Spinnaker’s Risk Management Framework Toolbox: Resources for Banks Working to Build a Risk-Aware Culture

Since change is a constant in banking, turning change management into a superpower is one of the smartest moves your bank can make right now. Internally, you’re no doubt addressing demands to launch new products and services for customers. At the same time, you’re dealing with external pressures such as regulatory updates and unpredicted events such as the coronavirus pandemic. 

When you start from scratch every time change walks in the door, you’re wasting time, money and human capital – not to mention creating more opportunities to introduce risk. However, when you build a scalable and repeatable framework, you establish change management as a core competency, so you can act confidently, consistently and nimbly. This cultural shift also reinforces the idea that everyone in your organization plays a role in risk management. 

Spinnaker has developed five resources designed to support you as you nurture a risk-aware culture across your organization – in what should be a dynamic, always-on process: 

• In “Turning a Solid Risk Framework Into a Competitive Advantage”, Cara Williams, Spinnaker’s top risk management expert, explains why creating a risk-aware culture – one where everyone is involved in managing risk – can drive consistent change and help organizations better manage risk along the way. 

• “Making Risk Management a Way of Life” is a step-by-step guide to help you find the right risk management framework for your organization. This playbook, compiled by Cara Williams, identifies key elements and helps you build a roadmap for preparing your organization for change.  

• If you’re interested in finding out how far along your bank is in building a sturdy framework, we encourage you to take our Risk Management Framework Maturity Assessment. This 11-question quiz will help you better understand where your organization is on the continuum and what you should do next to more effectively manage your risk.   

• In our pre-recorded webinar “Creating a Risk-Aware Culture that Readies Your Organization for Change,” Williams offers lessons learned from working in the financial services industry in a variety of first- and second-line risk roles. Sharing the in-house banking perspective is Roland Brooks from Huntington National Bank. The ABA’s top risk expert, Ryan Raske, moderates the conversation. 

• Amid increasing regulatory expectations, does your organization have a solid testing strategy for identifying and mitigating issues before they impact consumers (or before they’re called out by regulators)? Spinnaker’s Chris Lucas explains the growing need for control testing automation – why it’s important and how it drives better testing outcomes. Read his blog post and then download the accompanying one-page desk resource to ready your bank for testing automation.

These five tools are designed to help you develop a risk-aware culture that ensures your organization can act strategically each time it’s asked to implement a change. This kind of mindset begins at the top, but everyone needs to embrace the unique roles and responsibilities they play in managing risk across the enterprise.