Center for Excellence in Enterprise Risk Management
What We Do
The Center for Excellence in Enterprise Risk Management was established at St. John’s University’s Peter J. Tobin College of Business. The Center, lead by Dr. Paul L. Walker, is housed in The Maurice R. Greenberg School of Risk Management, Insurance and Actuarial Science (GSRM) at 101 Astor Place in Manhattan.
Mission Statement
Become a leading center that brings together students, academicians, executives, and board members for the purpose of developing and sharing knowledge, tools, and best practices in Enterprise Risk Management.
Executive Director Bio
Dr. Walker co-developed one of the first courses on Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) and has done ERM training for executives and boards around the world. This training includes helping boards develop risk oversight practices, benchmarking ERM practices, advising organizations on ERM process development, and identifying black swans and unknown risks. He has also researched ERM at the headquarters of companies such as Wal-Mart, Microsoft, DuPont, Intuit, Harley-Davidson Inc, Raytheon, and others. He has written extensively on risk and ERM including the books Improving Board Risk Oversight through Best Practices, Making Enterprise Risk Management Pay Off and Enterprise Risk Management: Pulling it All Together. He has also coauthored several articles on ERM including: Is your Board Ready for ERM, The Strategic Advantage of ERM, Managing Risk: An Enterprise-Wide Approach, A Road Map to ERM, and ERM and the Strategy-Risk Focused Organization.
Center/Executive Director Activities
Center/Executive Director activities include:
- The role of ERM in insurance (published in GenRe’s annual corporate publication).
- Published “strategic risk: do not forget your supply chain.” Financier Worldwide (with Conrad).
- A Risk Management Heat Map for the USA. Financial Executive (with Shenkir and Barton).
- Received a research award in 2013 for the 2012 Management Accounting Quarterly research “ERM: A Process for Enhanced Management and Improved Performance” (with Gates and Nicolais).
- Launched a collaborative research initiative that partners with RIMS and Steel City Re to study ERM maturity, reputation risk metrics, and value (with Dr. Pooser).
- Developed a white paper entitled “strategic risk: do not forget your supply chain” (with Conrad). Conrad is an executive at Zurich.
- Developed and sponsored a white paper entitled: The Coming U.S. Sovereign Debt and Dollar Crisis. (by Jean Pierre Bierlet).
Other Center and Center Director activities include:
- A research grant from the Institute of Internal Auditors on the role of the chief audit executive in strategy and risk.
- Financial Executives International webinar: A macroeconomic perspective on risks (with Shenkir).
- Harvard Business Review Webinar: Leading Risk Culture Change (with Conrad and Willaert).
- Tentative acceptance to present at RIMS 2014 National Conference on Board Risk Oversight Communications (with SRM Board Member Navigant and AARP).
- A research grant from the Institute of Management Accountants on the impact of culture on ERM and board risk oversight. The grant involves three roundtables with executives. The roundtables will be held in NYC (Oct 2013), London (Nov 2013), and Dubai (Dec 2013). With Shenkir and Barton.
- Trained the United Nations how to implement an ERM process.
- Trained marine officers from the Marine War College on how to think enterprise-wide about risks.
- Trained SK USA on how to develop a world class ERM process.
- Panel speaker at ETH Zurich Risk Conference with an emphasis on an enterprise risk view of supply chain risks.
- Trained Samsung on ERM Best Practices.
- NYSE IPO Conference: speaker/panelist on board risk oversight (11/21/13).
- Speaker at RIMS Nov 2013 Conference: Going, Great, Going, Gone: Linking ERM to Strategy.
- Speaker at Philadelphia IIA conference: developing ERM to become more strategic.
- Speaker at 2013 RIMS national conf: communicating with your board on ERM.
- Served on IIA’s CREA committee (developing and sponsoring research projects).
- Served on FEI’s research committee (FERF).
- Served on FEI’s Governance, Risk, and Compliance Committee. Co-Chair of Emerging Risks and Blue Sky Committee.
- Served on RIMS national conference planning committee.
- Serving as subject matter expert on 2013-14 APQC research project: strategy and risk.
- Advisor to AICPA ASEC risk task force on an enterprise risk management assurance guide.
- Member of RIMS Strategic Risk management development committee.
- Launched a study of ORSA and ERM challenges with Protiviti.
Contact Information
Paul L. Walker, Ph.D., CPA
James J. Schiro / Zurich Chair Enterprise Risk Management
101 Astor Place
St. John’s University
New York, NY 10003
212-284-7011
[email protected]
Additional Information
Welcome to the Center for Excellence in ERM.
