10 Steps to a SMB Risk Management Process

This week, ClearRisk presents a guest post by Thomas M. Bragg. Tom, who has specialized in business planning, strategy and business risk management for 20 years, writes a blog about practical risk management for small business.

More and more is being written about risk management for small and medium sized businesses (SMBs). In fact, if you do a little bit of research, you’ll probably find yourself soon overwhelmed with advice, methods, terminology and tools.

Getting started with any new process is tough. It’s hard to get out of the blocks. It’s scary. It seems overwhelming.

Don’t be overwhelmed. I’m here to tell you that establishing an effective risk management process for your business doesn’t have to be difficult.

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ClearRisk.com: New and Improved!

I am very pleased to announce the launch of the new ClearRisk.com! Over the past few months, our ClearRisk team has been working to create a website that is strong in design, content, usability and interactivity.

In creating the new site, our focus has been on :

• Improving navigation
• Providing new risk management resources
• Incorporating more accessible support and 24/7 chat
• Improving speed and usability for our online risk management solution ClearRisk Manager.

Now that it has been launched, we would really like to hear from you. Visit the sites, browse around and tell us what you think! All feedback is greatly appreciated so please help us make ClearRisk.com even better.

LinkedIn responds to ‘Why should all the benefits of risk management go to big companies?’

Last week, we followed our blog post ‘Big Companies Get It, Why Don’t SMBs?‘ with a related question posed to the LinkedIn community. As we’ve experienced with the professionals on LinkedIn, the response was strong and made for a great discussion. A lot of different explanations and solutions were proposed and we would like to share them with you here.

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Big Companies Get It, Why Don’t SMBs?

Aon just released a study that SMBs need to pay attention to. It showed that those organizations that adopted a more advanced focus on risk management saw benefits that include enhanced shareholder value, a reduction in their total cost of risk, strengthened business resiliency and increased operational efficiency.

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Blog Opportunities and Risk Management

For the most part, bloggers all want to do the same thing; provide value for, build relationships with, and encourage conversation within a targeted audience. With an estimated 364 million blog readers and 77-percent of all web users reading blogs in 2008, the power, influence, and potential that comes along with blogging is undeniable.

With many deciding to start corporate blogs and employee blogging initiatives, companies are hoping that sending their employees to the front lines to communicate with the public will bring openness and approachability to the organization’s image and to its relationship with customers.

As with any opportunities, there are always related risks and risk management solutions. How do you put that kind of trust in someone to speak openly and freely on behalf of the entire company? What do you do when something goes wrong? What could go wrong?

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Protecting Employees with Risk Management

Robert has been one of your most trusted employees for fifteen years. He is extremely hard working, dedicated to the organization and consistently goes above and beyond to make the company better.

While delegating tasks to your warehouse staff, Robert loses his footing and falls six feet from a platform to the floor below. He is badly hurt, spending months in recovery and is unable to return to work.

What do you tell his family? How do you replace him? What are the costs?

Unfortunately, accidents and situations like this happen far too often. Work-related injuries and illnesses devastate families and businesses with extreme financial and non-financial consequences.

In past entries, we’ve looked at employee safety-related topics like stress, liquor liability, the H1N1 flu virus and more. Today, we’re exploring workplace hazards and their associated costs and effects.

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How Stress Can Hurt Your Business

While it may not always be at the forefront of our thinking on risk management, work-related stress can be extremely costly if not properly monitored and controlled. As with most risk management activities, being proactive is not only better for your employees, but it’s also better for your bottom line. Being proactive costs a lot less than being reactive.

What are the costs associated with employee stress?

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Office Holiday Parties and Liquor Liability

It’s that time of year again. The shopping days are counting down, decorations are going up, and holiday gatherings are starting to fill the calendar.

Hosting holiday celebrations for your employees can be a great way to come together, to show appreciation for their contribution throughout the year, and to unwind and celebrate the holidays. But it is important as an employer to minimize the risks associated with consuming alcohol at holiday get-togethers.

Employers in many jurisdictions have been held liable for damages resulting from employee intoxication at a company event. To prevent losses and to limit liability related to alcohol consumption at work-related events, employers should implement an Alcohol Policy.

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H1N1: What Now?

No matter where you are and what industry you work in, you probably have been affected in some way by the H1N1 virus and all the personal and business disruptions that have occurred. We’re beginning to see reports that we’ve seen the worst of the virus and that we’re on the upswing out of its grasp. Other experts are reporting that we are nowhere near to being at the end of this and that a third wave will hit this winter. With such uncertainty, many risk managers are erring on the side of caution.

Economic Impacts

There has also been some debate surrounding the effect swine flu will have on the economy. There are some indications that the virus has had little effect on the US economy. Government simulations have shown its impact as ‘reasonable and manageable’. However, it is anticipated that there could be between a 1 and 4.25-percent decrease in the country’s GDP.

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Mobile Risk: What are you really carrying with your smartphone?

Kevin Bacon had his stolen in New York, British Major General Gerry Berragan had his pick-pocketed on a train in China, President Obama may still have his hacked, and at any point in time thousands of smartphone owners could be running information-leaking viruses without knowing it.

Living in an increasingly mobile and connected world changes the boundaries and realities of risk. When you carry the world at your fingertips you take with you risks that, if not properly managed, can bring about huge loss.

Of major concern are risks surrounding viruses, theft and loss. These risks can affect the protection of employee and customer information, your company’s reputation, your intellectual property, and your competitive advantage.

How do we put ourselves at risk?

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