Tag: Risk Management in Higher Ed

The need for enterprise risk management (ERM) in higher ed was underscored by the chaotic nature of 2020. However, as noted in two previous blogs, many higher education institutions are unsure of why and how to develop this type of plan and then administrators’ roles in operationalizing this effort.  This post addresses the other major component that needs to be addressed in creating an ERM plan—the important part that the institution’s board plays in the ERM.

Enterprise risk management is a critical part of higher education’s toolkit in preparing for and mitigating disruptions. As mentioned in part 1 of the Enterprise Risk Management in Higher Ed series, these disruptions can be hazards/accidents, societal, governmental, and technology. There are two parts of enterprise risk management—risk planning, which is done by the institution’s administration, and risk oversight, which is done by the institution’s board of trustees. This blog will focus specifically on risk planning and a later blog will address risk oversight.

Enterprise risk management in higher ed is widely ignored, but in the traditional business world, enterprise risk management has become an integral part of the business vocabulary.
Living in a VUCA World: We currently live in a VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous) environment due to a myriad of factors that cause chaos. These disruptions, some of which can be forecast while others are unforeseen, create short-term or long-term change that can be positive or negative. Just think of the implications of COVID-19, which has turned everything in the world upside down.