Risk management: A growing HR concern

Risk management is often viewed as a protective measure in gauging credit decisions, background checks and credit reports. However, executives worldwide are increasingly concerning themselves with risks related to human capital. According to the most recent Risk Index from Lloyd's of London, customer retention is the top risk facing businesses today. However, the No. 2 risk priority for the coming year is a shortage of employee talent and skills, including succession plan. That concern has skyrocketed in recent years, leaping from the No. 22 spot in the 2009 index. "Concern about missing talent is particularly stark in the U.S., where 45 percent of Risk Index respondents ranked talent as a high or very high priority over the next year," writes Lloyd's CEO Richard Ward for The Wall Street Journal. "Yet millions are still out of work in the U.S." The latest Labor Department figures show more than 13 million Americans are currently unemployed, but there are more than 3.2 million open positions. "The result is increasingly short-staffed organizations and a brain drain of institutional knowledge and technical expertise," Ward added.