Managing Enterprise Risk (The Pace of the Future‪)‬

Few things have been made clearer in the midst of the current turmoil than the need for businesses to do a better job of managing risk. For banks in particular, if the market conditions have not made the point adequately clear, then the regulators and auditors will. While most of us are looking forward to additional details of Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's planned regulatory overhaul to better understand what it all will mean for us, it is clear that the goal is stronger and more consistent regulatory oversight, with an even greater sense of accountability instilled within institutional leadership. Flawed though it may be, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX) is here to stay, and there is ample evidence that even small and midsized privately held banks are beginning to accept the regulation's mandate for risk assessment and documented controls as best practices that all should follow.