We are growing the body of knowledge in the field of risk, enterprise risk management and board risk oversight through a combination of research, workshops, whitepapers, and conversations.
Working alongside our key partners, outstanding alumni, and business friends, we strive to bring together boards, executives, professionals, and students to discuss risk and ERM. Examples of prior events include ERM roundtables and a CFO risk panel.
We also stay connected to various stakeholder groups to enhance our understanding of the needs of executives working in ERM. We currently volunteer for Financial Executive International (Governance, Risk and Compliance Committee and the Research Foundation), the Institute of Internal Auditors (Committee of Research Advisors), the Strategic Risk Management Committee of RIMS, and other groups, including the AICPA, IMA, and ACCA.
The Center Director was one of the original advisors on COSO’s development of the first ERM Framework. Additionally, the Center Director is currently a member of COSO’s ERM advisory Council (as COSO revises its framework).
We also offer both an MS in Enterprise Risk Management and executive education programs. The information developed for the course work is based on research and work done at more than 50 major organizations. Examples of organizations the Center Director has worked with include: Wal-Mart, Microsoft, Harley-Davidson, Raytheon, Intuit, VMWare, ADP, the United Nations, the Federal Reserve Bank, CONSOL, Highmark, Hospira, DuPont, Lego, AARP, University of Maryland, Boise Inc., University of Virginia, and several others.
Come join us as we explore the knowns and unknowns in managing organizations.
Dr. Paul L. Walker
John Adams
Retired VP Global Enterprise Risk Management, PepsiCo
Kimberly Chacko
Senior Consultant, Risk and Compliance, Protiviti
Russ Charlton
Chief Audit Executive, Advance
Blake Eisenhart
Retired Chief Audit Executive, Unisys
Geralyn Fanelli
Global Enterprise Risk Management Sr. Director, PepsiCo
Stuart Horn
Director of Enterprise Risk Management, IBM
Deon Minnaar
US Lead for Board Advisory Services
Adrian Mueller
Vice President, Risk Management, Enterprise Risk Management, MasterCard
Rich Muzikar
Enterprise Risk Management Advisor, Long Island Power Authority
Matthew Perconte
Managing Director, Protiviti
Steve Richard
Senior Vice President, Chief Risk Officer,
Becton Dickinson & Co
Chris Ruggeri
National Managing Principal Risk and Financial Advisory, Deloitte
Rob Ryan
Partner, PWC
Kelli Santia
Risk Manager, Strategic Risk Management,
General Motors
Denise Sobczak
Director Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) – BIC Group
Jorge Tercero
Sr. Director, Global Enterprise Risk Management, PepsiCo
Zach Wolff
Director of SOX & Enterprise Risk Management, Con Edison
Arya Yarpezeshkan
Chief Risk Officer, Global Specialty, AIG
Kelli Santia
Risk Manager, Strategic Risk Management,
General Motors
Mei Young
Executive Director, Enterprise Risk Management
The Estee Lauder Companies Inc
“Enterprise-Wide Risk Management: Recommendations to COSO.” Research report prepared for COSO to determine if an enterprise risk framework is necessary. With Scott and Shenkir. 2000.
“Teaching a Risk Assessment Course.” With Shenkir. Advances in Accounting Education, 2000.
"Managing Risk: An Enterprise-wide Approach." With Barton and Shenkir. Financial Executive, March/April, 2001.
"A Road Map to Risk Management." With Bodine and Pugliese. Journal of Accountancy, December, 2001.
“Developing Risk Assessment Skills: An Investigation of Business Risk and Controls at Prudential Insurance Company of America." With Hunn and Shenkir. Issues in Accounting Education, 2001.
"Making Enterprise Risk Management Pay Off." With Barton and Shenkir. Financial Executives Research Foundation, 2001. Reprinted by the Financial Times in 2002. Reprinted by Toyo Keizai in 2003 (Japanese translation). Reprinted in Russian in 2003.
"Enterprise Risk Management: Pulling it All Together." With Barton and Shenkir. Institute of Internal Auditors, 2002.
“Enterprise Risk Management in Practice.” August, 2003, Internal Auditor. With Shenkir and Barton.
“Implementing Enterprise Risk Management.” May, 2004, Kinzai. With Shenkir.
“Enterprise Risk Management and the Strategy-Risk-Focused Organization” (with Shenkir). Journal of Cost Management, May/June 2006.
“Enterprise Risk Management: Frameworks, Elements, and Integration.” Statements on Management Accounting for the IMA. With Shenkir. 2006.
“Enterprise Risk Management: Tools and Techniques for Effective Implementation.” Statements on Management Accounting for the IMA. With Shenkir. 2007.
