Combined assurance – also known as integrated risk assurance – involves combining risk management efforts across the three lines (and their external assurance providers) to enable an effective control environment and uniform risk reporting to executives and the board. When successfully implemented, this model results in a more holistic, organized, and accurate view of risk, as well as more efficient and cost-effective risk management activities.
However, while most governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) leaders agree it is an efficient approach to risk management, many struggle to effectively embed combined assurance in their organizations to move toward connected risk management. This comprehensive guide breaks down the benefits of advancing a combined assurance approach in your organization, as well as best practices for successfully overcoming the common challenges to its implementation, including:
- Benefits of a combined assurance approach versus the traditional, siloed approach.
- 5 common combined assurance challenges and their solutions.
- Checklist for advancing combined assurance practices incrementally.
