I am often asked for the most common advice I offer to internal auditors seeking to deliver greater value for their organizations. I offer 3 simple words in response: “follow the risks!”
Before we can follow the risks, however, we must be risk aware. In the era of permacrisis, maintaining risk awareness is becoming ever more critical. For that reason, I am always on the lookout for predictions or forecasts of emerging risks or those that lie ahead. So, when the World Economic Forum (WEF) issued it recent Chief Risk Officers’ Outlook, it immediately caught my attention. The WEF report is based on surveys and interviews with chief risk officers (CROs) from leading public and private sector organizations from around the world. The CROs were asked to gauge the likely level of global volatility across five broad areas (geopolitical relations, economy, domestic politics, society, and technology). Additionally, they were asked to pinpoint up to five risks that are likely to profoundly impact their respective organizations throughout the remainder of 2023.