Where does the buck stop?

Oct 1, 2006 12:00 PM

Does your company have a single point of accountability and leadership responsible for assessing, monitoring and recommending mitigation for the entire portfolio of risks facing the business enterprise? Maybe that point of accountability should be you.

A company's top security professional is the natural strategic leader for risk mitigation, since he or she normally heads the effort to collect and analyze intelligence on the range of risks the corporation faces globally and commonly is responsible for oversight of business continuity planning and crisis management.

Accountability should expand beyond the narrow bands of physical security and information systems security. It should go much further than that. Without a point of accountability, the security professional is left blinded to the totality of the broad issues that potentially impact the viability of the business enterprise. All interdependent elements of the business assurance program must be integrated. An effective business assurance program must address the safeguarding of all business enterprise processes, assets, resources and people wherever they are situated around the world. Failure to effectively address business assurance through a unified risk management process results in creating unacceptable levels of legal and regulatory exposure for the business enterprise.

Are you the focal point for managing risks in your company?
— Lynn Mattice
Lynn Mattice is vice president and chief security officer for Boston Scientific, and a founding member and on the Board of Advisors of the Security Executive Council (CSOexecutivecouncil.com)

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