“Accounting Policy and Practice: Enterprise Risk Management.” Book published by the Bureau of National Affairs. With Shenkir. 2007.
“Implementing Enterprise Risk Management.” Journal of Accountancy. With Shenkir. 2008.
“Ensemble Performance: Enterprise Risk Management,” Business Officer. With Shenkir. 2008.
“Managing the Unthinkable Event,” Financial Executive. With Barton and Shenkir. 2008.
“Enterprise Risk Management: Evolution of a Balancing Act,” Financial Executive. With Barton and Shenkir. This paper was selected by the Financial Executives Research Foundation to be in their “Hall of Fame” publications presented at their Annual Gala (which celebrated 65 years of FERF research). 2009.
“Enterprise Risk Management: Lessons from the Field,” book chapter in Enterprise Risk Management: Today’s Leading Research and Best Practices for Tomorrow’s Executives. With Barton and Shenkir. 2010.
“A New Look at ERM from Crisis Aftermath,” Financial Executive. With Barton and Shenkir. 2010.
“Issue Alert – Proxy Disclosure Enhancements and ERM Opportunities,” With Barton and Shenkir. This project was sponsored by and published for Financial Executives International. 2010.
“Improving Board Risk Oversight Through Best Practices.” Institute of Internal Auditors. With Barton and Shenkir. 2011.
“Strategic Advantage of Enterprise Risk Management.” Risk Management. With Driscoll and Torok. 2011.
“Enterprise Risk Management: Is Your Board Ready for ERM.” Financial Executive. With Barton and Shenkir. 2011.
“Enterprise Risk Management: A Process for Enhanced Management and Improved Performance.” Management Accounting Quarterly. With Gates and Nicolas. 2012. In 2013, this paper received a “certificate of merit” award for being one of the best papers in this journal.
“Enterprise Risk Management: Skipping the ERM Tune-Up: Pay Now or Pay Later.” With Barton and Shenkir. Financial Executive. 2012. Republished by the FEI Daily in Feb 2015.
“A Risk Management Heat Map for the U.S.” With Barton and Shenkir. Financial Executive. 2013.
“Strategic Risk: do not forget your supply chain.” With Conrad (Zurich). Center for Excellence in ERM white paper series.
“Strategic Risk: do not forget your supply chain.” With Conrad (Zurich). Financier Worldwide. 2013.
“Enterprise Risk and the Board of Directors.” Business Horizons, Issue 10, 2014.
“Becoming a More Strategic Auditor.” Institute of Internal Auditors. 2014.
“A Risk Challenge Culture.” With Shenkir and Barton. 2014.
“The Journey to ORSA Begins.” White paper with Protiviti. 2014.
“Establishing a Risk Challenge Culture.” Strategic Finance. 2015.
Emerging Risks and ERM CEERM (PDF)
ESG and ERM Alignment (PDF)
Embedding ERM into the Organization (PDF)
Digital Disruption and Transformation Risks (PDF)
The ERM Journey (PDF)
Corporate Risk Disclosures: Consistency or Disparity (PDF)
Managing Risk in a Disruptive World (PDF)
Strategic Risk: Another Link in the Supply Chain (PDF)
Enterprise Risk Management: Frameworks, Elements, and Integration (PDF)
Enterprise Risk Management: Tools and Techniques for Effective Implementation (PDF)
Proxy Disclosure Enhancements and ERM Opportunities (PDF)
CFO of the Future (PDF)
Macro Risk Analysis (PDF)
ERM and Reputational Risk (PDF)
Innovation and ERM – Partners in Managing the Waves of Disruption (PDF)
Noise to Signal to Business Models (PDF)
Risk Challenge Culture (PDF)
| Summit | Theme |
|---|---|
| April 20, 2023 | Cyber Risk Oversight and ERM Integration |
| October 13, 2022 | Tools & Expectations for managing risk and improving resiliency in uncertain times |
| May 5, 2022 | Supply Chain and Third Party Risks |
| October 21, 2021 | Emerging Risks and ERM |
| April 22, 2021 | ERM and ESG Alignment |
| October 29, 2020 | How the ERM leader enables oversight and management of the big risks |
| Fall 2019 | Integrating ERM into the Business |
| Spring 2019 | Risk Culture |
| Fall 2018 | Digital Disruption and Transformation Risks |
| Spring 2018 | Building and Sustaining ERM' |
| Fall 2017 | Strategy and Risk |
| Spring 2017 | Noise and Emerging Risks |
| Fall 2016 | ERM Framework Development Update and Board Risk Oversight |