CORPORATE ENVIRONMENTAL RISK MANAGEMENT “DOING BUSINESS IS A RISKY BUSINESS”
ABSTRACT
The basket of business risks that need to be managed is becoming more and
more complex, and their interactions, secondary effects and the possibility of
unintended consequences requires an integrated approach to risk management.
Environmental risks can impact significantly on the ability of a company to
achieve its intended goals1. Environmental legislation and regulation is becoming
increasingly stringent, thereby increasing company exposure to environmental
risks, with Directors being held liable for environmental damage. The need for
adequate and appropriate systems of internal risk control has seen the
development of a performance linked risk assessment and management system
in Anglo American plc. This fledgling system is presented, the primary value of
which lies in its applicability at all levels of operation, the semi-quantifiable (but
nonetheless uniform) basis of the assessment and the ability for results to be
aggregated at corporate level for the purposes of Board assurance.
1 INTRODUCTION
2 THE DRIVERS FOR RISK MANAGEMENT
2.2 Stakeholder Expectations
3 THE APPROACH TO RISK ASSESSMENT AND MANAGEMENT IN ANGLO AMERICAN PLC
3.1 Defining Group-Wide Risks
3.2 Determination of Risk
3.3 Categorising and scoring the Risks.
3.4 The SHE Risk Assessment Approach
3.5 Linking Performance to the Effectiveness of Risk Management Measures
3.6 Reporting on Risk at Corporate Level
4 THE RISK APPROACH: IT’S STRENGTHS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT
5 CONCLUSIONS
