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Six critical steps to embed risk management within business workflows

Six critical steps to embed integrated risk management in business workflows and strengthen AI readiness.


In brief

  • Today’s operating environment is pushing the boundaries of the Chief Risk Officer's role, underscoring the need for a more proactive and connected risk management approach.
  • Centralized, connected risk technology enabled by strong data architecture, advanced platforms and AI-driven insights can help organizations respond more effectively.
  • EY’s IRM+ approach blends integrated risk management (IRM) disciplines with advanced technology architecture to help improve decision-making, user experiences and enterprise-wide risk visibility. 

Why now?

AI is reshaping the risk landscape and increasing the speed, scale and complexity of risk. As AI capabilities evolve and become more deeply embedded in operations, risk considerations are becoming more interconnected, with the pace of change adding further complexity. This is increasing the need for a more integrated approach to risk management, one that creates the data, governance and workflow foundation needed to support AI adoption at scale with strong risk management practices embedded from the outset.

 

Organizations need to understand not only individual risks, but also how interconnected events can amplify consequences. As new threats emerge and the pace of change adds further complexity, an integrated-by-design approach becomes increasingly important. That means maintaining a clear view of overall risk exposure while also managing evolving AI, data and digital risks. 

 

Many organizations see the value of integration, but common barriers remain. Fragmented risk management, disconnected tools unclear roles and duplicated reporting can limit enterprise-wide visibility and make risk harder to manage. 

 

These challenges can be amplified in highly regulated sectors, where organizations must manage overlapping regulatory expectations, technology complexity, third-party dependencies and evolving AI-related risks.

 

To meet regulatory expectations, operate effectively at scale and prepare for the AI era, organizations need a future-ready, technology-enabled IRM approach. 

How does EY’s IRM+ lay the foundation for AI readiness?

IRM+ is our technology-enabled approach to integrated risk management. We combine operating model design, common data architecture and workflow-driven technology to embed risk management into your day-to-day business activities rather than managing it as a separate function. This integration-by-design approach can help improve user experiences, enable real-time insights and provide a clearer picture of your organization’s risk profile. IRM+ is not only about integrating risk management: it’s about strengthening the data, governance and workflow fundamentals needed to scale risk management as technologies evolve. 

Through the EY-ServiceNow alliance and broader ecosystem capabilities, IRM+ brings together risk, compliance and resilience through a common data model, supported by workflow-based execution and preconfigured patterns that accelerate deployment and adoption and improve visibility. This approach is designed to help you move beyond simply layering new tools onto existing, fragmented processes through a unified data model, embedded workflows and integrated processes. Together, these create the foundation required to support AI-driven risk management.

From the outset, IRM+ aligns risk management to a unified risk architecture powered by ServiceNow technology. It simplifies structures, standardizes assessments and improves clarity, governance and decision-making. 

EY’s Global Alliance with ServiceNow allows us to codevelop and refine AI-enabled risk solutions within the ServiceNow ecosystem, bringing workflow, data, governance and AI capabilities together in a platform environment. This approach can help you move more quickly from concept to scalable risk capabilities, informed by alliance experience, direct implementation work and ongoing platform innovation. Over time, this strengthens both integrated risk management practices and the technology foundation that supports them.

By embracing this approach, you can draw on real-time insight to create a clearer view of your organization’s overall risk profile. Through IRM+, you can use more current, connected risk data to support stronger decision-making and reduce inefficiencies across risk management activities. 

Because IRM+ unifies risk data, processes and functions by design, it can create more proactive enterprise-wide visibility and make your business more resilient in an environment increasingly shaped by nonlinear, accelerated, volatile and interconnected risks. This matters more as risks continue to converge, compound and outpace traditional approaches.

Pair strategic thinking with unified tech platforms 

Our IRM+ approach forges a foundation for faster value, scalable sustainability and more confident AI adoption. At EY, we advance IRM+ by integrating AI capabilities with the ServiceNow platform to help you standardize, accelerate and elevate your transformation.

For example, generative AI can help your risk team generate insights faster, automate routine activities and make better decisions at scale. With the right data, governance and workflow foundations in place, AI-enabled and agentic capabilities can also support more consistent execution and more efficient risk workflows. 

Potential outcomes include:

  • More timely, practical insights
  • Greater consistency across risk processes
  • Better user experiences
  • More efficient risk management execution

How can you embark on your IRM+ journey?

We can help you embed risk into your business workflows from the start, creating a stronger foundation for AI adoption. These six steps can help you move forward with greater confidence:

  1. Establish product-aligned design. We can help you map your transformation journey with AI adoption in mind, define accountability for risk, business and technology stakeholders, and set clear progress metrics.
  2. Start with high-value use cases. Together, we can identify a practial pilot — for example, consolidating control testing across second and third lines or standardizing risk assessments — to create early momentum and build internal support. From there, we can help you explore AI-enabled opportunities and confirm the governance, data and control requirements needed to move forward.
  3. Use preconfigured patterns and accelerators. We can help you establish reusable workflows, data models and control frameworks to speed implementation and support greater consistency.
  4. Focus on connected data and better insight. Our teams can help you build a connected data foundation that links source systems and gives you clearer traceability from risk identification through to remediation.
  5. Take an AI-native approach to technology. We’ll work with you to select technology that connects existing systems and uses AI and automation to reduce manual work, improve consistency and generate better risk insight.
  6. Build for scale from the start. We can help you align your operating model and platform so technology becomes part of how risk work gets done — not an overlay added later.

What’s the bottom line?

A strong path to AI readiness starts with embedding integrated risk management into the operating model and data architecture from the outset. That by-design approach helps align risk management to a unified foundation, streamline structures and standardize assessment methods — establishing the conditions to adopt AI at scale in a controlled and governed manner.

Powered by the ServiceNow platform, IRM+ brings together deep risk knowledge and tech-led enablement in a product-led model. The result is stronger governance, more sustainable adoption, greater flexibility and a more resilient, business-centric risk framework.

Summary

A strong path to AI readiness starts with embedding integrated risk management into the operating model and data architecture from the outset. That by-design approach helps align risk management to a unified foundation, streamline structures and standardize assessment methods — establishing the conditions to adopt AI at scale in a controlled and governed manner.

Powered by the ServiceNow platform, IRM+ brings together deep risk knowledge and tech-led enablement in a product-led model. The result is stronger governance, more sustainable adoption, greater flexibility and a more resilient, business-centric risk framework.

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