RIMScast

The Risk and Insurance Management Society, Inc.
RIMScast

The official podcast of RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society. Tune in for weekly discussions about risk management hot topics, interviews with leaders in the profession, and updates on RIMS events and education.

  1. 3 DAYS AGO

    Risk and Leadership Patterns with Super Bowl Champion Ryan Harris

    Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.   Our guest, Ryan Harris, became a Super Bowl Champion after winning Super Bowl 50 in 2016 with the Denver Broncos and retired later that year. Ryan speaks about winning a game in Chicago, winning the Super Bowl, and becoming a sportscaster. He shares inspiring thoughts about achieving greatness, what it takes to succeed, and the difference between willingness and perfection.   Listen for Ryan’s rules for success in this inspiring episode. Key Takeaways: [:01] About RIMS and RIMScast. [:15] Public registration is open for RISKWORLD 2025! RIMS wants you to Engage Today and Embrace Tomorrow in Chicago from May 4th through May 7th. Register at RIMS.org/RISKWORLD and the link in this episode’s show notes. [:33] About this episode. We will be joined by Super Bowl Champion and award-winning broadcaster, Ryan Harris. He will be a keynote at RISKWORLD 2025. [:59] RIMS-CRMP Workshops! On February 19th and 20th, a two-day virtual workshop for the RIMS-CRMP will be led by former RIMS President Chris Mandel and presented by the RIMS Greater Bluegrass Chapter, the 2024 RIMS Chapter of the Year. [1:21] The next RIMS-CRMP-FED exam course will be held from February 4th through the 6th, 2025. Links to these courses can be found through the Certification page of RIMS.org and this episode’s show notes. [1:37] Virtual Workshops! Chris Hansen will return on February 11th and 12th to lead the two-day course “Claims Management”. Gail Kiyomura of The Art of Risk Consulting will host the “Fundamentals of Insurance” virtual workshop on February 19th and 20th, 2025. [2:00] On February 26th and 27th, Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting will lead “Applying and Integrating ERM”. “Managing Data for ERM” will be hosted by Pat Saporito. That course starts on March 12th, 2025. [2:23] A link to the full schedule of virtual workshops can be found on the RIMS.org/education and RIMS.org/education/online-learning pages. A link is also in this episode’s show notes. [2:34] The RIMS Legislative Summit 2025 is back! It will be held on March 19th and 20th in Washington, D.C. Join RIMS for two days of Congressional meetings, networking, and advocating on behalf of the risk management community. [2:52] This event is open for RIMS members only so if you’re not a member, join now! Visit RIMS.org/advocacy for registration details. [3:00] RISKWORLD 2025 registration is open. Take advantage of our Super Savings Rate by February 28th. Speaking of RISKWORLD, that brings us to our very special guest. [3:12] Ryan Harris became a Super Bowl Champion after winning Super Bowl 50 in 2015 with the Denver Broncos. He retired in 2016. [3:21] Beyond the field, Ryan has continued to work to win. For his contributions to Denver’s business community, Ryan was the First African American to be awarded Colorado Sportscaster of the Year in 2020. [3:33] Ryan was also named to Denver Business Journal’s 40 under 40 class of 2021. He is an analyst for his alma mater, Notre Dame. [3:42] On May 6th, Ryan Harris will be a mainstage speaker at RISKWORLD in Chicago where he will discuss transformative "5 Components of Championship Leadership," emphasizing how the direction from which leaders operate shapes their effectiveness. [3:58] We’re going to have so much fun speaking to Ryan, and we might even get his predictions on Super Bowl LIX. Let’s get to it! [4:06] Interview! Super Bowl L Champion, and RISKWORLD 2025 Keynote Speaker, Ryan Harris, welcome to RIMScast! [4:18] Ryan Harris is the first Super Bowl Champion to join us on RIMScast! Justin and Ryan are both big fans of the Buckhorn Exchange in Denver. [5:09] Ryan loves the idea of having people together at RISKWORLD 2025 to find groundbreaking solutions and try new things. That’s how you win in football; that’s how you win in life! Ryan looks forward to a convention of people looking for what’s next with the skills they have now.  [5:32] Ryan says playing NFL football in Chicago was cold. He recalls that playing on Soldier Field feels like you’re in a spaceship; the way the stadium bows out and comes right up is unique! [5:49] One of Ryan’s favorite memories of playing against the Chicago Bears was when the Broncos beat the Bears in a tight game, the year the Broncos went to win the Super Bowl! It was an important win! [6:02] Ryan credits Head Coach Gary Kubiak for inspiring the team to win that day in Chicago by shortening team meetings from an hour to 15 minutes. So they kept the 15-minute meetings for the rest of the year and won the Super Bowl! Ryan loves going to Chicago. [5:38] Ryan had said that one of the things he was going to do after the Super Bowl was get into broadcasting. He didn’t have to go to anybody else to make that happen. [6:55] Ryan says the plan starts with you! You need nothing outside of yourself to be great. You cannot expect other people to work harder for you and your goals. You’re working toward them. [7:06] Ryan got his “doctorate” in Applied Football Mechanics and Theory. He went into broadcasting to use all that knowledge. He was selected by the NFL to go to a Broadcast Boot Camp and meet the best of the best in the broadcast industry. [7:20] On the last day, one of the presenters told them to go to their Alma Maters and work their way up. Ryan canceled his flight home, rented a car, and drove from that symposium to Notre Dame, and that’s where he got his first broadcasting job. [7:34] Ryan says it started with him listening, taking action, and telling people what he wanted to do and how he wanted to get involved. You sometimes have to work for free to get started, and then you don’t. [7:59] Everyone can sit on the couch and say they want to do something. The difference is the people who put their feet where they want to be. [8:04] At the Broadcast Boot Camp, Ryan saw an old college football rival. They hugged it out. The NFL is one big office building and there aren’t a lot of chairs. Spend a couple of years there and you’ll get to know a lot of people in the NFL and they’ll get to know you. [8:31] Ryan is currently in law school. His “doctorate” is from “Peyton Manning University.” He had great “professors” like Ben Roethlisberger, Alex Smith, and Tim Tebow. He went through quite the school of football thought. [8:47] It’s fun to have that knowledge, but it’s useless as a father or a keynote speaker. He can’t go hit people anymore. He had to change, and it’s been fun doing that. [9:17] Ryan has a double major in Political Science, and Economics and Policy. From Political Science he learned that there are many ways to solve social problems. In economics, he learned that having two parents in your life puts you in the top 1% of opportunities in America. [9:51] There are key figures in your life or the education you receive that drastically change economic outcomes. What kinds of levers motivate people? There are many ways to do the same thing. It’s a matter of degree and what fits the situation. [10:34] Ryan’s advice on stories: 1. People remember the first 20 words you say. 2. Storytelling is more valuable than a Master’s in Business Administration. [10:55] Start a story with a main theme. “We’re going to talk about failure. This is a time I failed. On my sixth day in college football in training camp, I got knocked to the ground.” Our brains love tangible examples. Examples get people into the story. Then Ryan introduces the obstacle.  [11:18] “At one point in Kansas City, I wanted to quit.” He tells what he learned from it. He always brings a big idea that everybody understands and gives a concrete example from his life, what he said to himself, how he went through it, and what he learned from it. [11:45] When we can bring people into our story and talk about our failures and how we worked out of them, we help others and create impact. [12:14] Ryan attests that you don't win by ignoring the struggle. He speaks of factors of success and elements of success. Factors are things like having money and goods. Elements are things that have to happen for you to be successful. [12:30] Failure is an element of success! You have to fail to reach your highest potential. That’s the only way it works. Any famous person or industry has had a failure or ten, along the way. We don’t talk enough about our failures. Having a process for failure dictates your success. [13:05] Kickers in the NFL focus on process. Golfers focus on process. When you focus on the process, you reduce anxiety by 78%. You have the power to create the process for the failure you need. Then you start to have fun! [13:22] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! Resolver will be joining us on February 6th to discuss “4 Themes Shaping the Future of GRC in 2025”. [13:34] HUB International continues its Ready for Tomorrow Series with RIMS. On February 20th, they will host “Ready for the Unexpected? Strategies for Property Valuation, Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity in 2025”. [13:50] More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members. [14:02] Nominations are also open for the Donald M. Stuart Award which recognizes excellence in risk management in Canada. Links are in this episode’s show notes. [14:13] The First of (hopefully) Many RIMS Texas Regional Conferences will be held in San Antonio from August 4th through 6th, 2025. Risk Management Roundup in San Antonio is set to unite the Texas RIMS Chapters and welcome risk professionals from around the world. [14:32] You can be a speaker. The Conference Planning Committee is interested in submissions exploring technology and cyber risk, workforce protection and advancement, energy and sustainability, extreme w

