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How Much Value Does Risk Management Bring to Your Organization
  • Article, Global

How Much Value Does Risk Management Bring to Your Organization?

In today’s fast-paced business landscape, organizations face numerous challenges, uncertainties, and risks that can significantly impact their operations and financial stability. Companies must implement effective risk management strategies to thrive and succeed in such an environment. Risk management involves identifying, assessing, and mitigating potential risks that could impact an organization’s ability to achieve its goals. This comprehensive guide will explore the significance of risk management, its benefits, and how it can add value to your organization.

Understanding Risk Management

Defining Risk Management

Risk management is the process of identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks that could affect an organization’s goals. It involves systematically evaluating potential threats and opportunities and taking appropriate actions to minimize or exploit them.

The Components of Risk Management

1. Risk Identification

The first and foremost step to managing risks effectively is identifying potential threats. It is important to identify all possible risks that could impact your project, business, or organization before you can take measures to mitigate them. This involves analyzing internal and external factors that could impact your organization, such as market trends, competition, regulatory changes, and economic conditions.

2. Risk Assessment

After identifying risks, they must be assessed for impact and likelihood to prioritize and determine immediate attention.

3. Risk Mitigation

Once the potential risks are identified, organizations must come up with effective strategies to minimize or eliminate their impact. This may involve implementing safeguards, creating contingency plans, or making strategic decisions to minimize exposure.

4. Risk Monitoring and Review

Risk management is an ongoing process. Regular monitoring and review of risk factors are crucial to adapt to changing circumstances and ensure the effectiveness of mitigation strategies.

The Significance of Risk Management

1. Safeguarding Financial Stability

One of the most significant benefits of risk management is to safeguard an organization’s financial stability by identifying and mitigating potential financial risks. This helps companies protect their assets and investments, ensuring long-term sustainability.

2. Enhancing Decision-Making

Effective risk management helps decision-making with data-driven insights, leading to better outcomes.

3. Compliance and Reputation

Compliance with regulatory requirements and ethical standards is crucial for organizations to protect their reputation and credibility. Risk management ensures adherence to these standards.

The ROI of Risk Management

Cost Savings

While investing in risk management may seem like an added expense, it often results in significant cost savings over time. By preventing or mitigating risks, organizations avoid costly crises and legal issues.

Competitive Advantage

Companies that effectively manage risks are better equipped to seize opportunities and gain a competitive edge. They can adapt to market changes swiftly, positioning themselves as industry leaders.

Long-Term Sustainability

Ultimately, risk management contributes to an organization’s long-term sustainability. By proactively addressing risks, companies can withstand economic downturns and industry fluctuations.

Conclusion

In today’s dynamic business environment, risk management is not just a good practice; it’s a necessity. It safeguards financial stability, enhances decision-making, ensures compliance, and provides a substantial return on investment. By embracing risk management, your organization can thrive, adapt, and succeed in an ever-evolving marketplace.

FAQs

Is risk management only for large corporations?

No, risk management is essential for organizations of all sizes. Small businesses can benefit from risk management by protecting their assets and making informed decisions.

How often should risk management strategies be reviewed?

Risk management strategies should be reviewed regularly, at least annually, to account for changes in the business environment.

Can risk management completely eliminate all risks?

While risk management can mitigate many risks, it cannot eliminate them entirely. It aims to reduce their impact and likelihood.

Is risk management only about financial risks?

No, risk management encompasses various types of risks, including operational, strategic, and reputational risks.

How can I get started with risk management for my organization?

To begin with, risk management identifies potential risks, assesses their impact, and develops mitigation strategies. Seek the expertise of professionals if needed.
Incorporating effective risk management practices into your organization is not just about protecting your assets; it’s about ensuring your organization’s resilience and longevity in an ever-changing world. Don’t wait until a crisis strikes take proactive steps today to secure your organization’s future.

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Making the Advantages of Digital Transformation Globally Accessible
  • Article, Global

Making the Advantages of Digital Transformation Globally Accessible

In an increasingly interconnected world driven by technology, the significance of digital transformation has evolved from being an option to a necessity. As a business operating in the digitized ecosystem, you would encounter a series of substantial challenges to benefit from this digital transformation. Amidst all the developments, the key to success lies in ensuring that every organization benefits from digital transformation.

The B20 Digital Transformation Task Force Leading the Transformation

The B20 Digital Transformation Task Force is a specialized group and a direct outcome of previous G20 summits. It serves as a proactive platform that unites influential corporate leaders, tech ventures, and esteemed international organizations. Mutually, they aim to confront the obstacles in the digital transformation process.

