering collaboration rather than resistance. Great advice for achieving lasting buy-in and strategic risk management. Thanks for sharing Stephanie.
Although I worked in a completely different area of risk, the same principles apply. A lot came down to the relationship between risk assessor and decision-maker. Finding the common ground was crucial, as well as communicating in a way which worked for the decision-maker. Good advice isn't just about being factually accurate, it's about presenting it in a way that makes it useful. Part of that, rightly or wrongly, is about the way the person giving the advice comes across.
Yep, I've seen it go both ways. An early professional takeaway for me went something like, "Wow, this fight I'm witnessing was mostly unnecessary, and we could have gotten better risk outcomes with a different approach."
💯 times yes to "exploring risk management as a competitive advantage" !! Companies that care about risk are playing a longer game than companies that don't, even if it costs more in the short-term. Thanks for the insight :)
Great post especially stressing the communication.
Thanks, Mark! "Soft skills" (in quotes because I'm not really a fan of this term) remain important no matter how good the argument, if that argument is appealing to other humans.
The ridiculous rise of specialty consulting and outsourcing has reinforced my favorite expressions from my work days. Organizations engage outsiders thinking the secret answers might be there. "A prophet is never welcome in their own hometown." Most organizations already possess the knowledge they need to move forward but are not built to listen up and down levels. Companies that foster good communication can largely avoid or at least limit loss of cohesiveness that bringing in the experts often engenders. They can save a lot of time and money also.
You wrote: '"A prophet is never welcome in their own hometown." Most organizations already possess the knowledge they need to move forward but are not built to listen up and down levels.'
This is very true. Other reasons organizations engage outsiders are to get an outside perspective specifically to add fresh views to the existing dialogue (this is a great reason to have a consultant!), or to amplify the best views from on-the-ground staff (because of the listening issue you called out above), or to do unpleasant work or make unpopular recommendations and then leave.
In the company I work for, it is all about risk management, and effective risk management is not just about identifying threats but also about aligning with business objectives. It's a matter of selling your perspective in a way that demonstrates its value and ROI while fostering collaboration rather than resistance. Great advice for achieving lasting buy-in and strategic risk management. Thanks for sharing Stephanie.
Thanks, Winston! I'm heartened to hear about good risk management happening - it's hard but feasible and more and more necessary.
Although I worked in a completely different area of risk, the same principles apply. A lot came down to the relationship between risk assessor and decision-maker. Finding the common ground was crucial, as well as communicating in a way which worked for the decision-maker. Good advice isn't just about being factually accurate, it's about presenting it in a way that makes it useful. Part of that, rightly or wrongly, is about the way the person giving the advice comes across.
Yep, I've seen it go both ways. An early professional takeaway for me went something like, "Wow, this fight I'm witnessing was mostly unnecessary, and we could have gotten better risk outcomes with a different approach."
💯 times yes to "exploring risk management as a competitive advantage" !! Companies that care about risk are playing a longer game than companies that don't, even if it costs more in the short-term. Thanks for the insight :)
You're welcome! I'm glad this one resonated well.