    28 min
  2. JAN 28

    Data Privacy and Protection with CISA Chief Privacy Officer James Burd

    Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.   In this episode, Justin interviews CISA Chief Privacy Officer James Burd about data privacy and protection. Topics include how CISA protects agencies and critical infrastructure, how they responded to a recent data attack, and what risk professionals and data privacy professionals can work together to ensure their organization is resistant to data breaches.   Listen for actionable ideas to improve the cyber security at your organization. Key Takeaways: [:01] About RIMS and RIMScast. [:14] Public registration is open for RISKWORLD 2025! RIMS wants you to Engage Today and Embrace Tomorrow in Chicago from May 4th through May 7th. Register at RIMS.org/RISKWORLD and the link in this episode’s show notes. [:32] About this episode. We will discuss data privacy with James Burd, the Chief Privacy Officer of The Cyber Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) here in the U.S. [:58] RIMS-CRMP Workshops! On February 19th and 20th, a two-day virtual workshop for the RIMS-CRMP will be led by former RIMS President Chris Mandel and presented by the RIMS Greater Bluegrass Chapter, the 2024 RIMS Chapter of the Year. [1:20] The next RIMS-CRMP-FED exam course will be held from February 4th through the 6th, 2025. Links to these courses can be found through the Certification page of RIMS.org and this episode’s show notes. [1:36] Virtual Workshops! Chris Hansen will return on February 11th and 12th to lead the two-day course “Claims Management”. Gail Kiyomura of The Art of Risk Consulting will host the “Fundamentals of Insurance” virtual workshop on February 19th and 20th, 2025. [1:59] On February 26th and 27th, Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting will lead “Applying and Integrating ERM”. “Managing Data for ERM” will be hosted by Pat Saporito. That course starts on March 12th, 2025. [2:22] A link to the full schedule of virtual workshops can be found on the RIMS.org/education and RIMS.org/education/online-learning pages. A link is also in this episode’s show notes. [2:34] The RIMS Legislative Summit 2025 is back! It will be held on March 19th and 20th in Washington, D.C. Join RIMS for two days of Congressional meetings, networking, and advocating on behalf of the risk management community. [2:51] This event is open for RIMS members only so if you’re not a member, join now! Visit RIMS.org/advocacy for registration details. [3:02] Interview! It is Data Privacy Week here in the U.S., through January 31st. This is an annual effort to promote data privacy awareness and education. Its events are sponsored by the National Cybersecurity Alliance. This week’s theme is Take Control of Your Data. [3:23] Here to discuss how to take control of your data, and the best practices that risk professionals and business leaders need to know, is Chief Privacy Officer of CISA, James Burd. [3:36] James is the senior agency leader responsible for managing and overseeing CISA’s privacy, external civil rights, civil liberties, and transparency programs. [3:46] We’re going to talk about some of the big events that made headlines in late December and early January around cybersecurity and data privacy and the frameworks and strategies that risk professionals can implement to take control of their data. [4:02] CISA Chief Privacy Officer James Burd, welcome to RIMScast! [4:18] James has a fantastic team of privacy, transparency, and access professionals who provide transparency to the American public while integrating full privacy rights, liberties, and protections into the management of a safe, secure, and resilient infrastructure. [4:48] As Chief Privacy Officer, James Burd’s primary responsibility is to ensure that privacy is at the forefront and integrated into every initiative, program, and policy CISA undertakes, regardless of whether it’s by policy, process, or technical solutions. [5:00] This includes ensuring compliance with Federal privacy laws and embedding privacy considerations in the agency’s operations and partnerships. [5:08] Protecting critical infrastructure inherently involves safeguarding sensitive and critical information that any organization holds, whether it’s CISA or any of the many stakeholders of CISA. Privacy and cybersecurity are inherently interconnected. [5:21] CISA ensures its cybersecurity programs focus on protecting systems, networks, and data from unauthorized access while the privacy portion ensures that personal and sensitive data are handled responsibly, ethically, and securely. [5:39] What are the keys to a strong cybersecurity strategy? [5:52] The work CISA does in the privacy world is to ensure that the information CISA is holding is secure and safeguarded and also to tell the public how exactly they do that. [6:14] In the early days of CISA, it was a Computer Emergency Readiness Team (CERT). CERTs respond to major cybersecurity incidents at a state, local, national, or international level. A cybersecurity incident in the U.S. is similar to a cybersecurity incident in any nation. [6:50] All nations are facing the same cybersecurity issues. CISA’s international work is about information sharing and helping each other understand what threats we all face. [7:19] Integrating privacy into risk management frameworks is a core consideration. A lot of the privacy work CISA does with risk managers is for ERM, identifying privacy risks and impacts and ensuring that mitigation strategies align with goals. [7:42] Risk managers are key partners in implementing strong data governance practices. CISA works with them to establish policies for data handling, access, and usage that align with the security needs and privacy protection of an agency or organization. [7:56] Risk managers have the opportunity to help privacy officers identify a privacy problem or privacy risk all across the organization. That’s part of the risk manager’s job as a point person. [9:13] CISA wants to do this privacy protection work with organizations before a breach. Many privacy professionals have learned the hard way that if you don’t collaborate up front, you have to collaborate later, as a result of your emergency. That’s not a great day. [9:29] Risk professionals have different viewpoints to consider. They may see that some privacy risks overlap with some financial risks, depending on the risk owner’s point of view. It doesn’t make sense to solve the same problem in 10 different ways. [10:30] The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is a valuable partner of CISA’s. NIST can see what works or doesn’t work as a conceptual or technical framework. NIST studies a problem from several angles and gives CISA an effective solution for the framework. [11:23] Daniel Elliott of NIST has been on RIMScast. James has collaborated with Daniel. [11:49] CISA is a collaborative agency. It does not exist without its partners and stakeholders. When NIST facilitates conversations between CISA and other stakeholders, it helps CISA figure out, of all the problems in the world, which critical problem we need to solve right now. [12:17] CISA has Cyber Performance Goals or CPGs, which are a subset of the NIST Cybersecurity Framework. CISA will tell a small business that they should start with the CPG and get it right, and then expand to everything else. [12:38] CPGs are not a substitute for a risk management framework, but they are a starting point. The CPGs would not exist if not for the work NIST had done in talking to small, medium, and large businesses and figuring out all the different issues they face. [13:08] In December, Chinese cyber attackers infiltrated U.S. agencies. When there is a major incident like that, there is a whole-government response. CISA plays an important role in that response, like a firefighter. Law enforcement plays the role of investigator. [14:16] CISA and its interagency partners are heavily involved in responding to recent Chinese activity associated with both Salt Typhoon and Volt Typhoon. They’ve been working very closely with the Treasury Department to understand and mitigate the impacts of the recent incident.  [14:35] There’s no indication that any other Federal agency has been impacted by the incident but CISA continues to monitor the situation and coordinate with other authorities, like the FBI, to ensure that there’s a comprehensive response. [14:50] The security of federal systems and data is of critical importance to national security. CISA is working aggressively to safeguard any further impacts. The People’s Republic of China is a persistent threat, specifically, the GRC and related entities, who perform these activities. [15:12] They’re one of the most persistent and strategically sophisticated adversaries we face in cyberspace today. The PRC has decades of experience in conducting rampant cyber espionage against U.S. businesses and critical infrastructure. [15:26] CISA has become increasingly concerned over the last year that the PRC is not just doing espionage but is trying to burrow into the critical infrastructure for a rainy day. These state-sponsored activities are coming from campaigns like Volt Typhoon and Salt Typhoon. [15:45] What happened to Treasury provides a stark example of these types of tactics. These tactics target critical infrastructure such as telecommunications, aviation, water, and energy. [15:56] Their goal, as far as we can tell, is not to cause immediate damage but to gain persistent access to those systems and remain undetected until they want to do something. [16:08] CISA has been very involved, not just responding to these incidents, but deeply studying these incidents to understand what is happening and what we need to do as a government and nation to protect ourselves from these burrowing activities. [16:27] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! Resolver

