‘Outmoded’ understanding of risk management’s role may be hindering its development: report

Risk management has emerged from the financial crisis with greater authority and visibility, but a lingering, outmoded view of risk managers as mere compliance officers may be limiting the potential of the discipline, according to a recent Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) report sponsored by ACE.
The global survey canvassed the opinions of 500 senior executives and risk professionals. The survey included companies of a variety of sizes from the banking and insurance industries.  
Overall, respondents recognized the emergence of risk management as an important part of the post-recession period. Almost 60% of respondents confirmed the value of risk management in identifying new and emerging risks.
But respondents’ attitudes about the effectiveness of risk management were unclear. Only 35% of respondents felt their companies were effective at anticipating and measuring emerging risk. Slightly fewer than half (46%) felt their businesses were successful at linking risk management with overall corporate strategy.
The survey suggests risk managers still aren’t considered to be full partners with board executives.
Only 41% of respondents said they expect risk managers to provide analysis for top management to inform corporate strategy. Fewer than 50% claimed to involve their risk teams formally in major strategic decisions.
A “contributory factor to the challenge risk managers face in gaining access to the boardroom may be an outmoded perception of their role,” ACE says in a release announcing the survey results. “When asked where they expected risk management to make the most meaningful contribution, the largest group of respondents (42%) cited ‘conforming with regulatory requirements,’ suggesting that many still associate the profession with preventive, ‘box-ticking’ work to ensure compliance.”
The survey reveals a growing understanding among risk managers that they should be focusing on the more constructive aspects of their work, reinventing themselves as ‘business partners’ instead of ‘business preventers,’ ACE says.