How to Implement an Effective Enterprise Risk Assessment and Related Internal Audit Function at a Bank or Credit Union

Why Should You Attend:

Banking is the business of risk management. How an institution effectively identifies and manages risk, prices its products and services in relation to that risk, and provides oversight to its operations helps determine whether an institution is successful or not.

Enterprise risk management (ERM) is a major focus of regulators and financial institutions due to the high level of bank and credit union failures and other losses incurred by the industry during the recent economic crisis.

This session will discuss the process used to perform an effective enterprise risk assessment and develop a comprehensive risk approach for managing risk in a financial institution and overseeing its internal audit function.

Areas Covered in the Webinar:

• A summary of some of the common themes of banks and credit unions that failed or became troubled during the recent economic crisis. This will help identify red flags that you should be looking out for in your institution.
• The process used in implementing an effective ERM process and form the related ERM committee.
• A list of key processes or functions that should be included in the ERM assessment process.
• Best practices that institutions use to ensure that their boards and senior leaders have the information they need and understand the key risks within their institution’s loan portfolio, asset liability management function, incentive compensation system or performance management program, and compliance with laws and regulations.
• How to structure the ERM process and internal audit / risk management function to avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived.
• How to manage the ERM process and internal audit function to reduce internal audit turnover and ensure the board of directors, senior management, and regulators find the function valuable and effective in both evaluating and managing risk in financial institutions.

Who Will Benefit:

• Members of the board of directors
• Senior level executives
• Internal audit staff
• Anyone appointed to the ERM committee within a bank or credit union

Instructor Profile:

Toby Lawrence is the president of Lawrence Advisory Services, a consulting firm that specializes in providing various valued added consulting services to banks and credit unions. Mr. Lawrence has almost 30 years of experience working in or serving financial institutions including serving as the president and CEO of a community bank and as a partner in two separate national CPA and consulting firms, McGladrey and CliftonLarsonAllen.

He has worked with hundreds of institutions in his career, ranging in size from $50 million to over $16 billion in total assets. He also served as a consultant to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Federal Housing Finance Authority that oversees Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Home Loan Bank system.

Topic Background:

Regulators are expecting more and more out of financial institutions and their boards of directors. They expect senior leaders and the board to fully understand and be able to evaluate the risks facing their institution. Excuses used in the past such as 1) we relied on management, 2) the problem was limited to a few renegade staff members, or 3) it was caused by events or circumstances beyond our control are no longer accepted or valid. The ramifications for failing to properly manage and evaluate risk can be extensive. For example, the board members and senior executives at many of the failed banks were sued by the FDIC and required to pay 20% of their computed net worth as a penalty for failure to properly carry out their fiduciary responsibilities. This was true regardless of whether the individuals owned stock in the institution or not.

Senior leaders and board members of both bank and credit unions that have failed or became subject to significant regulatory criticism have also had their reputations damaged because of the negative publicity they received when their institutions became troubled. Implementing an effective ERM process and risk management function should both protect these leaders and help the institution achieve its long-term strategic objectives.

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