    43 min
  3. JAN 21

    Cyberrisk Trends in 2025 with Tod Eberle of Shadowserver

    Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.   In this episode, Justin interviews Shadowserver Foundation Alliance Director Tod Eberle about cybersecurity. Tod tells how his background as a prosecutor led to his interest in cybersecurity, how he encountered the non-profit Shadowserver Foundation, and how he left the public sector to work with them. He explains how Shadowserver provides actionable data to alert network owners and law enforcement of network vulnerabilities that need to be mitigated. He discusses trends in malware attacks, especially in ransomware. He shares his thoughts on ransomware threats of 2025 and the years to come. He provides tips on preparing your network against ransomware.   Listen to how you can harden your organization’s network against malware attacks. Key Takeaways: [:01] About RIMS and RIMScast. [:14] Public registration is open for RISKWORLD 2025! RIMS wants you to Engage Today and Embrace Tomorrow in Chicago from May 4th through May 7th. Register at RIMS.org/RISKWORLD and the link in this episode’s show notes. [:33] About this episode. We will discuss cybersecurity with Tod Eberle, the Alliance Director of the Shadowserver Foundation. [:55] RIMS-CRMP Workshops! On February 19th and 20th, there will be a two-day virtual workshop for the RIMS-CRMP led by former RIMS President Chris Mandel and presented by the RIMS Greater Bluegrass Chapter, the 2024 RIMS Chapter of the Year. [1:18] The next RIMS-CRMP-FED exam course will be held from February 4th through the 6th, 2025. Links to these courses can be found through the Certification page of RIMS.org and this episode’s show notes. [1:34] Virtual Workshops! Chris Hansen will return on February 11th and 12th to lead the two-day course “Claims Management”. Gail Kiyomura of The Art of Risk Consulting will host the “Fundamentals of Insurance” virtual workshop on February 19th and 20th, 2025. [1:58] On February 26th and 27th, Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting will lead “Applying and Integrating ERM”. “Managing Data for ERM” will be hosted by Pat Saporito. That course starts on March 12th, 2025. [2:20] A link to the full schedule of virtual workshops can be found on the RIMS.org/education and RIMS.org/education/online-learning pages. A link is also in this episode’s show notes. [2:31] The RIMS Legislative Summit 2025 is back! It will be held on March 19th and 20th in Washington, D.C. Join RIMS for two days of Congressional meetings, networking, and advocating on behalf of the risk management community. [2:49] This event is open for RIMS members only so if you’re not a member, join now! Visit RIMS.org/advocacy for registration details. [3:02] Interview! Our guest Tod Eberle is the Alliance Director of the Shadowserver Foundation, a non-profit security organization working altruistically behind the scenes to make the internet more secure for everyone. [3:15] Tod Eberle is with us to discuss the cybersecurity trends on his risk radar and the threats he wants risk professionals to be aware of as 2025 kicks into high gear. Shadowserver Alliance Director, Tod Eberle, welcome to RIMScast! [3:41] Justin saw that Shadowserver Foundation was promoted by the National Cybersecurity Alliance and he thought it would be great to have a follow-up on his appearance there. [3:54] Tod says the National Cybersecurity Alliance is a great organization. After working together with them for a year, they invited Tod to do a webinar. It was a great experience. [4:28] Tod’s background is as a career prosecutor, starting as a county prosecutor in Western Pennsylvania in 1997. In 2004, Tod became a Federal Prosecutor in Pittsburgh for the U.S. Department of Justice. [5:00] In 2014, He transitioned over to the National Security and Cybercrime section in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh was at the forefront of cyber investigations by both the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI. Tod wanted to be a part of that. [5:34] The Pittsburgh office has run investigations and issued indictments against Chinese Military Intelligence officers and Russian GRU officers for hacking. In 2014, Pittsburgh had the first criminal indictment of nation-state threat actors. [6:00] In that case, Chinese Military Intelligence PLA officers hacked into Pittsburgh companies Westinghouse, ALCOA, U.S. Steel, and United Steel Workers. Some forward-thinking folks at the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, particularly U.S. Attorney David Hickton, focused on cyber. [6:29] That continued over the years until the present. [6:46] To begin an investigation, the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office in Pittsburgh, need to have some aspect of an organization’s criminal activity touch that district, the Western District of Pennsylvania. A national ransomware case with one victim in Pittsburgh can be investigated. [7:16] In the investigation of Russian GRU actors responsible for the destructive NotPetya malware attack, a district hospital’s network was attacked and destroyed. They expanded the investigation and charging documents to include other attacks around the country. [7:58] In 2015 Tod was a prosecutor working with the FBI on an investigation. He was at Europol at the Hague in the Netherlands, a center that brings together investigators and prosecutors from different countries who investigate the same threat group through Europol and Eurojust. [8:33] Tod met the Shadowserver Foundation non-profit group at the Hague in 2015. They were helping, through free technical support to the takedown operation, to dismantle the infrastructure of a crime group, using sinkholing and other security measures. [9:08] Tod Joined the Shadowserver Foundation in January of 2023. He is the Shadowserver Alliance Director. As a small non-profit, everyone wears many hats. The Shadowserver Foundation is a 501(c)(3) in the U.S. and a separate non-profit legal entity in the Netherlands. [9:47] The Shadowserver Foundation started about 2004. It celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2024. It began as a loose group of volunteers made up of cybersecurity researchers and technical experts who came together to help network owners and law enforcement. [10:15] Over the years they became more structured and became a non-profit organization. It’s an unusual non-profit organization working 100% in operations. It works in three core areas. First, it’s the world’s largest provider of free, actionable cyber threat intelligence. [10:45] Second, the Shadowserver Foundation does cybersecurity capacity-building around the world. Third, it also provides free support to law enforcement investigations and disruption operations with technical support and expertise. Those three things are its core mission. [11:07] Justin notes commonalities between RIMS cyber risk reporting and the Shadowserver Foundation’s work. Shadowserver collects a vast amount of threat data daily. What are the patterns it sees for 2025? [11:29] Shadowserver Foundation can help organizations mitigate risks. It collects cyber threat data at its data center in California through internet-wide scanning, honeypot sensors, sinkholing operations, and collecting and analyzing malware samples. [11:57] Every day for free the Shadowserver Foundation takes that data and provides it to over 9,000 organizations around the world and to 201 National C-CERTs that cover about 176 countries. [12:13] These reports identify exposed, misconfigured, vulnerable, compromised instances or devices on networks that need patching. [12:25] The organizations that get Shadowserver’s data can be anything from banks to hospitals, universities, K-12 school districts, ISPs, local, state, and federal governments, small, medium, and large businesses, Fortune 500s, and NGOs; just about anyone can sign up. [12:46] The idea behind this is that cyber security should be available to everyone, regardless of the ability to pay. Organizations can sign up at the Shadowserver Foundation website, and provide their contact information and network information with IP ranges and ASNs. [13:12] The Shadowserver Foundation does its due diligence and if everything checks out, it automates those reports to go out to the organization daily. About 9,000 organizations sign up directly to receive daily reports. [13:22] The Shadowserver Foundation also sends out data for entire countries to the national C-CERT designated to handle that in those countries. In the U.S., CISA gets hundreds of millions of events from them every day for all the U.S. It is the same around the world. [13:52] Tod says that some things never change. Networks are breached primarily through phishing attacks, malicious links or attachments, and social engineering. [14:09] One trend is a focus on vulnerabilities. Criminals exploit vulnerabilities in the network that aren’t timely patched and before they are patched. Shadowserver gives organizations an external snapshot view of their networks just as criminals are scanning for themselves. [14:52] Cybercriminal groups increasingly leverage zero-day vulnerabilities to breach a network. A zero-day vulnerability is a flaw in software or hardware that’s unknown to the vendor and has no patch. The vendor has had zero days to fix the vulnerability after it has been discovered. [15:16] That was the case with the Clop ransomware gang. In 2024, they started exploiting zero-day vulnerabilities in Fortra’s GoAnywhere software. That continued in May, with them exploiting Progress Software’s MOVEit file transfer application. [15:38] Very recently, in December, the Clop Ransomware group claimed responsibility for using a zero-day vulnerability in Clio’s file transfer platform that breached victims’ networks. [15:49] Cyber criminals extort victims and steal data with ransomware attacks. Risk managers in cybersecurity need to stay on top of critical vulnerabi

