Avoiding the pitfalls in ERM IT solution selection

I attended the IRM Solvency 2 SIG (http://www.theirm.org/events/SolvencyII.htm) in July where the topic discussed was the Enterprise Risk Management IT solution packages used by the range of companies at the talk, and the dangers around choosing the right one for the companies needs. Speakers leading this discussion were Susan Young, Head of Risk Management at R&Q Managing Agency Ltd, and Simon Allen, Senior Risk Manager at Beazley plc, who spoke about their previous experiences with implementing their own companies ERM IT solution package. It was discussed that when initially looking for these ERM solutions first you must focus your goals and set them out clearly, a common mistake is to look at the range of products out there already on the market to see what they can do, leading you to getting lost in what is offered to you rather than what your company actually needs; also do you save money in the short term by going for an off the shelf product and risk it not being flexible enough for your business requirements and needing to pay out extra down the line on development costs and consulting, or do you spend more money and time setting up a bespoke product that should ultimately tick the boxes of your initial objectives saving on man hours and problems in the long run. A survey was carried out by the members of the SIG on this topic to give a general overview of what people are doing and have done within their companies, results were that the majority had gone with a more bespoke package to meet their requirements; and that whilst going through the process of selecting and implementing, the requirements changed and the original objectives blurred. In summary it seems best to set out a rigid list of what the package must do to satisfy the company’s needs and work to this as gospel, the result will only be as good as the plan. The event was well attended as always with an insightful question and answer session at the end.