Operational Risks Can be Minimized With Ongoing Vendor Monitoring, Says Info-Tech Research Group

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Jun 12, 2023, 11:30 ET

Info-Tech's research states that organizations must evolve their risk assessments to be more adaptive and respond to threats in the market. Ongoing monitoring and understanding of the organizational impact of the vendors tied to company operations is imperative to avoiding disasters.

TORONTO, June 12, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - As organizations continue their digital transformation journeys, they can also become increasingly reliant on vendors to operate and remain competitive. Vendors operating within an organization's secure perimeter can open up substantial internal operational risks. As such, internal processes around vendor management must be frequently monitored to ensure safe operations. To help organizations and their leaders ensure the resilience and continuity of their operations, global IT research and advisory firm Info-Tech Research Group has published its new blueprint, Identify and Manage Operational Risk Impacts to Your Organization.

Info-Tech Research Group's Identify and Manage Operational Risk Impacts on Your Organization blueprint outlines the components of vendor risk that can impact an organization's day-to-day business processes. (CNW Group/Info-Tech Research Group)

"Organizations must be mindful that operational risks come from internal and external vendor sources," says Frank Sewell, research director at Info-Tech Research Group. "Missing either component in the overall risk assessment can significantly impact day-to-day business processes, costing revenue, delaying projects, and leading to customer dissatisfaction."

The newly published blueprint highlights the need for collaboration among various stakeholders in identifying and managing a vendor's operational impact on an organization. Effective management necessitates coaching for individuals across different functions to understand market changes and their implications for operations. Additionally, in the blueprint the firm cautions that organizational leadership must be prepared for unforeseen crises and develop flexible plans in order to adapt to significant market upheavals.

Info-Tech's research shows that due diligence and consistent monitoring are vital to safeguarding an organization and that assessing internal and external operational risk impacts is essential. Operational risk is defined as the risk of losses caused by flawed or failed processes, policies, systems, or events that disrupt business operations.

Some of the most common internal operational risks are outlined in the blueprint, including:

Poorly vetted supplemental staff
Bad system configurations
Lack of relevant skills
Poor vendor performance
Failure to follow established processes
Weak contractual accountability
Unsupportable or end-of-life system components

The firm recommends organizations identify where potential operational risks may come from to manage and potentially eliminate their impacts. Most organizations realize that their vendors could operationally affect them if an incident occurs. However, they fail to follow the chain of events that might arise from those incidents to understand the impact fully.

Info-Tech's blueprint outlines an approach to identifying and managing operational risk impacts. This approach starts with vendor management practices that educate the organization on the different potential risks from vendors and offers creative and alternative ways to avoid and help manage them. The next step is prioritizing and classifying vendors with quantifiable, standardized rankings, focusing on high-risk vendors. Finally, the firm recommends standardizing processes for identifying and monitoring vendor risks, which can be achieved with an Operational Risk Impact Tool, such as the one offered with the blueprint.

To learn more about internal and external vendor risks and how to avoid potential disasters, download the complete Identify and Manage Operational Risk Impacts to Your Organization blueprint.

For more information about Info-Tech Research Group or to access the latest research, visit infotech.com and connect via LinkedIn and Twitter.

About Info-Tech Research Group

Info-Tech Research Group is one of the world's leading information technology research and advisory firms, proudly serving over 30,000 IT professionals. The company produces unbiased and highly relevant research to help CIOs and IT leaders make strategic, timely, and well-informed decisions. For 25 years, Info-Tech has partnered closely with IT teams to provide them with everything they need, from actionable tools to analyst guidance, ensuring they deliver measurable results for their organizations.

Media professionals can register for unrestricted access to research across IT, HR, and software and over 200 IT and industry analysts through the firm's Media Insiders program. To gain access, contact [email protected].

SOURCE Info-Tech Research Group