{"id":8481,"date":"2021-01-23T01:01:39","date_gmt":"2021-01-23T06:01:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/?p=8481"},"modified":"2021-01-22T15:04:26","modified_gmt":"2021-01-22T20:04:26","slug":"reducing-risk-in-your-business-for-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/reducing-risk-in-your-business-for-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"Reducing Risk in Your Business for 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"2020 was a year in which businesses had to contend with a diverse assortment of risks \u2013 many of which were completely unanticipated. Going forward, many will want to be ready for any eventuality \u2013 or at least, more prepared than they were when the pandemic swept across the globe. Risk and compliance law is a tricky area<\/a>, and thus it\u2019s often worth bringing in outside expertise to help you make the best possible decisions.<\/p>\n

Risk, unfortunately, comes in many forms. To manage them optimally, it\u2019s worth contemplating the possibilities. Let\u2019s take a look.<\/p>\n

External Risks<\/h2>\n

External risks are those which come from outside your organisation. You cannot prevent them from occurring; you can only manage the effect that they\u2019ll have.<\/p>\n

Economic<\/strong><\/p>\n

2021 is set to be another interesting year, economically speaking<\/a>. The effects of Brexit will begin to be felt, whether good or bad. The same is true of the enormous levels of borrowing and unemployment that the pandemic has triggered.<\/p>\n

Natural<\/strong><\/p>\n

Climate change is an ongoing thing. There\u2019s a measurably higher incidence of natural disasters, with bushfires, typhoons and hurricanes making themselves felt around the world. This puts pressure on insurers, and thereby has broader economic consequences.<\/p>\n

Political<\/strong><\/p>\n

Elections around the world may expose your business to risk, especially if you\u2019re trading internationally. Border controls could become more stringent, or less so. Immigration policy is similarly susceptible to change. Fortunately, there are forms of insurance designed to protect you against precisely this kind of risk.<\/p>\n

Internal<\/h2>\n

Other risks come from within your business.<\/p>\n

Stability<\/strong><\/p>\n

Is your organisation dependent on the input and guidance of a few individuals? When expertise is concentrated into just a few hands, the business can suffer when those hands become less steady. This is a problem for sole proprietors who take an autocratic approach to decision-making: when they have to take time off, the business can suffer.<\/p>\n

Innovation<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you aren\u2019t coming up with new ways of doing things, then you risk being outpaced by the competition. Look to your workforce for new ideas \u2013 they might have a good idea of your areas for potential improvement. Look to emerging technologies, too.<\/p>\n

Technology<\/strong><\/p>\n

New technologies might provide a means of protecting yourself \u2013 but it can also pose a threat. Cyber-attacks are getting more prevalent as the techniques and technologies are evolving<\/a>, and modern business will need to be cognisant of the threat. Training in cybersecurity awareness for your staff can be enormously beneficial.<\/p>\n

Financial<\/strong><\/p>\n

Money matters. If your records are not reliable, or you\u2019re overly reliant on a small number of clients, then you\u2019re exposed to risk. Diversification here will help you to absorb sudden shocks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

2020 was a year in which businesses had to contend with a diverse assortment of risks \u2013 many of which were completely unanticipated. Going forward, many will want to be ready for any eventuality \u2013 or at least, more prepared than they were when the pandemic swept across the globe. Risk and compliance law is… Reducing Risk in Your Business for 2021<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":8482,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8481","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8481","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8481"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8481\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8484,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8481\/revisions\/8484"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8482"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8481"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8481"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8481"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}