    35 min
  4. JAN 14

    Kicking off 2025 with RIMS CEO Gary LaBranche

    Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.   In this episode, Justin interviews RIMS CEO Gary LaBranche about what you can expect from RIMS in 2025. This value-packed discussion offers Gary’s comments on 2025 RIMS President Kristen Peed, RIMS’ 75th Anniversary events, possible insurance impacts of proposed trade tariffs, nuclear verdicts, and third-party litigation. Gary encourages you to join RIMS Advocacy and the RIMS Legislative Summit on March 19th and 20th, 2025 to lobby on Capitol Hill. He shares insights on public safety, security, and of course, news of RISKWORLD 2025 and more.   Listen for how you can participate in 2025 RIMS events. Key Takeaways: [:01] About RIMS. [:16] About this episode, coming to you from RIMS headquarters in New York, kicking off 2025 with RIMS CEO Gary LaBranche! Gary, welcome back to RIMScast! [:59] Interview! Gary had a quiet, fun New Year’s Eve at home, dining on Asian sea bass with champagne and watching television. [1:39] This is a big year for RIMS. RIMS has a new president, Kristen Peed. Justin has known her since he started with RIMS. Kristen is a long-time volunteer, very positive, and great at representing RIMS. She continues in a long line of volunteer leaders who have built RIMS. [2:29] Gary reports that RIMS 2024 president David Arick had a wonderful term. On David’s last day, the Wall Street Journal published an interview with him; a wonderful capstone to his year. [2:49] RIMS board presidents serve as unpaid volunteers. They travel for board meetings and events, taking time away from their families and jobs. Gary says everyone should appreciate what the board president and officers, chapter leaders, and other volunteers do to help RIMS. [3:35] Reading the history of RIMS, Gary is struck with and inspired by the long line of volunteers who put their shoulders to the wheel, creating this organization. [3:59] RIMS is delighted to have Kristen. Kristen is with Sequoia. You’ll get to meet her at RISKWORLD, the RIMS Canada Conference, and other activities in 2025. Kristen embodies the spirit of the RIMS community. [4:29] This year is the 75th anniversary of RIMS. It’s a good opportunity to reflect and appreciate all that came before us. RIMS New York traces its roots to the 1930s. Later, four groups came together to create the National Association of Insurance Buyers, today known as RIMS, in 1950. [5:44] The NAIB provided networking and learning opportunities for commercial buyers of corporate insurance. They saw that it would be helpful to have a national view and ultimately, an international view of the issues and trends in the commercial side of insurance. [6:26] Reading the history gives you a better sense of how RIMS has played a key role in creating today’s insurance world. Justin points out that they organized RIMS without email or interstate highways! They worked hard to make the organization happen. [8:31] RIMS will celebrate its 75th anniversary throughout the year. Chapter leaders will soon attend the Annual Leadership Forum to kick things off. At the RIMS Canada Conference 2024, RIMS unveiled the 75th Anniversary logo and themes. RISKWORLD 2025 will be the tent pole event. [9:21] This will be the biggest RISKWORLD in history! The biggest RIMS annual conference was held in Chicago 20 years ago. RISKWORLD 2025 will be in Chicago from May 4th to May 7th and RIMS is expecting to see well over 11,000 attend. Other events will also feature the anniversary. [9:53] RIMS is launching the Texas Regional Conference, with the four Texas chapters, in August, in San Antonio. It’s a wonderful opportunity for folks in that region to gain access to the power and value represented in the RIMS community. [11:04] About trade tariffs: Gary recently spent an hour at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce meeting, talking with top trade policy experts. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has mentioned tariffs. How would new tariffs impact consumers? What might they do to the cost of insurance? [13:05] If any goods go up in cost, that could potentially have an effect on the cost of insurance, just as inflation causes prices to go up. If you’re insuring a fleet of trucks, where do you get the parts to fix those vehicles? Will the cost of those parts go up? [14:05] Right now, we don’t know. There are differences of opinion. Some 60% of replacement truck and auto parts are made outside of the United States. If tariffs are imposed on those, and if those costs are passed on to consumers, that will raise the cost of insurance. [14:56] Justin sees tariffs impacting insurance rates, the supply chain, and decisions risk professionals make about materials to use. Tariffs may not have their intended effect of having you “buy American” if you’re in America. It may not work that way. [15:28] Gary notes that tariffs, historically, have had the long-term effect of spurring domestic production. The question is, how fast will that happen? How long will it take to create the infrastructure to create more cement or truck parts? Where will the workers come from? [16:16] If there are price increases for supplies and materials or if there are disruptions in the supply chain, that will have a dragging effect in terms of the cost of insurance. RIMS publications will tackle this topic and report on it as they have done for 75 years. [17:08] Dave Arick was interviewed in the Wall Street Journal, He discussed how “nuclear verdicts” of $10 million or more are influencing what happens in the insurance markets. Nuclear verdicts create higher costs. [17:47] If insurance companies are paying out more and more for those claims, they’re going to try to recoup that cost through higher premiums in the future. RIMS is concerned about the runaway growth of nuclear verdicts. [18:11] Ultimately,  the claims bar pumping up the demands for recompense is having an impact on cost. When someone is hurt, there should be recompense for that. The issue is the significant growth in multi-million dollar verdicts that are outside of what is reasonable and fair. [18:53] If that happens, it simply drives up the cost for businesses to do business. If people are getting 10 times the reasonable recompense for their injuries, it starts to add up significantly. [19:35] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! Resolver will be joining us on February 6th with a topic to be announced. [19:42] HUB International continues its Ready for Tomorrow Series with RIMS. On February 20th, they will host “Ready for the Unexpected? Strategies for Property Valuation, Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity in 2025”. [19:58] More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members. [20:10] Nominations are also open for the Donald M. Stuart Award which recognizes excellence in risk management in Canada. Links are in this episode’s show notes. [20:21] Congratulations to my RIMS colleagues! RISKWORLD 2024 was honored with the 2024 TSNN Trade Show News Network Award for Outstanding Commitment to Advancing DE&I in the Risk Management Community Through Intentional Programming and Representation! [20:44] The programming included real-time translation technology and partnerships with DE&I organizations NAAIA, AAIN, and APIW, fostering a globally inclusive environment, and keynote speaker Academy Award-winning actress, Marlee Matlin, on inclusion and accessibility. [21:10] The TSNN Award is a huge honor and RIMS is so pleased that our continued DE&I efforts are being recognized by various industries, specifically in events and exhibitions. [21:23] Of course, a big shout-out to the RIMS DE&I Advisory Council for their unwavering commitment to helping advance DE&I initiatives at our conferences and RIMS events throughout the risk management community. [21:36] There are still DE&I sponsorship opportunities available for RISKWORLD 2025 in Chicago. You can visit the link in this episode’s show notes for more details. [21:51] Back to My Interview with RIMS CEO Gary LaBranche! [22:03] Justin and Gary consider third-party litigation, which impacts the courts, laws, and legislation. Gary will attend the RIMS Legislative Summit, to be held on March 19th and 20th. [22:39] Gary says the plaintiffs’ bar has discovered the power of investment. They have learned they can gather investors who will back a potential lawsuit and fund lawsuits that come along, in return for a share of the proceeds of that suit. That has always been concerning. [23:13] Something that has become an additional concern is the lack of transparency as to where those investment funds are coming from. They could be coming from anywhere, inside or outside the U.S. They could be from sources that could be illegal. It’s unknown. [23:45] As a matter of national security and public policy, RIMS thinks it’s time we have better insight into the sources of funds for third-party litigation. Gary will be on Capitol Hill, lobbying with members of Congress for transparency in funding third-party litigation. [24:09] A link to the RIMS.org/advocacy page is in the show notes. If you’re a RIMS member and want to go to Capitol Hill for a couple of days with the very knowledgeable RIMS staff and have a chance to meet with your Representatives in Congress, that’s the way to do it. [24:26] Gary will be there, RIMS General Counsel, Mark Prysock, will be there, and a few other very knowledgeable folks will help you prepare for these fun “pitches.” Gary says it’s a blast. You’re telling your story and why this is something of concern to you. [25:12] Typically you’ll be meeting with staff members who are directly involved in the public policy process. They want to hear your story, especially if you’re from their district. It’s a lot of walking, listening, and talking

