ICICI Lombard launches Corporate India Risk Index

The world is a very different place than what it was, a year ago. Many businesses are now navigating a new reality and addressing a myriad of issues across operational challenges, supply chain disruptions, cyber threats, declining revenues, hybrid working etc.

This has accelerated the need for exploration and implementation of risk management in the corporate environment. However, the current ecosystem lacks clear indicatorsto determine a firm's risk-standing vis-à-vis its peers and industry.

To fill in this gap, ICICI Lombard General Insurance, one of India’s leading general insurance companies, has launchedthe ‘Corporate India Risk Index’. The Company has worked with Frost and Sullivan, a leading management consulting firm to develop the risk measurement tool.

Bhargav Dasgupta, MD & CEO, ICICI Lombard said “Effective risk management starts with having quantifiable risk measurement tools. As we embrace risk mitigation practices, we must have these basic building blocks in place.

At ICICI Lombard, we endeavour to keep contributing to the evolving field of risk management.  Our Corporate India Risk Index is a step in this direction. This initiative will empower India Inc. to gauge risks better, understand their level of preparedness and accordingly adopt effective risk management practices.”

The India’s Corporate India Risk Index in its debut edition stands at 57, which implies optimized risk handling methods. The score suggests that though India Inc. is on the right track, emerging risks need more diligence.

Most of corporate India’s risk management strategies are focusedprimarily on operational and natural hazard risks, influenced by Covid-19. However, there is a scope for improvement in the way Market, Economic, Technological and Crime or Security risksare being managed.

Corporate risk refers to the potential risks and unforeseen events that can disrupt the planning and operations of an organization. This index is an unified, credible, and standardised corporate risk indicator, which maps the risks for companies across India's 15 key sectors.

It aims to help firms understand the level of risk their business is facing and current level of preparedness. The framework measures risk across four parameters - Awareness, Probability, Criticality and Preparedness; bifurcated into risk exposure and risk management. Through individual scores, a firm will be featured on a spectrum spanning from being ineffective to over-prepared.