Purpose of a Cyber Risk Review Meeting
Cyber risk review meetings are essential for collaboration, accountability, and effectively managing risks through the maintenance of your risk register. These meetings allow for discussions on the current cyber threats and vulnerabilities the organization is facing, enabling the team to prioritize and address risks systematically.
Risk Review Process
There are several different types of reviews required to effectively manage your cyber risk program. The table below outlines these reviews, providing an overview of what should be included in each.
Key Meeting Components
In order for the review meetings to be effective and support the cyber risk management process, four important activities need to occur:
1. Regular Meeting Cadence: Meeting on a regular basis helps build a culture of accountability by establishing expectations, maintaining visibility of progress, and keeps the risk register up to date.
2. Facilitator: One person leads the meeting, making sure the meetings start and end on time, the agenda is followed, and keeping the meeting focused.
3. Scribe: One person should be responsible for capturing meeting minutes, ensuring action items have been assigned and the action is clearly stated, and minutes are available to all.
4. Agenda: A consistent agenda should be used, keeping the meeting focused and productive by reducing the risk of off-topic discussions.
5. Risk Register: A risk register gives you a central place to analyze, prioritize and manage the resolution of cyber risk issues.
Tools: The Risk Register
A well-maintained risk register is a vital tool for every cybersecurity team. It provides a single place for teams to document, analyze, prioritize, and monitor the status of the many issues cyber teams must track. Without this, CISOs and their teams lack the necessary visibility to all of the known issues, making it difficult, if not impossible, to prioritize work effectively and to provide assurance to stakeholders (executives and Boards) that nothing is slipping through the cracks.
Building and maintaining a risk register requires ongoing work and management to ensure issues and their associated risk mitigation plans are being prioritized and updated. While individuals can do this on their own, having a well-structured cyber risk review meeting that brings cyber teams together on a regular cadence ensures accountability and improves the quality of the risk register.
Reviewing and updating the risk register in these meetings ensures that identified risks, their status, and mitigation efforts are tracked transparently, providing a centralized source of truth. This collaborative approach enhances the organization's resilience and establishes clear accountability by assigning responsibilities and deadlines for implementing security measures. Regular reviews of the risk register promote a culture of shared responsibility and proactive risk management, ensuring no critical risks are overlooked.
Learn more about risk register options here.
Meeting Preparation
Before a risk review meeting, thorough preparation is key to ensuring productive discussions. Begin by updating the risk register to reflect the most recent data, including new risks or changes to existing risks. Reviewing notes and action items from the previous meeting helps track progress and identify any unresolved issues. If new risks have been identified, conduct preliminary analyses to understand their potential impact and root causes.
Gather relevant data, such as incident reports or performance metrics, to provide context during the meeting. It is also important to coordinate with stakeholders, ensuring that they are ready to present updates on their assigned risks or mitigation actions. Drafting a clear agenda with specific topics, such as new risks or ongoing mitigation efforts, ensures a structured conversation.
Lastly, prepare visual aids like dashboards or charts to simplify complex information and support decision-making. This preparation ensures the meeting remains focused and results in actionable outcomes.
Meeting Follow-up
After a risk review meeting, several key action items typically emerge to ensure the progress and accountability of risk management activities. These may include:
1. Updating the Risk Register: Incorporate all newly identified risks, updates to existing risks, and status changes (e.g., risks resolved, deferred, or escalated).
2. Assigning Ownership: Designate individuals responsible for specific risks or action plans. This step ensures accountability and clarifies next steps.
3. Prioritizing Action Plans: Develop or refine action plans for mitigating high-priority risks and establish deadlines for completion.
4. Tracking Progress: Set a follow-up schedule to monitor ongoing action plans, focusing on addressing roadblocks or delays.
5. Reporting to Stakeholders: Summarize meeting outcomes and share key updates with relevant stakeholders, including senior management or a risk oversight committee.
Meeting Outcome
A risk review meeting results in a common understanding of the organization's risks, and aligns the team on their priorities. Key outcomes typically include:
1. Updated Risk Register: Risks are added, modified, or closed based on new insights, creating a current and accurate risk profile (Learn about risk register options here).
2. Action Plans: Specific actions are assigned to responsible parties, with deadlines and resources identified for effective resolution.
3. Prioritization: Risks are ranked by urgency and impact, helping the organization allocate resources to the most critical areas.
4. Progress Evaluation: The team reviews the status of ongoing risk mitigation efforts, identifying successes and addressing challenges or delays.
5. Strategic Alignment: Decisions made during the meeting align with broader organizational goals, enhancing preparedness and resilience.
6. Improved Collaboration: The meeting builds a culture of accountability and teamwork, enabling departments to coordinate efforts effectively.
How It Fits into your Risk Management Process
Risk review meetings play a crucial role in an organization’s risk management process, ensuring compliance and patient safety by providing a structured and collaborative environment to evaluate, track, and mitigate risks. These meetings strengthen the risk management reporting process by ensuring identified risks are actively monitored, action plans are updated, and progress is clearly communicated to stakeholders. They drive accountability by assigning ownership of specific risks and mitigation strategies, facilitating effective decision-making, and improving overall transparency.
