Use digital transformation to your advantage: Corless

Risk thought leader Chris Corless has called on risk managers to take advantage of digital transformations. While new technology has been used to improve productivity and profits and efficiency, risk managers should use it to “detect changes to risk that matter, and communicate that information to make better decisions”.

Risk managers face a challenge shifting from “analogue” risk management to digital risk radars, he said, speaking as part of StrategicRisk’s #ChangingRisk campaign.

“It isn’t easy. There’s a lot of complexity to think about to make it usable and scalable. Don’t let this complexity stop you from starting the journey.”

Corless has a four-step programme to help risk managers move from analogue to digital.

“My advice to you if you are going to start your digital journey is to start with what matters. Trying to do too much is an inevitable way to fail. You shouldn’t get carried away with trying to do too much.”

“Step two is to consider the data,” Corless said. “Is it reliable? Are there side-risks such as privacy? Is your algorithm robust? These are just a few of the things you should start thinking about.”

“Step three is to identify thresholds for decision-making,” Corless added. “It is important to think about this early. It’s important to determine criteria for decision-making ahead of time,” he said.

“Finally, the fourth step is to ensure you have some sort of improvement loop to continuously refine the data sources, your algorithms, and your decision-making, as it is impossible to get everything right straight off the bat. This is just part of the learning process.”