Financial fraud risk management and corporate governance

Risk management is important so that risk is assessed, understood and appropriately managed. This is important both for conformance and performance. It is essential that strategic planning and management decisions are made appropriately in the context of the risk appetite of the corporation and its various stakeholders – especially its shareholders. If a company does not have a good understanding of risk, the likelihood of conformance and performance failure is high, this implies good internal and external corporate intelligence. Large global corporations have a significant impact on economies around the world. These entities are subject to intense competition and require investor and customer confidence to underpin their activities. Poor governance adversely affects customers and investors, and makes corporation uncompetitive. This can also affect entire economies. In the context of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), the collapse of the US investment bank Lehman brothers demonstrates that corporate failure can hurt economies globally. The failure of Lehman Brothers to properly manage and understand risk is a clear example of the failure of good governance