Emerging risks are a constant focus for management in today’s business landscape and while many companies seek to prepare themselves for everyday risks, sustainability risks can remain the most elusive to understand and mitigate. 

Studies have shown that companies are under-investing in this type of preparedness.  This is because these emerging risks/events are usually distant, large-scale, beyond one’s control, have high impacts, and have higher uncertainty around their likelihood.  Some examples of emerging risk include:  security, climate change, health, globalization moving towards localization, trade barriers, energy prices, epidemics, major overhaul of clean technology, etc.   These risks also represent opportunities and this should factor into an organization’s corporate sustainability strategy.  

Being agile to able to change with foresight are essential to the resiliency and longevity of your organization.  At the right are five iterative steps you should consider working on with your risk management team to help them embed emerging SD risks into your ERM.

By Steven Pacifico, Manager of Sustainability and Stakeholder Engagement, The Delphi Group, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)