The Task Force aims to design viable solutions and strategies to propel digital evolution by leveraging the collective expertise of these stakeholders. This will likely pave the way for a more inclusive and interconnected digital sphere. It would foster better innovation, collaboration, and equitable progress on a global scale.

4 Key Priorities to Make Digital Transformation Accessible

The ultimate goal of the Task Force is to unlock the full potential of the global digital economy across different parts of the world. The task force is strategically focussing on four key domains.

1. Advocating Universal Connectivity

Promoting connectivity across the globe goes a long way in bridging the digital divide. Bridging this digital divide calls for universal connectivity. This ensures equitable access to resources and opportunities, regardless of geographical or socio-economic disparities.

The task force has meticulously identified some crucial interventions in the policy. These have been designed to expand the network faster, ensuring transformative connectivity across all corners of the world and various communities.

2. Mitigating the Skill Gap through Digital Literacy

One of the prime impediments to embracing digital technologies lies in digital literacy. This skill gap needs to be addressed to ensure global access to digital transformation.

The task force is strategically positioned to provide recommendations that would help in creating a digitally agile workforce. The skills of this workforce would be internationally applicable. This would empower them to work in a collaborative global landscape.

3. Digital Transformation for MSMEs

Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) continue to be the bedrock of the global economy. Therefore, their digital transformation happens to be a pivotal element when you consider the prosperity of a nation. The transformation of MSMEs can streamline their operations, enhance efficiency, and broaden their reach to the audience.

The task force is poised to offer recommendations that would digitize MSMEs by ensuring unhindered access to resources. This would go a long way in fostering a culture conducive to digital integration.

4. Enhancing Digital Trust

Today, consumer trust in digital platforms looks weak due to consistent data breaches and instances of privacy infringements. This points to the urgent need for better enhanced cyber resilience within the business ecosystem.

The strategic approach of the task force encompasses cybersecurity recommendations. Along with the promotion of cyber awareness and cultivating cyber competency, this multipronged approach can strengthen both consumer and business trust. This can fortify the future landscape for digital commerce.

Wrapping up

The pivotal mission of the Task Force is to come up with a transparent and actionable solution to overcome the hurdles in global digital transformation. The ultimate aim is to usher a future where digital transformation can be beneficial to everyone. The task force visualizes a world where these benefits symbolize innovation, collaboration, and creativity, driving the entrepreneurial spirit to success in the digital era.

Partnering with established firms like the IMC Group can help global businesses redefine their stand in the competitive digitized ecosystem.

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10 Effective Payroll Best Practices to Implement in 2023
  • Article, Global

10 Effective Payroll Best Practices to Implement in 2023

Having an impeccable payroll process to uphold compliance standards happens to be an aspiration for successful organizations. However, how do you plan to streamline your payroll management process? The answer lies in embracing global payroll management solutions with customized features.

Let’s delve into this enlightening blog, where we have recommended the best payroll management practices to adopt in 2023. With the right approach, your enterprise can enhance your payroll operations efficiently.

Implementing Powerful Payroll Management Practices

Let’s explore some of the effective payroll best practices that organizations can implement to deliver a seamless employee experience.

1. Formulate Comprehensive Payroll Policies and Procedures

At the core of any well-structured payroll management process lies the formulation of meticulous policies and procedures. Establish a holistic framework outlining the essential components of payment schedules, payment methods, payroll, deductions, and benefits. This way, business owners can ensure that their payroll department respects uniform standards and operates seamlessly.

While structuring your payroll policies, make sure to include:

  • Payroll components
  • Payment methods
  • Payroll deductions
  • Payment schedule
  • Employee benefits
  • Other relevant aspects

Under your payroll procedures, make sure to include the following:

  • Payment processes
  • Protocols for record-keeping
  • Data entry processes
  • Report handling standards
  • Pre-payroll preparations
  • Calculation processes
  • Post-payroll reporting processes
Use a global payroll template to facilitate a seamless initiation. This will help you identify day-to-day payroll tasks and calculate employee remuneration.

2. Proactively Schedule Crucial Payroll Processing Dates and Deadlines

A strategic advantage of managing payroll is the availability of predetermined deadlines.

Essential dates and deadlines that businesses need to mark on their calendar include:

  • Paydays based on the respective frequency
  • Local bank closures
  • Employee Benefits Enrolment Periods
  • Expatriate Tax Deadlines
  • Payment Cut-Off Times

3. Automate Notifications for Timely Reminders

Forward-thinking businesses use smart payroll management solutions to automate notifications to get timely reminders for tax payments. Strategically setting up these reminders will help you remain on top of your payroll schedule.

