A lot has been happening with the Resilient Futures Forum this year. Resilient Futures has been kind enough to record some of their work and make it available to the public free of charge.  Highlights from Todd’s work with resilientfutures.org are set out below.  Click on a heading to watch / listen.

Risk and Responsibility (AHAUCHI Conference, September 2009)

[Streaming video: YouTube - 3 parts, 22 minutes total]

Presented as part of a three day strategy and leadership conference on the future of residential colleges, Todd Davies provides insights into the nexus between governance, leadership and risk, and provides a whole systems perspective into regulatory reform, avoiding the next GFC and the future of leadership on these dimensions.

A Leader’s Responsibility: Governance, Risk and Resilience (AHAUCHI Pre-conference, August 2009) [Streaming and downloadable audio: Resilientfutures.org - 1 part, 26 minutes total] As part of the lead up to the AHAUCHI sessions, Todd discusses the new context for the governance and risk responsibilities of leaders, especially directors and managers; the breakdown of conventional methods of risk and governance management in dealing with these conditions; the consequences of such a breakdown; new processes for more realistic governance, risk and resilience.

The Real Risks of Business as Usual  (Resilient Futures Forum event – “Planning for Growth: Water? Climate Change? Economic Shocks?, August 2008)

[Streaming and downloadable video: Resilientfutures.org - 1 part, 15 minutes total]

This is essential viewing for anyone in a governance, leadership, assurance or strategy role in a large organisation – corporate or government. This presentation is particularly timely given current conditions, increasing market turbulence, and the move by stock exchanges and regulators around the world who are beginning to expect CEOs and Boards to have a strong understanding of ‘material business risk’, and hence strategic risk.

There is also a lot of great material on the resilientfutures.org website and their Youtube channel.  If you are interested in understanding the future, complexity and the challenges and opportunities arising from this, these sites are well worth a look. Enjoy. TDA

Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose.  Bill Gates

Most managers feel well equipped to understand and respond to the regular crises that emerge day to day in the business as usual environment. Risk management processes have permeated most organisations which give middle management a sense of comfort that they have things broadly under control.

But those who read the financial press will be aware of emerging state changes which are not picked up by their normal risk management processes.  As such, Directors and Chief Executives reviewing their risk profiles often feel that all of this effort in risk management is missing the big picture.

Emerging risks are known by many names.  Strategic planners call them external shocks.  Resilience practitioners call them discontinuities.  Risk practitioners call them strategic risks.  Economists call them corrections. Taleb calls them Black Swan events.  Greenspan calls it the age of turbulence.

Whatever you call them, an understanding of emerging strategic risks is critical to leading any organisation.

We have a habit of confusing the unprecedented with the unlikely.  Al Gore, Sydney Hilton, July 15, 2009

Todd Davies & Associates draws on a broad range of experts from a range of fields to provide briefings, training and advisory services on:

• Making sense of emerging and interconnected structural shifts, and how to turn these from strategic risks into strategic opportunities
• Making sense of unprecedented risks which are becoming increasingly certain
• Detailed briefings on each of these structural shifts
• Assessing and developing the capabilities in organisations to assess strategic risk on an ongoing basis.

To find out more, call Todd on 02 9043 1719, or email us to arrange a meeting.

What our clients are saying

“We brought Todd Davies in to conduct the “Understanding Strategic Risk” training sessions and they proved to be very worthwhile. Our audit staff appreciated the insights into sources of strategic risk from a local to a global level. No less than six methods of developing strategic capability were discussed providing something for everyone dependent upon your methodology, fit and preferences. Sound value.”  Allan Reidy | Head of Westpac Retail & Business Banking and Product & Operations Audit, Westpac Banking Corporation

Find out more first

Watch a 15 minute video presentation from Todd on gaps arising from typical risk management processes

Listen to a 25 minute audio interview with Todd on some of the key issues for leaders today

Read a brief article on strategic risk and how this fits in with regulation and standard setting

Not for profits and non-government organisations usually commence as a result of a strong vision of a number of founders, usually with a strong desire to deal with some burning issue – whether it’s a need not addressed in the community, or some other greater purpose on behalf of its members.

Over time, things change leading some organisations to no longer have a clear singular purpose and can come adrift. This can result from a range of factors:

• success in achieving the initial vision, leading to less of a burning need to drive action in that area
• change in the external environment or member base, leading to that initial vision and purpose no longer being as relevant or as much of a burning need
• change in the stakeholders and or board representatives who are not connected with the original purpose, or may believe that the organisation now has a higher and more important purpose
• lethargy.

Relevance regained is a strategic planning service that we offer to not for profits and non-government organisations (NGOs) when there is a disconnect between the organisation and it’s constituents, members or Directors.

By using a strategic planning approach which focuses on the underlying mission of the organisation, the possible highest and best uses of the organisation, and a intensive approach that gets consensus, organisations are able to develop a compelling vision of “the flag on the hill” in a manner which gets everyone excited and pulling in the one direction.

Case study 1 – Western Australian Music Industry Association (WAM)

WAMIA was set up as an offshoot of the Musician’s Union. In the early 90’s the organisation had few members and therefore a very thin funding base, living from funding grant to funding grant. The grants which they were successful in getting, didn’t mean much to anyone, other than those who achieved occasional employment to acquit the grant funds.

We undertook a two day strategic planning session with the full board based around the question of “what do our members really want?”.

At that stage it was clear that Western Australian acts had little chance of commercial success – radio airplay was controlled on the eastern seaboard, as were record company budgets and talent development. Simply WA was not on their radar.

A long term strategic plan was put in place to tackle these issues with an overall goal of being highly relevant, hip, engaged and a powerhouse to put Western Australian music on the national radar. A cooperative marketing model was developed based on that used in the tourism industry.

The WAMi’s are a national event which showcase Western Australian talent.  These are in turn showcased on national radio, and are highly attended by A&R people (record label talent scouts).

With the support of WAM, Western Australia has been a source of fresh talent who are able to operate from Perth – something previously unheard of. These include John Butler – the largest selling independent artist in Australian History, ARIA Winners – Eskimo Joe, the Waifs and Little Birdy.

Once the business plan was implemented, Perth came to regarded as “the next Seattle” – the city internationally recongised as a hot spot for emerging talent. Today WAM is hip, credible and relevant and continues to go from strength to strength and be a catalyst for a vibrant and very healthy music scene.

Case study 2 – Professional Association

This professional association was attempting to service members from three groups – government , private sector practitioners and the professional firms.  The latter two groups had turned their back on the association as not relevant and “too government oriented.”

The corporate sector threatened to leave en-masse and start it’s own rival association, unless things changed.

A rapid gap analysis was undertaken of areas of concern and barriers to moving forward. This was fed into the strategic planning process, with a clear “burning platform” for change.

An engagement model was put in place to get key representatives from the disaffected sectors “inside the tent” to help drive change, and report this change back to those sectors to show that they were being heard and progress was being made. This included a series of initiatives:

• Fast-tracking national programs and capabilities to drive consistency and reduce the inconsistency and politics of the state based structure and volunteer based organisation
• A number of quick wins in areas such as market presence, CPE and communications
• Putting infrastructure to address the member desire to have greater capability and effectiveness in advocacy on behalf of that sector

The corporate sector and advisory firms now see this organisation as a credible player and one it is important to be part of. Engagement is up as is membership, moving from flat to double digit growth.  The Board is now viewed as credible and able to hold it’s own relative to other associations.

Generally, the organisation has exceeded everyone’s expectations – both in terms of what has been achieved, how quickly it has been achieved and it’s overall relevance. There is great momentum in the organisation, it’s Board,  staff, members and constituents.