A guide to IT governance, risk, and compliance

IT governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) are critical for business security and resilience – especially in the face of advancing cybersecurity threats. In the past, SME risks were local or national at best. Today, however, we’re in an AI, cybersecurity, blockchain, and global accessibility realm where any business is under threat regardless of size, location, or industry.

As a result, SMEs that don’t follow effective GRC practices are more likely to falter under the weight of a rapidly changing digital world.

But why manage governance, risk, and compliance systematically and proactively when you can cross the threat bridge when you get to it? Because the consequences of not having effective GRC practices far outweigh the effort and costs of implementing them.

What is IT governance, risk, and compliance (GRC)?

GRC is an organisational strategy to maintain a business’s legal and ethical processes. IT GRC frameworks use technology to align and streamline these practices through automation and digital tools, ensuring your business runs efficiently and ethically.

Let’s break it down:

• Governance: The systems, rules, and processes that enable business efficiency, adherence, and consistency
  
  
• Risk: Strategies mitigating potential cyber threats, IT downtime or outages, and system vulnerabilities
  
  
• Compliance: Adhering to industry and government standards and practices

With the rise of IT and innovation, governance, risk, and compliance can’t thrive without being implemented collectively. Think about it this way: if you want to improve risk management and compliance, you need to improve governance, while issues with governance and compliance put your business at risk.

Governance affects risk and compliance, risk affects governance and compliance, and compliance affects governance and risk.

The importance of IT GRC

Unlike other modern business strategies, IT GRC isn’t a trend that’ll lose relevance in a year or two. Instead, it’s a new way of addressing and streamlining company-wide processes stuck on the back burner.

What happens when you don’t have IT GRC?

• Vulnerable data and systems: Without incident response plans, efficient processes, and accountability, your customer, employee, and financial data are constantly susceptible to breaches, damage, or loss.

• Weakened reputation: Whether or not your business is a corporate entity, your adherence or non-adherence to the code of conduct can raise eyebrows or foster approval from clients, employees, and stakeholders.

• Increased costs: Without effective systems, risk mitigation plans, and compliance, your business is constantly on the edge of asset and financial loss.

• Redundant task overload: An IT GRC framework provides structure and transparency to your business operations. Without it, you may lose insight and control over daily tasks, resulting in too many unnecessary processes and duplicated work.

• Reduced uniformity: Ineffective intercompany communication, staff management, and standards reduce business productivity, culture, and consistency, ultimately affecting brand identity.

Benefits of IT GRC

Apart from creating uniformity and structure, an IT GRC framework supports your business in its long-medium- and short-term goals and values. It can make all the difference in how your business operates, from improved operational efficiency to higher quality data, reduced costs, and solutions to complex company structures and communication.

What happens when you do have IT GRC?

• Goodbye, redundancy: GRC technology eliminates repetitive, manual processes, giving your employees more time to focus on urgent tasks that drive business and revenue growth.
  
  
• Improved security: Automated monitoring detects and notifies teams about any breaches, vulnerabilities, and threats before they can cause damage. This not only streamlines your risk management planning but provides insight into the efficacy of your systems.
  
  
• AI and automation: Digital tools turn hours and days into minutes and seconds by consolidating data into one easily accessible system. Employees and managers now have access to data and information within a few scrolls and clicks instead of missing information, email searches, and stacks of paperwork. 
  
  
• Enhances decision-making: An integrated GRC approach gives management teams holistic insight into the business’s performance, processes, and employees, ultimately enabling them to make better, more effective decisions quicker than before.
  
  
• Reduces complexity: Automation reduces unnecessary intricacies and ensures legislation is always up to date and that your business complies with the latest government and industry regulations.

How to implement an IT GRC framework

• Explore its value for your business

Instead of implementing a cookie-cutter framework, review your existing strategies across your business and identify areas with effective and ineffective processes. This will allow you to eliminate unnecessary data, technology, tasks, and assets that complicate the process. Once you’ve removed all the redundancies, you can prioritise functions and focus on enhancing your framework.

• Create a strategy and roadmap

Consult with high- and low-level employees and stakeholders across all departments to ensure they align with the framework. Doing so promotes a uniform company standard while mitigating risks and enhancing decision-making around business processes and strategies.

• Manage stakeholder and employee expectations

Ensuring your entire business is on the same page regarding your GRC implementation plan is critical. Keep communication lines open and discuss critical factors such as budget, timelines, adjustments, and change management processes with stakeholders and employees. Remember to initiate transparency by informing teams of updates, changes, and timelines throughout the implementation process.

• Develop an IT GRC strategy

As with any change, it’s crucial to ensure practicality and adaptability. In other words, it must be realistic to the business and its goals. This is a significant step considering that you’re treading in cybersecurity waters with vulnerabilities, data breaches, and cyberattacks under the surface.

• Partner with the right vendor

The role of technology in IT GRC cannot be understated, which is why you need a strategic partner that ensures a return on investment (ROI) through cost and time savings while recommending suitable digital tools. A good vendor will formulate a strategy that aligns with your business and its goals while making the integration process as simple and cost-effective as possible.

Don't let the complexities of GRC overwhelm you, reach out to experienced professionals who can provide tailored solutions for your business.