20 seems like a good number; this is the 20th newsletter – time to take stock and update you good people on recent changes.

Firstly, what have I covered and where next?

Topics covered so far

I figured grouping them into categories and summarising them might help. Skimming over the previous articles, there were three broad trends and topics:

1. Making risk relevant: How do we relate to the consumers of our risk content (internal and external stakeholders)? How do we gather their wisdom, or educate, engage, and support them?
2. Be different; it works: The briefest glance at the news suggests we’re not winning in risk management. Scandals persist at an alarming rate, and ethical mishaps, leadership failures, and an inability to understand our operating context are constants. Might it be time to do things differently?
3. Decision-making: When things go wrong, it’s often much less about baddies and more about flawed 1) incentives, 2) strategy, and 3) decision-making. How might we make decision-making better when we (often) have too little control over the first two?

Putting the articles under those headings gives us:

1. Making risk relevant: What’s right with risk; we keep making mistakes; what needs changing
2. Making risk relevant: Get E&C working using creativity, communication, and clarity
3. Be different; it works: Why the “zero tolerance” concept is problematic and how to get back to the intention
4. Be different; it works: Why “just say no” doesn’t work when resisting corrupt demands, and what to do about bit
5. Making risk relevant: assessing external risk, challenges with our assessing probability
6. Making risk relevant: Getting to the truth, why context is key
7. Be different; it works: Bribery is (often) bullying; how should we stand up to bullies?
8. Making risk relevant: Why groupthink and group discussion can be dangerous
9. Decision-making processes: leading with “is it legal?” won’t help
10. Decision-making processes: “is it against our values?” only works if you live your values
11. Decision-making processes: “the newspaper test” in the age of diffuse and polarised perspectives
12. Decision-making processes: “the friends and family test”; it depends on what, who, and how it relates to them
13. Making risk relevant: Getting values, ethics, and risk in sync; the magic balance
14. Be different; it works: Top 3 tips for improving ethics programs – considering prevent, detect, respond
15. Making risk relevant: Free assessments, Part 1 – external environment
16. Making risk relevant: Free assessments, Part 2 – compliance maturity
17. Making risk relevant: Free assessments, Part 3 – integrity culture
18. Be different; it works: Where will E&C be in 10 years – using crisis management scenarios, the best case, most likely, and outliers
19. Making risk relevant: Beta testing the training program of the same name

What next?

Which articles resonated? What would you like to see more or less of? How about the format? Do you like longer-form, pithier and short, or maybe other media?

If it helps, this is where I’m taking Ethics Insight. Our core mission is to democratise access to risk management support. For too long, risk advice has been reserved for those with deep enough pockets. But, from what I see (and experience as a business owner), the smaller we are, the bigger the risks. Size is not the only denominator; it’s skin in the game. The further we are from the consequences of our actions, the more theoretical and irrelevant risk management becomes.

I love working with those on the frontlines, organisations focused on doing what they do well. In these situations, we can have a real impact and align risk with purpose.

To support these folks (the biggish organisations) and the Ms in SMEs, there’s a three-pronged approach, as easy as ABC (assess, build, change).

Assess

Knowing where to start with risk seems the most significant stumbling block for many. We already have three completely free assessments on the site (here). After you answer a few questions, you’ll get a customised PDF whistling over to help you get started.

We’re relaunching the Platform in weeks if you want to go deeper. We’re including a (damn near) Freemium option, giving the SMEs access to more risk analysis, assessment, and guidance. Why not entirely free? Because we need a credit card to ensure people on the Platform are who they say they are – preserving the quality and integrity of the risk data we’ll collectively crowdsource.

The new version will include extended, enhanced, and easily adapted assessment, analysis, and resources for premium users.

Build

Providing assessments is helpful; it tells you where to start, but then what? The Platform includes an extensive library of Resources, including assessment tools, cheat sheets & memory aids, guides, policies & certifications, posters, tracking tools, and training & communication. This content spans the areas you’d imagine (anti-bribery, conflicts of interest, fair competition, fraud prevention, human rights, sanctions, etc.).

The Resources won’t always solve every issue, but they’ll help you quickly build and implement a risk framework. The objective is to get people 80% of the way there in 20% of the time and cost. The content is not academic or theoretical; it’s tested in real situations.

Change

For the final 20% of the knowledge gap, I announced the pilot beta program Making Risk Relevant (outline below) in the last newsletter. It’s going well. The intention here is pretty simple – familiarity with laws and regulations differs from understanding how risk and humans work. I want to help people get their life back by making risk relevant and focusing on what they need to, not playing regulatory whack-a-mole.

In time, this tends to lead to risk moving from a cost-centre to a driver of values and strategic thinking. On the other side of the right risk lie opportunity – the trick is knowing which risks to manage, mitigate, or avoid. Let’s change the way we do this.

Thank you for being so supportive, and a favour

Thank you to all of you who read and engage with the content. You help us all get better at our jobs. I welcome the perspectives and experiences your comments evidence. I hope to continue to create content that is useful for you. But I have a favour to ask in return.

Currently, Ethics Insight doesn’t pursue any of the conventional forms of marketing. That means no:

• Ads
• Push emails
• LinkedIn sales messages
• Sponsoring
• Pay-to-play speaking or writing slots

I don’t particularly appreciate being spammed and targeted; I figure you don’t. In time, as the Platform and training program scales, we may get back out there with some online ads, knowing you can keep scrolling, but not the invasive stuff.

This business grows by referrals. So, if you like what you’ve read or seen, please share it with someone you think might benefit. That’s the ask. Not easy for someone with a near pathological inability to ask for help 😬😖😫.