Riskmanagement & internal control

Everything you do entails risks, be they strategic, financial, operational, IT, compliance, legal, etc. That is typical of running a business. The question is: do you have to avoid or eliminate them at all costs? No. Be cautious, do not avoid risks - that is impossible anyway - but act in a calculated and decisive manner. The essence of effective risk management is not so much a matter of eliminating the risks as it is one where you (and your board of directors) know them, assess them correctly and keep them under control.

From risk analysis to risk plan

You are the one who is responsible for recording the risks of your business. This is not so self-evident for anyone who runs a business day in and day out. Often an outsider’s objective perspective leads to surprising insights. Being able to take a bird’s eye view does sometimes have its benefits. Moreover, our experts have many years of experience in the most diverse (domestic and foreign) companies, which enables them to give effective advice.

This can be done by drawing up a risk matrix or “heat map”, for example. All risks are allocated a weight and a probability score. The heat map serves as the basis for the risk plan in which we determine who must do what by when. We substantiate every step or decision properly, taking into account the extent of the risk, the potential impact and the costs of the management measures.

Internal control measures

The key is, of course, limiting the risks as much as possible. As they say, prevention is better than cure. You can do that if you apply internal control measures. This is done to avoid a risk from becoming an incident (preventive action). Or to restrict the impact of an incident to the minimum (corrective action). You can enforce internal control by means of clear procedures or by integrating them in your company’s IT or ERP systems.

What are you looking for?

• An experienced advisor backed by a team of financial, legal and tax experts;
• Specialists in risk analysis, risk management and internal auditing;
• Specific advice tailored to your company, not knowledge acquired merely from books;
• A strongly-substantiated risk management plan, so that you can subsequently join in making adjustments within the scope of the evolution and growth of your company;
• Etc.