Risk Advisory

Unique and valuable solutions

With a strong focus on the design and delivery of advice for the effective implementation and operationalisation of conduct, compliance and risk, Ashurst Risk Advisory advises clients on practical, pragmatic and commercial approaches to managing risk, driving change and bolstering business performance.

Legal-led multi-disciplinary team with a client-centric and commercial approach

We understand clients need more than legal advice – they need holistic solutions to navigate the complexities of conducting businesses globally. Informed and backed by Ashurst’s leading legal experts from across the world, we have a unique combination of risk and conduct consulting capabilities that provide clients with end-to-end legal and risk advisory solutions.

Helping our clients realise their goals, means our risk advisors take a solutions focused approach, taking the time to understand our clients’ commercial drivers so that we can tailor outcomes that are appropriate for their needs.

Our clients include major financial services institutions, blue-chip corporates and government organisations.

Sustainability

Sustainability issues have moved from the fringe of corporate life to the core of decision-making.  Navigating sustainable actions now has a direct impact on reputation, shareholder value, strategic growth and operations.  Organisations must now anticipate and ensure compliance during a time of changing regulatory frameworks, and assess the risks and opportunities driven by the growing importance of social license and environmental custodianship. 

Leading on sustainability issues demands  cross-disciplinary functions that are not easily addressed by traditional siloed legal practice descriptions.

Ashurst believes that the only great companies in the future will be the truly sustainable ones. Our risk advisory practice brings a multi-disciplinary, end-to-end approach to clients who want to be part of a sustainable future.

We aim to assist organisations to navigate a world turning to net-zero emissions targets and to improve  custodianship of the environment, people and community:

Net-Zero, Net-Negative: Aligning economic policy and action with aggressive carbon emissions targets  in the lead-up to the COP26 climate conference in November, is not just for Government.. Pressure from investors, customers, governments, regulators and employees will increasingly force public, private and listed  organisations to commit to their own emissions targets and timelines.

We work with market leading companies who define climate transition risk as achieving net zero as the first critical step with a view to achieving more in time.  We call this net negative

Our approach is to work with clients to implement sustainable, agile and effective risk management that supports the achievement of business strategies and commitments in relation to net zero and net negative targets, while ensuring regulatory and compliance obligations are met.  We know how to design frameworks to identify, manage and monitor key risks dynamically, while striking the balance of effective and flexible risk management, thereby supporting the needs of business, shareholders and employees while reducing regulatory and litigation risk.

Social License:  The importance of social license for communities, employees, shareholders and regulators has gone beyond the "nice to have" category. Alongside climate action, social license is now a class of risk that directly impacts the future of an organisation.

While legislation and regulation proliferate, these rely on reactive responses within defined and tangible parameters. More complex are the proactive challenges – the need to gain community, NGO and governmental ‘buy-in’ for decisions, rather than simply ticking a box. 

In some cases, our clients can satisfy laws and regulations but they still face the challenge of developing and maintaining trust and social licence among their stakeholders.  This requires specialist consideration across both project and enterprise risk.

We utilise a multi-disciplinary approach by combining subject-matter risk and legal expertise. We provide our clients with unique insights into the identification, assessment, mitigation and monitoring of social license risks, providing technical advice alongside the most effective method to implement a social license strategy.  We support organisations through the management of high impact incidents when they experience a failure in social license. 

Whilst social licence issues are dynamic and contextual, our services and expertise are built around the following key issues. 

Key Competencies

Operating model: Advise on enterprise and business models, strategy, technology and risk frameworks. Triggers to instigate re-design include regulatory change, high cost to income ratio, M&A activity. Our offerings can be applied to all global industries.

Managed Services: Provide clients with commercial, end to end solutions to their most complex risk and regulatory issues by bringing together Ashurst's deep legal, risk, technology and operational expertise.

Tech & Cyber: Address strategic and tactical risks across their technology ecosystem to create opportunities, generate value and improve their technology related risk profile.

Risk & compliance modernisation: Advise on the effectiveness and impact of the risk function through modernisation, by redesigning operating models and processes, leveraging digital and technology innovation for improved risk detection, prevention and management.

Data & Analytics: Advise client with their use and understanding of data and data risk by designing, building and deploying data-driven solutions to: identify, manage and report on risk; maintain compliance and identify areas of non-compliance; and solve regulatory challenges.

Remediation: Advise on design, assessment, operationalisation and delivery of customer remediation programs that meet regulatory and key stakeholder expectations.

Deal risk: Provide advisory and implementation services to reduce deal risk in both pre and post deal stages of a sale, acquisition or merger.

Accountability risk: Advise on the implementation of accountability frameworks, including ensuring updated processes, controls, monitoring and reporting.

Governance risk: Advise on risk frameworks, approach to 3LOD, reporting (internal and external), setting and alignment of risk appetite, culture, management/Board governance.

Conduct risk: Conduct frameworks, including preventative measures, reporting, management of poor outcomes , liaison with regulators and consequence management.

Regulatory change: Regulatory change design and implementation advice, support and assurance, including practical ways to control and monitor regulatory obligations.

Regulatory enforcement risk: Responding to notices, operationalising regulator requirements and preparing for reviews by independent experts through ‘dry runs’.

Financial crime: Advise on all aspects of AML/CTF including on ML/TF risk assessment, AML/CTF program, independent review and proceedings.

Non-financial risk: Advise on end-to-end framework reviews, effectiveness of controls, assessment of outcomes against stated objectives, identification of uplift opportunities and capability assessments.

Privacy & Data: Pragmatic and commercially focused solutions for privacy compliance and regulatory response. Privacy risk assessments, Training, Incident Management, Response and Review, unique perspectives on global privacy.

Product / Distribution risk: Advise on end-to-end product and distribution risk assessments/reviews, with support and insight on getting the “right” customer outcomes, whilst maximising shareholder value.

Transformation risk: Assist clients to navigate change and transformation programs by providing independent oversight and assurance to ensure risks are minimised to support successful delivery and realisation of program objectives.

WHS: Assist with major WHS system improvement and redesign to premium transformation WHS projects with solutions that include WHS technology, analytics, systems, investigations, assessments and training through to safety leadership, culture and wellness programs.

Technology, Cyber & ICT: Assist clients to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiencies of their cybersecurity and resiliency programs in the context of driving business growth and strategic direction. Technology risk and cybersecurity services can be combined to form a larger program or transformation effort.

Disclaimer

Risk Advisory services are provided by Ashurst Risk Advisory Pty Ltd, part of the Ashurst Group, and are not legal services nor legal advice. For more information about the Ashurst Group and the services offered, please visit www.ashurst.com.

Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation (Ashurst Risk Advisory only)