Use a suitable payroll management tool to consider your preferences and automate these notifications. Businesses also use Google Calendar and invite their payroll management team members for the corresponding events throughout the year.

4. Classify Your Employees Accurately

To ensure a seamless administration of your payroll, it’s crucial to segregate your employees tactically. For instance, you must differentiate between full-time employees and independent contractors. Besides, there should be a difference in payroll processing for exempt and non-exempt employees.

Use a robust payroll management tool to classify your employees and file the appropriate forms. This ensures proper remuneration to your staff without missing the legally-mandated benefits they deserve.

5. Streamline and Automate Your Payroll Management System

With the automation of payroll processing, digitized solutions can significantly alleviate the workload of your payroll department. Embracing one of these sophisticated systems would simplify payroll tax filing. These automated solutions encompass a wide array of tasks, which include:

  • Timekeeping
  • Calculating salary increments, bonuses, and overtime
  • Calculating taxes and deductions accurately
  • Generating cost breakdowns of payroll reports
  • Streamlined tax filing processes

6. Bank on the Power of Real-time Data Tracking and Analysis

For payroll teams at your organization, it’s imperative to make crucial decisions based on the latest set of data. Whether it involves reviewing employee payroll data or understanding the contribution breakdown, you need access to real-time reports. With smart solutions at your disposal, making data-driven decisions during payroll processing becomes simplified. You can also generate insightful reports on different positions and locations.

7. Implement a Payroll Approval Process

There’s no denying that your payroll approval process turns out to be a time-intensive ordeal. This calls for a synchronized coordination between professionals working in different hierarchies in your organization. The secret to simplifying this process lies in integrating a strict payroll approval mechanism.

Firstly, take care of your scheduling parameters, budgetary constraints, payment cycles, and other constraints. Accordingly, establish guidelines that necessitate acquiring prior approval for any promotions, staffing agencies, or personal changes.

8. Offer Enhanced Payment Options for Accessibility

Rather than relying on paper checks, why not directly deposit payments into the bank accounts of your employees? To streamline this process, successful brands have already been deploying payroll management solutions. Therefore, your employees get to enjoy sufficient flexibility in receiving payments.

9. Embrace Mobile Self-Service Capabilities in Payroll Software

Adopt a payroll platform loaded with self-service functionalities. This would empower your employees to perform simple tasks such as submitting timekeeping information, accessing and reviewing past and current pay stubs, and submitting tax-related information autonomously. This way, they can focus on their core competencies rather than wasting time on repetitive tasks.

Get a solution that supports global mobility services so that your payroll professionals can operate the system from any location.

10. Formulate Robust Data Protection Policies

Whether you use a payroll solution, store data online, or outsource payroll services, securing payroll data is of paramount importance. Payroll teams handle sensitive employee data, including banking information and personnel records. Thus, it’s imperative to adopt precautionary measures to secure this vital information.

Usually, cloud-based solutions offer the highest level of security. If you decide to outsource your payroll management, sign a comprehensive data processing agreement (DPA) to ensure regulatory compliance and data security.

Embrace global payroll management solutions to streamline your operations

Regardless of the industry you operate in or the size of your business, it’s time to embrace a global payroll management solution. We, at the IMC Group, specialize in developing global payroll management solutions for our clients. Managing your payroll and taxes would be easier than ever before with IMC Group. This way, you can ensure compliance for your global workforce in 2023 and beyond.

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Leveraging the Power of Artificial Intelligence in Integrated Risk Management and Resilience
  • Article, Global

Leveraging the Power of Artificial Intelligence in Integrated Risk Management and Resilience

Walking in the shoes of a CEO or company head, have you considered the potential of AI for integrated risk management and resilience of your organization? AI is backed by computer science and largely mimics human thought processes. Forward-thinking organizations are proactively integrating AI into their enterprise risk management solutions. This evolving domain aims to create smart systems capable of perceiving, reasoning, learning, and autonomously making decisions. ML, a subset of AI, is based on statistical models and algorithms that empower information systems to learn from data without explicit programming processes.

AI holds tremendous potential to secure business resilience. Thanks to advanced analytics, automation, and intelligent decision-making, AI goes a long way in ensuring integrated risk management.

Here are a few instances that demonstrate the potential of AI in risk management solutions.

