To keep your business safe, it's crucial to have a risk management framework in place. This involves identifying potential risks and taking steps to prevent them from causing harm to your company. However, many companies don't know where to start or lack the internal resources to establish an effective risk strategy–that's where managed services come in.
Many businesses need help with GRC (Governance, Risk Management, and Compliance) because it can be time-consuming, expensive, and challenging to find a place to start. As such, many companies are outsourcing their GRC efforts.
Managed services providers, with a focus on GRC, offer a wide range of services that can help you protect your business. An MSP can manage your entire risk management and security framework by developing a risk management plan, implementing security measures, and monitoring your systems for threats.
By working with an outsourced provider, you rest assured that your business is protected from the many risks that exist today–without burdening your internal workforce.
Develop a Risk Management Plan and Expedite Maturity
When developing a risk management framework, there's no one-size-fits-all solution. The best approach for your business will depend on several factors, including the size and scope of your operations, the nature of your industry, and the specific risks relevant to your company. As such, many companies need help finding a starting point in their risk framework.
Fortunately, a managed services provider (MSP) has the experience needed to quickly identify areas of improvement, expose ongoing risks in your organization, and determine the steps to mitigate these risks. In a short period of time, your provider will help you assess your risk level and develop a customized plan to address the specific needs of your business.
That's where Managed Services Providers (MSPs) can be a valuable resource. MSPs can help you assess your risks and develop a customized plan that addresses the specific needs of your business. A significant benefit of this is that it expedites the maturity of your risk management framework.
An Ernst & Young study recently concluded that organizations with greater risk management maturity—those that focus on strategic risks and have integrated various risk management activities—outperform their competitors financially.
Typically, the GRC adaptation process is long and requires full-time resources from internal staff. This means that your staff is left devoting precious time and resources to a task that takes away from their primary roles.
In contrast, an MSP will take direction from the get-go, accelerating the implementation of your risk management framework–without taking time or resources away from your internal staff. Consequently, your company gets a quality risk management framework faster and more cost-effectively than otherwise possible.
Improve Risk Infrastructure
No organization is exempt from risk. The risks are constantly evolving and becoming more complex in today's business climate. As a result, organizations must continuously adapt their risk management strategies to stay ahead of the curve.
MSPs can play a vital role in helping organizations improve their risk infrastructure and processes. MSPs can help you assess your risks, identify gaps in your defenses, and implement solutions to mitigate those risks by:
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Conducting a comprehensive risk assessment to identify your organization's specific risks. This assessment should include a review of your current controls, processes, and systems. It should also identify any gaps or weaknesses in your defenses.
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Once the risks have been identified, your provider will implement solutions to mitigate those risks, including technical controls, process improvements, or organizational changes.
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Perform continuous monitoring and review of your risk management framework on an ongoing basis, ensuring that your strategy is effective and up to date.
Interested in a free 30 minute GRC program assessment?
Scale Long-Term GRC Efforts
While many companies need help implementing their risk management frameworks from the beginning, it doesn't necessarily get easier as time goes on. GRC efforts are continuous and should be integrated into every process and procedure within your organization. Unfortunately, as time goes on, many companies set their risk management framework aside and revert to old practices.
MSPs will ensure that your company's GRC practices can grow and adapt as your business does. After all, no successful business stays stagnant for long. As your organization changes (as well as industry regulations), your provider will adapt your risk management framework to your needs and scale it up as your company–and risks–grow.
Ensure Industry Compliance
Industry regulations are constantly changing, especially as technologies grow more advanced. For companies inexperienced in GRC, constantly updating processes and procedures to reflect new regulations isn't necessarily feasible. Still, it opens you up to significant risks if you fail to do so. Considering that in 2021 alone, 36 states enacted new cybersecurity legislation, it's no wonder that companies are struggling to keep up.
Fortunately, partnering with a GRC provider can help your organization ensure consistent compliance. Your provider will be familiar with all industry standards and compliance regulations and oversee that your risk management framework reflects these policies. As such, your company can focus on business processes while the professionals handle all things GRC.
Not only does this give you peace of mind, but it could also save your company significantly in terms of potential risks, fines, and even legal action. Plus, maintaining compliance with industry regulations can help to improve your company's public image.
Minimize Expensive Hiring
While it's clear that there are benefits to outsourcing your GRC efforts, many companies still consider onboarding new employees to lead GRC internally. This is an option that many companies choose to take, but it can pose some challenges.
First and foremost, hiring a new GRC team is expensive. Considering the talent shortage, GRC experts are few and far between and, as such, come with a hefty price tag—not to mention the cost of quality GRC software. In fact, organizations can expect to pay $20,000 to $60,000 per year on GRC software alone. Plus, adding the costs of hiring and training team members to manage your tools, costs can quickly add up to $500,000 over only five years.
Consequently, conducting GRC internally isn't a feasible option for many small companies.
In addition to the cost of acquiring an internal GRC team, onboarding a new team is time-consuming. As you acquire risk management professionals one by one, they must get to know your company, perform an internal audit, and develop processes with their new peers. In the meantime, your company is left waiting on the implementation (and time-consuming maturity) of your risk management framework.
But, for companies without the time or endless budget to grow a new GRC team or develop one from within, outsourcing to an MSP with GRC expertise is an excellent option.
Why Choose Intertec for Your Risk Management Strategy?
A managed service provider with GRC expertise, such as Intertec International, will come equipped with a fully trained staff of experts, offering various cost-effective GRC services to help you stay within budget while mitigating risks.
An ISO 27001-certified organization, our experts have achieved top-tier compliance requirements, undergone risk assessments, and are familiar with the processes needed to remain compliant.
Once partnered, Intertec will begin a thorough assessment of your organization's current risk level as well as any security protocols currently in place. Quickly, we will develop a highly cohesive risk management framework catered to your organization. With the proper tools, experience, and hands needed, we will quickly bring your framework up to maturity and continue to adapt and scale it as your company needs.
While GRC practices may have once been optional, today's risk environment and compliance regulations have grown more complex. For your company to stay ahead and avoid risks, it's time to entrust your risk management framework to the experts.
Interested in learning more about how Intertec can help you improve your risk management strategy? Download our free whitepaper on Top Challenges in GRC and How the Right Partner Can Help You Solve Them.
