Nowadays organisations have to navigate a range of responsibilities, from complex regulations, to risk management, to operational compliance.
This is where Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) comes in. While GRC is not necessarily a new framework, it continues to be a significant tool in the contemporary business world for building resilience.
GRC can be thought of as the foundation that helps companies be situated while navigating governance, risk and compliance challenges. It gives organisations the necessary tools to make smart decisions and remain ethical, all while running smoothly.
In this article, we’ll break down what GRC means and why it’s essential for Housing as a sector.
What is GRC?
GRC stands for Governance, Risk, and Compliance – three crucial areas that help all kinds of organisations across sectors be responsible and respond to challenges. Oftentimes these terms are present in organisations but practiced separately. GRC combines governance, risk management, and compliance into one coordinated model.
GRC is more than a collection of rules; it serves as a framework that organizations use to establish transparent decision-making processes, manage risks efficiently, and comply with the legal and ethical expectations placed upon them.
Let’s run through what each of these mean individually.
Governance
Governance is a set of policies and frameworks evolving around the ethical management of an organisation. Good governance includes the following:
- Transparency
- Accountability
- Ethical conduct
- Equity and inclusivity
- Resource management
Good governance ensures that everyone understands their roles and responsibilities within the organisation. This promotes transparency and accountability, while also aligning the day-to-day actions of the company with its long-term goals. When practicing good governance, a company is more likely to make decisions that reflect its values and create sustainable growth.
Risk
Businesses face different types of risks, such as financial, legal, strategic, and security risks. Risk management involves identifying these potential threats and vulnerabilities, assessing their impact and implementing controls to mitigate them.
By actively addressing risks, companies can reduce the effects of unexpected events, safeguard their resources, and ensure stability during uncertain times. Successful risk management goes beyond merely responding to challenges; it entails developing strategies that foresee and mitigate possible issues, enhancing the company’s resilience.
Compliance
Compliance is the act of adhering to all relevant laws, regulations, and industry standards mandated by governing bodies. It also includes implementing processes to meet such requirements and align with internal corporate policies.
Adhering to regulations helps organisations fulfil requirements, minimising the chances of legal troubles, financial penalties, and harm to their reputation. Integrating compliance into daily activities shows businesses’ dedication to ethical conduct while preventing potential sanctions.
Governance, Risk and Compliance work together to create this well-rounded framework. While governance provides structure, risk focuses on resilience and compliance establishes legal and ethical adherence. All of this ensures a stable, trustworthy company atmosphere.
What does this mean in Housing?
For the Housing sector GRC is a crucial framework. Housing associations have their own Code of Governance, established by the NHF, which means ensuring good governance is critical for success.
The 2020 Code of Governance is designed to “help Housing associations achieve the highest standards of governance and board excellence.” The code is built around the key values that good governance is based on – accountability, integrity, openness, and equality, diversity and inclusion.
The 2020 Code was completely rewritten and restructured to reflect emerging issues within the Housing sector. It looks to protect the interests of the communities social housing serves, and to be accountable to residents.
Risk management is crucial for the sector because of the importance of protecting the information and data of tenants. Housing has seen an increase in cyber attacks in recent years, and so risk management is important to factor in in order to protect the communities Housing associations work with.
Compliance is vital in Housing because of the constantly evolving regulatory environment the sector faces, with political upheaval and changing government priorities meaning compliance is a necessary but complex undertaking. Developing resilience is especially important for Housing, and so risk management and compliance are important strategies to embed in organisational processes.
Why is GRC so important?
By implementing the GRC framework, Housing associations can make better, more informed decisions in a risk-aware environment. Effective GRC strategies bring the entire organisation together in its policies, decisions, and actions.
There are several benefits to establishing a GRC strategy for your organisation.
By tracking your resources, establishing guidelines and structures, and utilising GRC tools and software, you can swiftly make informed data-driven decisions.
Governance, risk and compliance as a strategy empowers companies to align all aspects of their organisation with the same goals.
GRC enhances efficiency by fostering a shared culture that encourages ethical principles and cultivates a positive atmosphere for growth. It supports the development of a robust organisational culture and ethical choices within associations.
With a GRC approach, Housing associations can establish data security measures in order to protect customer data and private information. Adopting a governance, risk, and compliance strategy is crucial for the sector because of the rising cybersecurity threats to user data and privacy.
It guarantees a proactive approach to risk management, allowing for the identification and mitigation of potential threats prior to their escalation, resulting in seamless operations and preventing any costly disruptions.
GRC efforts can also help to enhance an association’s reputation by fostering transparency and accountability. Housing associations who consider GRC as a framework are better prepared for compliance with regulations, which both improves stakeholder trust and protects against any potential penalties.
Ultimately, GRC enables those in the Housing sector to operate with confidence, and achieve those all too important social housing goals. When both internal and external risks and issues are constantly developing, GRC provides a foundation that gives Housing associations the opportunity to make better choices.
How Convene can help with GRC
Convene and GovernWith have joined forces to provide a cutting-edge governance solution, bringing together award-winning board management, compliance and contemporary governance review capabilities. We’re offering you a unified platform for all of your board governance needs.
We here at Convene are dedicated to bringing you the best possible assistance in your governance practices. Our Board portal is designed to ensure that before, during and after your Board meetings, your workflow is streamlined and seamless.
However, Convene is more than just a Board portal. With our partnership with GovernWith we are bringing you the next step in Board technology. Our AI Powered suite looks to help you not just in meetings, but in all aspects of your governance journey.
With our Board Portal, ESG Reporting and Governance Review modules, and future Entity Management and Risk Oversight features, Convene is your one-stop hub for all things governance, risk and compliance.
For our new Governance Review module, GovernWith is bringing their expert knowledge on contemporary governance and review capabilities to aid in the board evaluative process.
With this new module, you can access essential content and tools to manage regulatory compliance obligations and enhance contemporary governance organisation-wide, year after year.
Our Board management software is the all-in-one governance system your organisation needs, ensuring both effectiveness, and compliance.
Convene is also developing a strong and open community of more than 200 Housing Associations sharing knowledge and insight about GRC, Governance Risk and Compliance.
Convene has been a dedicated platform for Housing Associations for over a decade, with our Board portal software.
We are also proud sponsors of the SRS and partners with RITTERWALD Sustainable Housing Label for ESG reporting and assurance.
We want to facilitate discussion and wisdom sharing for our Housing community and beyond.
We’ll be hosting events, webinars & sharing our articles and newsletters and more, all focused on Housing governance, risk and compliance.
If you’d like to learn from others in the sector, join our community today.
