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Managing Risk
 Identifying business risks also helps you identify opportunities
What's the Point?  Living Proof  How to do it
 How to get started in a small way

 

  • List the risks that are significant for your business - remember they may relate most directly to your suppliers or your employees but have potential knock on effects for you.
  • Focus on the important ones and set up clear policies and controls to manage them.
  • Think about what level of risk you are comfortable with and establish your limits.
  • Identify simple performance markers and watch the information feedback.
  • Train directors to consider the wider risks faced by the business.
  • Designate responsibilities.
  • Involve employees and suppliers in discussion about risk and how you tackle it.
  • Keep it simple.
 Who can help you go further?
Strengthening the performance of your business in the ways outlined here is really just a matter of common sense. But if you are committed to the management of business risk then it often pays to get help.
 Extra benefit to your company

National Help
The Association of British Insurers (ABI) publishes a range of reports on how companies might manage the range of risks arising from the social and environmental impacts of business. www.abi.org.uk.

The Forum of Private Business offers information and assistance on many management issues, including risk management, through its member information service contactable at mis@fpb.co.uk.

Local Help
Check with your Chamber of Commerce or Business link organisation for local business networks that could give you the chance to talk to companies who have been through this process. www.businesslink.gov.uk (England) www.bgateway.com (Scotland) http://www.icaew.co.uk/risk (Wales) www.investni.com (Northern Ireland).

Online Help
www.smekey.org  Especially for SMEs - this easy to use website contains downloadable software 'The Guide' which helps you develop a sustainability strategy to manage all forms of CSR risks.

www.iosh.co.uk Although principally for health and safety professionals, the Institute of Occupational Safety & Health has a free downloadable risk management toolkit for SMEs. It takes a holistic view of all types of business risk management and helps users to develop a complete risk management system.

www.icaew.co.uk/risk The Institute of Chartered Accountants for England and Wales has published a practical guide which is designed to help establish good practice for the management of risk among small and medium-sized enterprises of all types.

 Download the how-to guide in Full
 Each 'How-To' briefing is available in pdf or word formats. To read the PDF document with a screen reader please link to the Access Adobe website which provides useful tools and resources. Adobe also has a free online conversion tool for PDFs.
 PDF Icon  PDF file Identifying business risks also helps you identify opportunites.pdf
size 180kb
 Word Icon  Word file Identifying business risks also helps you identify opportunities.doc
size 35kb
The Policy Journey
© Small Business Consortium 2004