Traditionally, companies and governments perform what is known as a risk assessment, to identify the likelihood and impacts of potential vulnerabilities, threats, and dangers. While this is a worthwhile management exercises to keep the risks on management radar, it often focuses on negative events such as internal control weaknesses, security, and disasters.
In light of the economic conditions, many organizations are faced with budget cuts, often in form of across the board cuts. Department heads are asked to cut a fixed percentage of their budget. However, this siloed approach means we’re over-cutting vital functions and under-cutting under-performing functions. Instead, organizations should evaluate performance on an enterprise level, identifying synergies or lack thereof.
What are the key features of this organization-wide assessment?
- High-level, broad sweeping review of all functions
- Assessment conducted by management interviews, documentation review, and observations
- Focus on performance improvements and efficiency gains
- Identifies consolidation and streamlining opportunities
What are the outcomes of such an assessment?
- Consensus on the key issues affecting the organization
- Identification of improvement opportunities
- Inventory of priority initiatives