    48 min
  5. JAN 6

    Risk Management, Appliances with Christine Schelble

    Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.   In this episode, Justin interviews Christine Schelble, Director of Insurance and Risk Management at GE Appliances, a Haier company about her work at GE Appliances, a Haier company. She shares how she began with GE Appliances, shortly after GE sold GE Appliances to Haier. She talks about how she works as a department of one and the relationships she has built throughout the company and with insurance brokers and TPAs. She speaks of the necessity of making changes when a relationship isn’t good or a risk philosophy isn’t a match. Christine also shares about her risk career and how her risk philosophy has remained constant wherever she has worked. She gives tips for preparing a request for proposal when a change is necessary and shares her advice for less experienced risk professionals. She speaks of the history of the Greater Bluegrass Chapter of RIMS, where she sits on the board, and the benefits of actively participating in a RIMS chapter. Listen for wisdom about keeping current with the insurance market, getting your designations, and changing with conditions. Key Takeaways: [:01] About RIMS. [:14] Public registration is open for RISKWORLD 2025! RIMS wants you to engage today and embrace tomorrow in Chicago from May 4th through May 7th! Register at RIMS.org/RISKWORLD and the link in this episode’s notes. [:30] About this episode, coming to you from RIMS headquarters in New York. Our guest is Christine Schelble, the Director of Insurance & Risk Management at GE Appliances. We are going to discuss career development in risk management. [:58] RIMS-CRMP Virtual Workshops On February 19th and 20th, there is a two-day virtual workshop for the RIMS-CRMP led by former RIMS President Chris Mandel and presented by the RIMS Greater Bluegrass Chapter, the 2024 RIMS Chapter of the Year. [1:20] The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be held from February 4th through the 6th, 2025. Links to these courses can be found on the Certification page of RIMS.org and through this episode’s show notes. [1:36] RIMS Virtual Workshops! Gail Kiyomura of The ART of Risk Consulting will host the “Fundamentals of Insurance” virtual workshop on February 19th and 20th, 2025. [1:50] We’ve got ERM on our minds. On February 26th and 27th, Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting will lead “Applying and Integrating ERM”. The “Managing Data for ERM” course will be hosted by Pat Saporito, starting on March 12th, 2025. [2:12] A link to the full schedule of virtual workshops can be found through the RIMS.org/education/online-learning pages. A link is also in this episode’s show notes. [2:25] Interview! Christine Schelble is the Director of Insurance and Risk Management at GE Appliances, a Haier company. She is one of the founding members of what is now the Greater Bluegrass Chapter of RIMS, which won the 2024 Chapter of the Year Award at RISKWORLD. [2:49] Christine has decades of experience leading risk management initiatives for global companies. We will learn about what it takes to be in that sort of position, how she progressed throughout her career, and when and where she saw opportunities and took them. [3:07] This will be a fun way to kick off 2025; let’s get started! Christine Schelble, welcome to RIMScast! [3:18] GE sold GE Appliances on June 6, 2016, to Haier, the world’s largest home appliance company. They are located in China. Christine works for Haier U.S. Appliance Solutions, Inc. doing business as GE Appliances, a Haier Company. It is the Haier U.S. headquarters. [4:09] Christine is a department of one. She works with people throughout the company. The goal of risk management is to spread that philosophy throughout the company. It has only improved since she started. She has lots of support when it comes to claims and coverage. [5:11] Christine had come from a technology company and was very familiar with the technology supply chain. When she came on board, she met with the supply chain people to learn their philosophy and processes. The only time she gets involved with them is for an insurance claim. [6:05] In appliances, Christine says there are so many “Black Fridays” in the year that you can see the returns ebb and flow throughout the year. It’s not a serious problem. [6:44] Christine left Lexmark in 2001 after 15 years. One of her risk management connections called her and said that the position was opening at GE Appliances. She wanted new challenges so she sent in her resume, interviewed with them, and got the position. [7:43] Christine says it’s one of the best jobs she’s ever had. She’s been able to take everything that she’s learned and implement it into a startup program. That has been rewarding. When she started, it was the first time GE Appliances was managing and purchasing insurance coverage. [8:23] Christine joined GE Appliances three months after the sale and took a couple of months to understand how things worked. She started making changes at her first renewal because she could see where things hadn’t worked out in relationships and coverage. [9:25] Risk management for your company is not a static position. It’s constantly changing. You’ve got to constantly look at what’s going on in the insurance market and what’s going on internally and adapt your coverages, deductibles, and maybe your relationship with your TPA. [9:17] The way the program looked in 2016 when she came in is not the way it looks now. [9:30] The biggest third-party GE Appliances works with is the claims administrator. Otherwise, Christine works with brokers. Currently, she works with three different brokers for the competition. If the relationship is not great, she’ll change the people on her account. [10:28] For risk managers coming up in the industry, Christine recommends keeping up with your education, getting your designations, attending webinars and seminars, and doing everything you can to keep up with what’s going on in the insurance market. It’s constantly changing. [10:49] Christine will do an RFP when she’s looking to change something. You’ve got to have face-to-face conversations with your brokers, carriers, and TPAs. You have to educate them on your business and products. Your company and products are not the same as another’s. [11:41] If you’re just moving to a TPA because they gave you the lowest price, it’s not going to work unless you work with them and have an ongoing relationship. Christine has them come in, meet her people, go through some of GE Appliance’s processes, and see the plants. [12:01] Christine has done the same things in her previous jobs, as well. [12:15] TPAs changed how they worked during the pandemic. The TPA world will continue to change in reaction to changes in the world.  [12:50] Christine has a process for developing an RFP. She starts with having a non-disclosure agreement in place. That’s very important. Then she shares exposure information, the insurance schedule, the actuary report, and a loss run or two, so they can understand the overall risk.   [13:33] She puts hot points into the RFP, how to move claims forward, and how the program should be improved and moved forward. That’s been her philosophy throughout her career. [14:17] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! Resolver will be joining us on February 6th with a topic to be arranged. [14:25] HUB International continues its Ready for Tomorrow Series with RIMS. On February 20th, they will host “Ready for the Unexpected? Strategies for Property Valuation, Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity in 2025”. [14:41] More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members. [14:52] Nominations are also open for the Donald M. Stuart Award which recognizes excellence in risk management in Canada. Links are in this episode’s show notes. [15:04] The Spencer Educational Foundation’s goal to help build a talent pipeline of risk management and insurance professionals is achieved in part by its collaboration with risk management and insurance educators across the U.S. and Canada. [15:22] Since 2010, Spencer has awarded over $3.3 million in general grants to support over 130 student-centered experiential learning initiatives at universities and RMI non-profits. Spencer’s 2026 application process will open on May 1st, 2025, and close on July 30th, 2025. [15:45] General grant awardees are typically notified at the end of October. Learn more about Spencer’s general grants through the Programs tab at SpencerEd.org. [15:57] Back to the Conclusion of My Interview with Christine Schelble!  [16:23] Christine shares how she works as a department of one. She just continues to do what she’s educated to do. When she looks back, it feels great to see all that she has done. It’s important to get the relationships going so that people can trust you. [16:49] Christine works with the Finance, the supply chain, the manufacturing finance people, and Legal, where she is located. It’s about building the trust factor. [17:12] Christine is a long-time member of the  RIMS Kentucky and Bluegrass Chapters, which are now the RIMS Greater Bluegrass Chapter. Christine has been in RIMS since she started in risk management. She loves the support from other risk professionals and the networking. [18:13] Christine started with RIMS in the D.C. area, then in Connecticut. She moved to New Jersey and was in RIMS in New Jersey and New York. When she moved to Kentucky, she joined the chapter. She was president for a year or two around 2003 or 2004. [18:46] Christine is thrilled that the younger members of the community have started the chapter back up. During economic downturns there was a loss of people and others couldn’t get out to meetings.

