The ALS Group Risk Management Articles

We have just emerged from one of the longest soft markets in recent history where premiums were low and insurers were actively competing for business. Many companies took full advantage of the insurer’s oversupply of capacity and their aggressive pricing strategies by saving thousands in insurance costs. However, market conditions are beginning to deteriorate as commercial insurance rates continue to climb and catastrophic losses become a daily occurrence.

The Risk and Insurance Management Society has been discussing the benefits of Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) for over 10 years now.  In addition, they have developed the discipline of Strategic Risk Management (SRM) within the courses and material they publish.  To them, ERM seeks to dial down the volatility in the operations of any organization, while SRM is meant to evaluate whether the company’s business strategy on risk is appropriate and provides long term sustainability of the company’s profits.  Thus, if implemented correctly, ERM allows SRM to take a critical and impartial view on the way the company does business and mitigates risk.

It’s almost Thanksgiving, and if your holiday is anything like my family’s, the football games are as much a part of the tradition as the stuffing. So this year, should you find yourself on the couch, watching the games and struggling to keep your eyes open after all the turkey, try a little thought experiment (it will help you digest): watch the game as a risk management consultant.

Just a few months ago, a senseless and tragic mass shooting at a midnight movie screening in Aurora, Colorado left twelve people dead and nearly sixty injured.  Now, in the wake of the devastating tragedy, three of the victims’ families are suing Cinemark USA Inc., the owner of the Colorado theater, for negligence in its failure to provide the necessary security to its patrons. These developments raise the question, “Does your organization have the proper risk mitigation procedures in place to protect your organization’s bottom line in the event of random acts of violence?”

In January of this year country music star Garth Brooks was awarded $1 million by a jury in a lawsuit stemming from a donation made to Integris Rural Health Inc.  The civil dispute arose from a $500,000 donation Brooks made to the hospital.  Brooks insisted the donation was made in exchange for the naming rights for a new women’s health center opening at the hospital, which he intended to name after his deceased mother.  The hospital, for its part, claimed that the donation was made anonymously, had no spending restrictions, and that the discussions for a $15 million gift in exchange for naming rights had eventually broken down.  Despite the