1. Noble Intelligence: Noble Intelligence, an initiative by McKinsey & Company, has leveraged the strength of AI to come up with a computer-vision algorithm. It can quickly evaluate the extent of damage in buildings after disasters using satellite images. The algorithm is capable of classifying buildings into four groups from ‘intact’ to ‘destroyed’ using satellite data. Thus, it provides almost real-time analysis without human intervention. With these intelligent inputs, relief workers can allocate their resources judiciously as they carry out rescue operations.

2. Interpreting social media feeds: After calamities, AI is being used to interpret social media feeds. This is an innovative approach that provides real-time insights into aid distribution and infrastructural damage. AI can pinpoint images from shelters where people remain stranded and lack essentials. Thus, it provides valuable ground information to rescuers.

3. Predicting vulnerable areas: Beyond immediate crisis response, AI models can help in predicting high-risk zones. These models use satellite and assorted data to geo-tag damaged sites. Thus, relief teams can quickly identify vulnerable regions and make necessary decisions to rescue people. Besides allocating resources optimally, AI devices the best routes based on damage assessment maps which pacify the aid-delivery process to disaster zones.

While strengthening your organizational resilience, integrating AI outputs into Integrated Risk Management (IRM) automation can be beneficial. Here’s how AI can help your organization in enhancing its risk management capabilities:

Enhancing Risk Assessment and Management

AI has tremendous powers in analyzing complex data in quick time and thereby identifies underlying risks. AI-driven risk assessment models offer real-time insights into emerging risks. Therefore, organizations can prioritize them based on severity and likelihood. These intelligent inputs go a long way in shaping risk-management strategies. Integrating these AI-generated risk assessments into IRM automation can leverage automated risk monitoring and reporting.

Strengthening Data Analytics and Predictive Insights

AI-integrated IRM automation banks on historical data to reveal patterns, trends, and potential risks. This historical analysis generates predictive insights. These intelligent systems can identify areas susceptible to vulnerabilities or compliance breaches. Thus, the insights form the foundation of a proactive risk-management strategy and compliance planning.

Automating Response to Incidents

AI is capable of automating parts of incident response, cutting down response times, and boosting effectiveness. AI-powered systems scrutinize security alerts, measure the severity of incidents, and recommend appropriate courses of action. This automation goes a long way in streamlining incident management. It reduces response time and minimizes potential disruptions.

Revolutionizing Business Continuity Planning

AI can simulate diverse scenarios and craft robust business continuity plans. It is capable of modeling different disruptions for business and proposes policies to minimize downtime. This helps in maintaining continuity in supply chains and securing critical functions in times of crisis.

Optimizing Supply Chain Management

AI holds the potential to revolutionize supply chain management, analyzing complex data sets. At the organizational level, AI can be used to scrutinize inventory and logistics, and predict demand patterns. Forward-thinking organizations deploy AI to analyze the performance of suppliers to identify potential disruptions. Therefore, it helps in eliminating bottlenecks and streamlining logistics. In the process, AI can enhance your responsiveness to shifts in demand or supply.

Enabling Continuous Monitoring and Auditing

AI facilitates continuous monitoring and auditing within IRM processes. The smart algorithms carry out real-time analysis, evaluating the effectiveness of controls. Thus, they pinpoint possible breaches in compliance in the system. Integrating these AI-backed features into your IRM solutions would automate the ongoing auditing and surveillance processes. This can reduce periodic assessments, and manual sampling which tend to be time-intensive.

Integrating AI into your IRM automation platform empowers you with fresh insights to make informed decisions. However, this integration calls for meticulous attention to data quality, model accuracy, and regulatory compliance. It is imperative for IT teams, IRM professionals, and AI experts to collaborate and establish a robust automation infrastructure. Besides, the process should involve limited human intervention to interpret results and draw actionable conclusions.

The IMC Group continues to be your trusted partner for governance risk and compliance services. With professionals on your side, you can seamlessly leverage AI to strengthen the integrated risk management and resilience of your organization.

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Understanding the Potential of Family Offices to Empower Investment Strategies
  • Article, Global

Understanding the Potential of Family Offices to Empower Investment Strategies

Family offices continue to be a formidable force in the ever-changing landscape for investors. They have reshaped the shape of startups and businesses, fuelling innovation across various industries. It’s imperative to understand the essence of a family office, which lies at the heart of this paradigm. A family office is an entity that directly channels funds on behalf of its owners. Led by financial experts, these offices might be a singular family or a closely-knit consortium. The latter is known as a Multi-Family Office (MFO). The role of a family office is to explore investment avenues with a personalized approach. The minimal regulatory oversight of family offices is one of the defining traits, considering their stewardship over personal wealth.