    25 min
  6. 12/24/2024

    Year In Risk 2024 with Morgan O’Rourke and Hilary Tuttle

    Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.   In this episode, Justin interviews Morgan O’Rourke and Hilary Tuttle of RIMS Risk Management Magazine for the Q4 Edition Risk Year in Review. They discuss the biggest risk events we’ve seen in 2024, including natural disasters following climate change and even the recent murder of the UHC CEO. They give their forecasts for 2025, with cybersecurity being an expanding area of risk, combined with AI, and regulatory changes likely under the new administration.   Listen for categories of risk your organization is sure to face in the coming year. Key Takeaways: [:01] About RIMS. [:14] Public registration is open for RISKWORLD 2025! RIMS wants you to engage today and embrace tomorrow in Chicago from May 4th through May 7th! Register at RIMS.org/RISKWORLD and the link in this episode’s notes. [:30] About this episode, coming to you from RIMS headquarters in New York. This episode is our special 2024 finale! Hilary Tuttle and Morgan O’Rourke of RIMS Risk Management Magazine will join us to discuss the top trends and stories from 2024 and what to expect in 2025. [:58] RIMS-CRMP Virtual Workshops On February 19th and 20th, there is a two-day virtual workshop for the RIMS-CRMP led by former RIMS President Chris Mandel and presented by the RIMS Greater Bluegrass Chapter, the 2024 RIMS Chapter of the Year. [1:20] The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be held from February 4th through the 6th, 2025. Links to these courses can be found on the Certification page of RIMS.org and through this episode’s show notes. [1:36] RIMS Virtual Workshops! Gail Kiyomura of The ART of Risk Consulting will host the “Fundamentals of Insurance” virtual workshop on February 19th and 20th, 2025. [1:50] We’ve got ERM on our minds. On February 26th and 27th, Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting will lead “Applying and Integrating ERM”. The “Managing Data for ERM” course will be hosted by Pat Saporito, starting on March 12th, 2025. [2:12] A link to the full schedule of virtual workshops can be found through the RIMS.org/education/online-learning pages. A link is also in this episode’s show notes. [2:25] Interview! The Q4 edition of RIMS Risk Management Magazine is my favorite of the year! It is The Year in Risk edition. We’ll have a chance to revisit all the risk highlights from 2024. [2:42] Here to discuss what made the cut and trends we need to look out for in 2025 are RIMS Director of Publications and Risk Management Magazine Editor in Chief, Morgan O’Rourke and Risk Management Magazine Managing Editor, Hilary Tuttle. [3:01] There is so much to discuss from cyber security to executive safety. As a show of appreciation to the RIMScast audience and subscribers worldwide, we’ve got so much great content in one huge episode, as opposed to spreading it out over two episodes. [3:18] You don’t have to wait, it’s all here for you at once! Let’s get to it! [3:30] Morgan O’Rourke and Hilary Tuttle, Welcome back to RIMScast! [3:39] Morgan and Hilary are here to discuss The Year in Risk, which is the title of the Q4 edition of RIMS Risk Management Magazine. How does 2024 stand out from other years? [4:04] Morgan starts looking back at the year’s events in October. He recalls the bridge collapse in Baltimore in March. There are always going to be hurricanes and natural disasters. There are always going to be cyber attacks. It’s just a matter of what flavor they are this year. [5:15] Morgan categorizes big risk events. There are accidents, like the bridge in Baltimore that affect shipping, and natural disasters, including storms, earthquakes, and record heat. 2024 is the hottest year on record, with the hottest day in recorded history, July 22. [6:38] The AXA Future Risks Report lists climate change as the number one risk. Climate change brings natural disasters to places that don’t normally see them, like wildfires in the Northeast. [7:55] Hilary says there were a few hundred fires in New York City this year. The NYFD had to put together its first brush fire task force. In the first two weeks of November, they had 271 fires. Canada has had a terrible year for fires, continuing from its 2023 fire season. [9:25] Climate change puts everybody at risk. The risk landscape expands so that everybody’s in the game. Paraphrasing Flannery O’Connor, Hilary says 2024 was a disaster in truth everywhere. Disasters are not new but they are occurring in different places and times than before. [10:22] There were 11,000 fires in the Northeast this year, largely in October and November. It’s a different season and in a different region. The traditional risk models are thrown out the window. [10:49] Morgan comments that this year we saw the earliest category 5 hurricane formed: Beryl in June. We’re starting to throw out more of the parameters for when you need to be prepared for something. [11:21] We are seeing more geopolitical conflict, supply chain issues, and risks that didn’t seem impactful in regions that seemed stable and reliable. Thirty percent of shipping goes through the Red Sea. Shipping is 90% of the supply chain. [11:55] Hilary says in the last year and a half, shipping through the Red Sea has become an untenable and sometimes uninsurable risk. Our standard expectations for doing business are going out the window or being upended. This has become more of a problem this year. [12:42] There are risks we itemize as the things that are causing problems. Then there are bigger-picture risks you don’t necessarily identify when you’re thinking about your problems. [13:01] You’re thinking about supply chain disruption and natural catastrophes and business interruption, but not about the climate change that may cause them. [13:42] Morgan says people have to focus on the problem that’s in front of them. You have to deal with the acute issues before you can deal with the systematic ones. It’s hard to solve systematic problems. [14:28] Morgan sees polycrisis as interconnected risks. Hilary sees the word as an easy way to allude to something that has been happening for a long time. She can’t think of a time in which you truly faced only one risk without having to think of multiple interconnected risks. [17:35] Morgan edited the new RIMS Executive Report, “Understanding Interconnected Risks” authored by RIMS Strategic and Enterprise Risk Management Council members Michael Zuraw and Tom Easthope. [17:48] The paper is available only for members until February 12th, 2025. Then it will be publicly accessible. [18:16] Morgan says the key for the paper is in its practicality about how you should go about prioritizing risks and understanding where they connect within your operations to communicate with departments and executives and implement risk mitigation. It’s actionable. [19:30] Morgan considers that the value of RIMS membership and Risk Management Magazine is in learning what to do about risks. [20:02] Hillary objects to the term polycrisis. It over-intellectualizes a problem to the detriment of focusing on how to solve it or what to do about it. [20:58] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! Hub International continues its Ready for Tomorrow Series with RIMS. On February 20th, they will host “Ready for the Unexpected? Strategies for Property Valuation, Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity in 2025”. [21:23] More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members. [21:34] RIMS is now accepting nominations for all awards other than Risk Manager of the Year 2025. The submission deadline is Monday, January 6th, 2025. To receive a RIMS award, all winners must be active members and in good standing. [21:54] These awards are the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Chapter Leadership Award, the Harry and Dorothy Goodell Award, the Volunteer of the Year “Heart of RIMS” Award, the Richard W. Bland Memorial Award, the Chapter of the Year Award, the Rising Risk Professional Award, the Risk Management Hall of Fame, and the Cristy Award. [22:32] You can find more information about the awards through the About Us page of RIMS.org or the link in this interview’s show notes. [22:40] Nominations are also open for the Donald M. Stuart Award which recognizes excellence in risk management in Canada. Links are in this episode’s show notes. [22:51] Back to our Year in Risk Interview with Morgan O’Rourke and Hilary Tuttle of RIMS Risk Management Magazine!  [23:16] Justin brings up the recent shooting and killing of the UHC CEO. Morgan was at the same hotel but didn’t hear about it until he had walked to the office. [23:46] If RIMS Risk Management Magazine had been a print publication, this event would not have been included. Being a digital publication, Risk Management Magazine was able to cover it. [23:59] Hilary starts with executive safety and employee safety. She speaks of reputation risk and monitoring social media discussion. For most who commented on social media, this murder was no surprise. UHC had a tremendous failure of reputation risk and public listening. [25:28] Hilary was saddened but not surprised by the incident. She calls privatized health insurance in the United States a horror show. You can’t let cashing those executive incentive checks blind you to public response. [26:27] Morgan says it’s amazing to see that public sentiment was decidedly unsympathetic, but it’s not unexpected. Hilary mentions the rates of medical debt in the U.S. Hilary saw an outpouring of approval of the murder, which is an awful response to have. [27:15] If you’re in a position where that is the public sentiment around your organization, you need to fire your PR firm and think very seriously, not only about how you’re conducting business but a

