reducing risk in a vulnerable business world
Today’s complex business world is a minefield of financial, operational, ethical, social, and political hazards, with new potential threats lurking around every corner.
Successful organizations address their vulnerabilities by investing in efforts to reduce and control their exposure to problems that have the potential to hit them where it hurts — on the bottom line.
— Dean Abol Jalilvand, PhD
Loyola is preparing students to help their future employers identify, prevent, and minimize the impact of various types of risk. Through a series of strategic initiatives coordinated through the Center for Integrated Risk Management and Corporate Governance, a partnership between the SBA and the School of Law, students at all levels learn about ethical leadership, corporate governance and compliance, financial and accounting risk, and operational risk. This includes a new MBA concentration in risk management, which takes advantage of the expertise of the center.
"The Center for Risk Management and Corporate Governance is a catalyst for integrating Loyola’s areas of competitive strength."
Established in 2006, the Center for Integrated Risk Management and Corporate Governance is especially relevant for students who wish to pursue careers in today’s business world, says director Donald Schwartz, PhD. “All universities prepare students well in the areas of finance, accounting, management, and marketing,” he says. “Where they fall short is educating them about the variety of risks an organization can face and helping them see those risks in an integrated way. That’s where our center comes in.”
Key to a competitive strategy
A recent Loyola symposium, “Emerging Issues in Integrated Risk Management and Corporate Governance,” attracted local business executives, attorneys, and academics.
The center was established as part of the SBA’s comprehensive plan for growth, as a means of effectively competing within a dynamic and globally competitive landscape of university business programs, according to Schwartz. He says the center helps the SBA accomplish its strategic goals, including enhancing image and rankings and strengthening relationships with the Chicago business community.
The center sponsored an April symposium for local business and finance executives, academics, and partners and practitioners in law. The symposium, held at the Water Tower Campus, was titled “Emerging Issues in Integrated Risk Management and Corporate Governance.” The 170 participants explored wide-ranging and relevant topics such as “Chicago as a Center for Risk Management” and “When Acting Ethically is Against the Law.”
The center is planning to enhance its outreach to Chicago’s business, finance, and risk management community through the new Considine Chair in Applied Ethics. Robert Kolb, PhD, joins Loyola in this position this summer.
Kolb holds two PhD degrees, one in finance and
one in philosophy, both from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and is editor-in-chief of the Encyclopedia of Business Ethics and Society. He is well-respected as a scholar and as a teacher in financial risk management and business ethics.
Attracting high-quality leaders is integral to the success of the SBA and the center, says Dean Abol Jalilvand, PhD. That’s why he appointed Schwartz
as the center’s inaugural director
last September.
Schwartz has more than 25 years of experience in market and financial risk management and brings “the leadership and experience necessary for carving out a path for this initiative,” according to Jalilvand. “We’re fortunate to have him as director of this center, which is serving as a catalyst to integrate and realize areas of competitive strength for the University.”