Banks short of op risk experts and analysis

Investment banks are short on staff and are too focused on data collection, says a new BCS survey

LONDON – Investment banks are failing to fill op risk personnel requirements. There is a lack of expertise on staff, too much focus on day-to-day data collection and too little on data analysis, according to new research from operational consultant and software provider BCS.

The research – which focused on op risk and control within operations divisions – showed 65% of participants had not filled their op risk staff requirements. The staffing shortfall is exacerbated by labour-intensive, manual data collection and incident reporting, with inadequate investment in the mechanics of op risk and control processes.

“There’s an acceptance that people want to get from collection and reporting towards analysis and being proactive. People are so busy collecting data, collecting incidents and getting monthly reports out one way or another that they are less able to act pre-emptively,” says Jennifer Moodie, head of operational risk at BCS.

The least important priority was said to be governance – most firms claiming to have already implemented the structures upon which their risk reporting is founded.

"Everybody across the survey felt they did have their governance, structure and reporting very much in place, which wouldn’t have been the case if you’d asked that question three or four years ago,” says Moodie.