    49 min
  7. 12/17/2024

    ERMotivation with Carrie Frandsen, RIMS-CRMP

    Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.   In this episode, Justin interviews Carrie Frandsen, the ERM Director of the University of California and a RIMS-CRMP Commissioner. Justin and Carrie discuss all things ERM. In particular, Carrie explains the purposes of ERM, what constitutes success in an ERM Program, and how to start an effective ERM Program in your organization.   Listen for ideas on fitting ERM into your organization’s daily processes and decision-making, with resources to set you on the path to ERM success. Key Takeaways: [:01] About RIMS. [:14] Public registration for RISKWORLD 2025 is now open! RIMS wants you to engage today and embrace tomorrow in Chicago from May 4th through May 7th! Register at RIMS.org/RISKWORLD and the link in this episode’s notes. [:30] About this episode, coming to you from RIMS headquarters in New York. We will be joined by Carrie Frandsen, for some ERM motivation. She is the system-wide ERM Director for the University of California and a RIMS CRMP Commissioner. [:58] The next RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep Virtual Workshop will be held on December 17th and 18th. [1:09] On February 19th and 20th, there is a two-day virtual workshop for the RIMS-CRMP led by former RIMS President Chris Mandel and presented by the RIMS Greater Bluegrass Chapter, the 2024 RIMS Chapter of the Year. [1:27] The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be held from February 4th through the 6th, 2025. Links to these courses can be found on the Certification page of RIMS.org and through this episode’s show notes. [1:42] RIMS Virtual Workshops! Gail Kiyomura of The ART of Risk Consulting will host the “Fundamentals of Insurance” virtual workshop on February 19th and 20th, 2025. [1:57] We’ve got ERM on our minds. On February 26th and 27th, Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting will lead “Applying and Integrating ERM”. “Managing Data for ERM” will be hosted by Pat Saporito, starting on March 12th, 2025. [2:18] A link to the full schedule of virtual workshops can be found through the RIMS.org/education/online-learning pages. A link is also in this episode’s show notes. [2:29] Interview! Our guest today is one of the most enthusiastic people I know on the topic of ERM! She is Carrie Frandsen, the system-wide ERM Director of the University of California. She’s also a RIMS CRMP Commissioner. [2:48] Carrie is here to talk about all things ERM. Whether you want to build a program from the start or you want to enhance an existing program, this is the mind that you want to tap into! We are thrilled that she’s here. Let’s get to it! [3:03] Carrie Frandsen, Welcome to RIMScast! [3:13] Carrie says she is a true ERM geek! With enterprise risk management you need the ability to think organization-wide. [3:25] Not just to think organization-wide but you need to be able to think about the world and how things that are changing in the world, like politics, economics, and sociological changes, impact your organization. Then you have to get other people excited about that. [3:42] You need to be able to partner with people inside your organization, like internal audit, compliance, and health and safety, all the different groups that are second-line, and help them get excited about building an enterprise-wide view of risks across the organization. [4:03] Once you’ve got your second line of defense, you can build that risk committee to democratize risks across the organization. Everybody can see the risks in their silo and how things impact each other across different units. [4:36] Carrie says the primary goal of enterprise risk management is to enhance an organization’s ability to anticipate and mitigate risks effectively while maximizing those opportunities for value creation. [4:49] ERM helps organizations make more risk-informed decisions. It helps improve resilience and removes obstacles to achieving strategic objectives. [5:06] ERM is part of the governance and management of an organization. Know what could impact you from outside the organization as well as things that are changing in your policies, procedures, and processes. Make sure those are effective to continue achieving your objectives. [5:37] ERM can provide an early warning on risks and the effectiveness of controls. When you’re using ERM in decision-making, it can help you to challenge assumptions before decisions are made. It can help you to set the frame for the decision and help you consider the alternatives. [6:02] ERM can help you ensure that appropriate actions are taken to reduce your risks. It helps the organization to learn and adapt. [6:14] Healthcare organizations do root cause analysis, a good risk assessment technique to figure out how to make negative outcomes not happen again. There are a lot of risk assessment techniques that can help you, depending on the situation your organization is working on. [6:42] Culture is how things are done. A risk-aware culture is essential for a successful ERM implementation. It fosters an environment where risk is openly discussed and employees feel comfortable in identifying and reporting potential risks without fear of repercussions. [7:08] This allows organizations to address issues proactively before they escalate. If you have a risk-aware culture, risks and risk assessments are integrated into decision-making and risk is considered at all levels of decision-making from strategic planning to operational activities. [7:29] This helps to ensure that risk is a key factor in every management decision. Employees can take ownership of risk management. [7:38] The University of California has a motto: “ERM means Everyone’s a Risk Manager.” Individuals doing their day-to-day work in their area of expertise are the ones who know best what their risks are and how to manage their risks. [7:58] Our role as risk managers is to support these employees by giving them training in ERM, and risk assessment tools, and letting them talk to other people about risks that may impact them that aren’t in their area. That distributed approach enhances the effectiveness of ERM. [8:18] A risk-aware culture promotes continuous learning where lessons from past incidents are shared and used to improve future risk management practices. [8:36] At the top level of ERM are the board and leadership. They set the tone for the organization’s risk culture. They need to understand the dynamic risk environment in which the organization operates. They need to know of rising risks so they can make good decisions. [9:06] At the day-to-day level, where the work happens, is the risk owner. That’s the person with the accountability and authority to manage that risk. [9:18] The business unit level is where risk management and control processes take place. An organization’s risk is inseparably connected to its objectives. The responsibility for managing risk can’t lie with anyone other than the person who’s responsible for achieving those objectives. [9:36] Good risk management is everybody’s responsibility. What does the Risk Manager do? The risk leader provides the infrastructure, tools, coaching, leadership, and resources. [10:08] Resources can be anything from software to workshops to all sorts of things to help people identify, manage, monitor, and report on the risks. [10:20] Risk managers can champion a risk-intelligent culture across the organization. Risk-intelligent culture is a term coined by Deloitte in a white paper. [10:46] Risk managers are the ones who champion the integration of ERM into existing policies, structures, and processes. They get the risk committees going, they make sure that the issues get escalated to leadership, and that policies, procedures, and controls are improved. [11:07] Risk Managers facilitate proactive risk thinking. They conduct risk sensing and report on emerging risks. An ERM person is a generalist. They don’t manage a particular area but check in with everybody about rising risks and report that information. They have people tracking risks. [11:55] We have a new political landscape and changes in society. There are always new health issues arising. As long as there’s somebody in an organization paying attention to conditions, the ERM person’s role is to make sure those things get considered at the leadership level. [12:19] A Risk Manager can provide a structured discipline for the consideration of risk in decision-making. They can lead risk workshops. They can make sure a risk-assessment process is built into regular management meetings. They can support risk-mitigation activities. [12:46] Risk Managers can support mechanisms to provide timely risk information to decision-makers. [12:54] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! Hub International continues its Ready for Tomorrow Series with RIMS. On February 20th, they will host “Ready for the Unexpected? Strategies for Property Valuation, Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity in 2025”. [13:14] More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members. [13:25] RIMS is now accepting nominations for all awards other than Risk Manager of the Year 2025. The submission deadline is Monday, January 6th, 2025. To receive a RIMS award, all winners must be active members and in good standing. [13:45] These awards are the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Chapter Leadership Award, the Harry and Dorothy Goodell Award, the Volunteer of the Year “Heart of RIMS” Award, the Richard W. Bland Memorial Award, the Chapter of the Year Award, the Rising Risk Professional Award, the Risk Management Hall of Fame, and the Cristy Award. [14:23] You can find more information about the awards through the About Us page of RIMS.org or the link in this interview’s show notes. [14:31] Nominations are also open for t

