Is IT Neglecting Risk?

A survey of more than 200 governance risk and compliance (GRC) professionals, 37.8 percent of whom represent financial services companies, reports that the majority of respondents believe their IT departments aren't meeting the GRC needs of the business. Fifty-five percent of respondents to the survey by the Open Compliance and Ethics Group and GRC solution provider Axentis indicated that their technology departments had a poor understanding of GRC technology demands. Participants with the least-favorable view classified themselves as legal, ethical or regulatory compliance professionals. Within this group, only 28 percent rated their IT departments' understanding of GRC and its associated needs as above average.

In the financial industry specifically, however, IT might be doing a better job than the overall industry. In this survey, less than half of the respondents were from financial firms. With the financial industry being so focused on risk management, one can only hope that its IT community understands the importance of controlling technology risk. Greg MacSweeney is editorial director of InformationWeek Financial Services, whose brands include Wall Street & Technology, Bank Systems & Technology, Advanced Trading, and Insurance & Technology. View Full Bio