Practical Risk Management: An Executive Guide to Avoiding Surprises and Losses

"Practical Risk Management: An Executive Guide to Avoiding Surprises and Losses" is a concise, yet thorough, look at the world of financial risk management. The book is written by two senior banking professionals who have managed business and state- of-the-art financial risk in large and complex financial organisations, and who have also been in the middle of some of the most creative developments and turbulent times that the financial markets have ever seen. The book leverages these real experiences to offer useful and practical approaches to managing financial risk. It explores the challenges of risk management and how these can be overcome by focusing on governance and accountability within the framework of a clearly defined appetite for potential losses.

Readers will gain a good understanding of the different financial risks, the various measurement tools currently available, and will learn to construct a practical risk process that is consistent with corporate strategy. Great emphasis is placed on the shortcomings of such a process and the need to learn from historical failures. Through this work, Banks and Dunn hope to stimulate ideas and provide a basis for further dialogue on effective financial risk management.

The risk management lessons and experience which the two authors share in the book is relevant for a broad range of participants from Board members, CEOs, CFOs, senior management, regulators, auditors, financial analysts, academics and shareholders of large, medium size and small financial institutions, investment funds, smaller companies and non-financial organisations. As financial risks have no boundaries, "Practical Risk Management" will also appeal toexecutives around the world.

The book, written in a clear, fast-paced and easily-digestible style, is an invaluable resource for all those who want to learn from, and avoid the repetitions of, the frequent financial disasters that abound without getting caught up in jargon, impractical theory, mathematics and formulae.


A proven way to manage risk in today's business world
Understanding how the risk process works is a critical concept that business professionals must come to learn. For those who must understand the fundamentals of risk management quickly, without getting caught up in jargon, theory, mathematics, and formulas, Practical Risk Management is the perfect read. Written in a clear, fast-paced and easily digestible style, this book explains the practical challenges associated with risk management and how-by focusing on accountability, governance, risk appetite, liquidity, client risks, automated and manual processes, tools and diagnostics-they can be overcome. After finishing this book, readers will have a solid understanding of the risk process, know which issues/questions are of critical importance, and be able to determine how their specific risk problems can be minimized or avoided.
Erik Banks (Redding, CT) is currently Chief Risk Officer for Element Re. Prior to that he spent several years at Merrill Lynch in market/credit risk management roles in London, Tokyo, Hong Kong, and the United States. He is also adjunct Professor of Finance at the University of Connecticut, where he teaches MBA students. Richard Dunn (London, UK) works for Merrill Lynch. He single-handedly restructured Merrill Lynch's risk function post in 1998 into its current form.