    26 min
  8. 12/10/2024

    AI and Regulatory Risk Trends with Caroline Shleifer

    Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.   In this episode, Justin interviews Caroline Shleifer, Founder and CEO of RegASK about the RegASK report, “The 2025 State of Regulatory Affairs and Compliance Report.” Justin and Caroline discuss how regulatory affairs professionals see AI adding the most value in three key areas of their day-to-day activity: augmentation, automation, and acceleration. Caroline shares some examples of these areas of AI. The report highlights AI and ESG as areas of increasing regulation. Caroline shares how risk management professionals can best prepare for the unique challenges these emerging regulatory areas present. The report suggests that AI solutions could transform regulatory affairs work, particularly in summarizing and adapting requirements to specific organizational contexts. Caroline offers her thoughts on risk management roles evolving alongside this AI adoption in regulatory affairs.   Listen for ideas on leveraging AI tech to stay current with the evolving regulatory landscape. Key Takeaways: [:01] About RIMS. [:14] Member registration for RISKWORLD 2025 is now open! General registration opens on December 4th. Visit RIMS.org/RISKWORLD. [:25] About this episode, coming to you from RIMS headquarters in New York. Our topic is AE adoption and regulatory risks with the Founder of RegASK, Caroline Shleifer. [:49] The next RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep Virtual Workshop will be held on December 17th and 18th. [1:00] On February 19th and 20th, there is a two-day virtual workshop for the RIMS-CRMP led by former RIMS President Chris Mandel and presented by the RIMS Greater Bluegrass Chapter, the 2024 RIMS Chapter of the Year. [1:18] The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Course will be held from February 4th through the 6th, 2025. Links to these courses can be found on the Certification page of RIMS.org and through this episode’s show notes. [1:34] RIMS Virtual Workshops! Elise Farnham of Illumine Consulting recently joined us here on RIMScast. On December 17th and 18th, she will host “Captives as an Alternate Risk Financing Technique”. [1:49] Gail Kiyomura of The ART of Risk Consulting, will host the “Fundamentals of Insurance” virtual workshop on February 19th and 20th, 2025. [2:00] This is the last week to sign up for “Managing Data for ERM”, hosted by Pat Saporito on December 12th. Registration closes on December 11th. [2:12] A link to the full schedule of virtual workshops can be found through RIMS.org/education/online-learning pages. A link is also in this episode’s show notes. [2:26] Interview! The adoption of Artificial Intelligence in an enterprise’s operations, workflows, and processes is on our members’ minds. AI presents its own unique set of regulatory risks. My guest today is here to discuss insights about AI adoption. [2:46] She is Caroline Shleifer, the CEO and Founder of RegASK, which recently released “The 2025 State of Regulatory Affairs and Compliance Report.” She is here to discuss some of the trends that she noticed from the surveys of senior executives and business leaders. [3:04] She shares her perspective on the upside potential of AI adoption and ways that risk professionals can work alongside regulatory professionals to ensure everything runs smoothly and above board. We’ve got data, trends, and perspectives to explore. [3:21] Caroline Shleifer, Welcome to RIMScast! [3:49] RegASK’s new report is “The 2025 State of Regulatory Affairs and Compliance Report.” [4:15] Caroline worked for years in the life science and consumer product industry, helping them scout innovation in ingredients and technology and helping them put it on the market. [4:47] Doing that, Caroline realized that many times there was a challenge in understanding which regulations applied or in being caught off guard by a regulation they were not aware of. Sometimes these regulations prevent businesses from launching a product as they plan. [5:28] It’s important to understand and catch up with the fast-moving regulatory environment. The challenge is understanding what applies to an organization well in advance so there are no delays or non-compliance. This is a recurring challenge for small and large companies. [6:00] Caroline looked at the technology used in the banking and finance systems to help with compliance. She wondered why not apply that technology to the consumer product and life science industry to develop a product to help the regulatory affairs team stay current. [6:35] About six years ago, Caroline founded RegASK, starting small with her clients in the consumer products and consumer health industry. She expanded it progressively to larger geographies and industry verticals. [7:06] Caroline respects risk professionals as they deal with challenges that are often overlooked by other business units. When the work is well done, no one sees it, as it seems seamless. No one sees the day-to-day work behind the scenes to prevent non-compliance. [8:02] Risk professional teams are usually understaffed. The risk of non-compliance can range from stopping a product from being imported to stopping a clinical trial or having a big financial impact. [8:45] Sometimes the compliance manager is the default risk manager and wears many hats. [9:33] When Caroline formed RegASK, she saw something like AI was coming. She didn’t see how quickly it would come. Things that took RegASK years to develop a few years ago, take less than a year to develop now. RegASK has accelerated its roadmap due to recent developments.  [10:49] According to the RegASK report, 38% of regulatory affairs professionals feel at risk of non-compliance due to unawareness of specific regulations. That agrees with the feedback RegASK gets from its clients. [11:21] It’s very challenging to understand every regulation. RegASK provides the curation of regulatory information and helps pass the information to the right teams at the right moment with the right language, including what the impact and risk may be for different business units.  [12:27] The report says 27% of senior executives expect regulatory risks to have the biggest impact on businesses in 2025. Everyone should be aware of these risks and be attentive to understanding the landscape and what is happening around them. [13:17] Monitor regulatory agencies. Learn where and how to collect information and who should get the information you collect. Get training for the regulatory affairs team and the broader company on how to collect, summarize, and convey this information. [14:04] The third point is to understand that now you have some technology that can help in this process. Understand what your needs are and adopt AI technology to some aspects of your workflow to solve some critical challenges you have. [14:34] Understand what your workflow is. If you digitalize a process that is not optimal, you end up with a suboptimal digitalization and outcome. Study your current process and challenge it to see how it could be improved. Understand where technology can be leveraged in your process. [15:10] RegASK helps companies to understand their workflow and how it can be improved. Caroline recommends picking the right partner to help you. Caroline notes that RegASK has been featured in a Gardner industry report on regulatory agencies and technology solutions. [16:18] Plug Time! RIMS Webinars! On Thursday, December 12th, our final RIMS Webinar of 2024 will be presented by OneTrust: “Staying Vigilant: 7 Practical Tips for Ongoing Third-Party Risk Monitoring”. [16:35] More webinars will be announced soon and added to the RIMS.org/webinars page. Go there to register. Registration is complimentary for RIMS members. [16:47] RIMS is now accepting nominations for all awards other than Risk Manager of the Year 2025. The submission deadline is Monday, January 6th, 2025. To receive a RIMS award, all winners must be active members and in good standing. [17:07] These awards are the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Chapter Leadership Award, the Harry and Dorothy Goodell Award, the Volunteer of the Year “Heart of RIMS” Award, the Richard W. Bland Memorial Award, the Chapter of the Year Award, the Rising Risk Professional Award, the Risk Management Hall of Fame, and the Cristy Award. [17:44] You can find more information about the awards through the About Us page of RIMS.org or the link in this interview’s show notes. [17:52] Nominations are also open for the Donald M. Stuart Award which recognizes excellence in risk management in Canada. Links are in this episode’s show notes. [18:04] Back to the Interview with Caroline Shleifer!  [18:20] Justin likes the part in the report that zeroed in on AI in regulatory risk management: augmentation, automation, and acceleration, three areas where AI will add value to daily activity. [19:10] Caroline says these are the key areas where the technology can support regulatory risk professionals. She gives an example of augmentation. AI can take the capture of regulatory change and augment it with external information that can come into play. [19:40] You can augment your initial data with additional feedback from your internal team’s experience and external experts. With technology, you can easily collaborate and have information in one place and integrated into your workflow. [20:29] Acceleration is about speeding up your workflow. Instead of searching multiple databases and websites, AI technology can leverage the search much faster. You type a question to get sources of information and then converse intelligently with the system. [21:12] Automation handles mundane repetitive tasks. You can automate searching for regulatory agency information. [22:01] The report also highlights ESG as an area of increasing regulation internationally. ESG regulations demand increased transparency a

    32 min

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The official podcast of RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society. Tune in for weekly discussions about risk management hot topics, interviews with leaders in the profession, and updates on RIMS events and education.

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