An Insight into Family Offices

An insightful Credit Suisse study reveals that family offices are those with wealth over $100 million in their threshold. Globally, the number of family offices is estimated to be between 6,500 and 10,500. A 2019 Campden Research reveals a 40% increment in the number of family offices since 2017. Collectively, these offices manage a staggering $6 trillion.

Remarkably, a substantial number of family offices have emerged relatively recently. As much as 70% of these offices were established after 2000. Since 2010, there has been a striking 35% increase in the number of such establishments. This shift reflects that affluent families have realized that managing investments in-house proves to be cost-effective. The traditional investment approach involving conventional vehicles requires you to shell out management fees of 2% to 20%.

Data obtained through a UBS survey reveals that on average, family offices bear an annual fee of 1.157%. This is almost half of what traditional investment vehicles require.

Flexibility and Strategic Prowess of Family Offices

Family offices wield unique advantages, although they are smaller than sovereign wealth funds, hedge funds, or private equity. Their agility to engage in early-stage investment deals and the ability to make swift decisions make them successful. Along with this, family offices have robust capital, empowering them to underpin larger investment rounds ranging from $10-50 million. This is pivotal for spearheading such ventures to new heights.

Before the pandemic, family offices primarily used to channel their investments toward private equity and venture capital funds. Thus, they adopted a conventional stance across real estate, equities, and other fronts. However, family offices realized the potential in other domains like digital finance, sustainability, health tech, and AI. Thus, they are exploring these untapped opportunities, as pointed out by PWC. The researchers focussed on this transformation, explaining that family office deal volumes outpaced VC in 2021.

Dynamic Shifts and Investment Pioneers

As investment avenues undergo a transformation, family offices continue to capitalize on the potential in the tech sector. While 2022 witnessed a dip in family office investments, they still contributed to around 33% of global startup capital. Simultaneously, startups and growth companies are now looking forward to aligning with family offices, primarily drawn by their appetite for long-term strategies, hands-on involvement, and prompt decision-making.

In 2022, family office-backed deals constituted 10.1% of global startup investments. This encompasses 32.5% of startup capital stemming from these offices. In deal selections, North and Latin America took the center stage. The prioritized sectors include SaaS, Artificial intelligence, machine learning, media, technology, health, and telecoms. There’s also a palpable potential to invest in sustainable industries, fuelled by the intent of younger investors to focus on ESG principles.

Exploring the Horizon for Progress

Although US family offices are cautious about the short-term market, 2023 and 2024 look promising. Currently, family offices are gearing up to make more investments in green technology, healthcare technology, and AI.

A Campden Wealth report for 2023 shows that a significant number of North American family offices have already invested in Metaverse. Other family offices are consolidating their investments in Metaverse, Web 3.0, and NFTs.

These trends signify an accelerated growth trajectory in the broader technology sector, as the global economy strives to break free from interest rate pressures and inflation.

The IMC Group continues to be a pioneering consultancy firm for private client and family advisory services. Experienced professionals can put you on the right track as you explore the potential of family offices to empower your investment strategies.

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Top HR Trends in 2023 Employee Wellness HR Automation
  • Article, Global

Top HR Trends in 2023: A Look into Employee Wellness, HR Automation, and Skill-Based Hiring

As we enter 2023, HR professionals continue to navigate a rapidly evolving landscape. The post-pandemic world, coupled with the rise of automation and the growing emphasis on employee well-being, is driving significant changes in the recruitment domain. So, how well is your HR department poised to tackle these new challenges?

Besides navigating the global talent pool amidst the remote work environment, organizations need to address complexities in international payroll management and global relocations. HR professionals need to stay abreast with the latest trends to spearhead their organizations.

In this article, we’ll explore the key trends that will shape HR strategies in 2023.

The Evolving Nature of Work: Embracing Remote Work and Flexibility

Amidst the pandemic, the hybrid and remote work models used to be an option. However, forward-thinking organizations are embracing these operational models as the preferred structure. With the remote hiring model, HR professionals can foray into global pools of talents beyond their demographics.

Organizations have realized the strategic benefits of these flexible work models. This includes global hiring opportunities and reduced carbon footprints. The traditional five-day office week has lost its appeal in the current work environment.

Consequently, navigating the global talent pool presents both challenges and rewards. HR professionals are prioritizing flexibility in terms of work location, hours, schedules, and even operational methods. Now, the focus lies not on where the work is done, but the actual productivity employees bring to the table.

Embracing Diversity for Success: Nurturing an Inclusive Workplace

In 2023, HR professionals highly emphasize creating an inclusive culture. This prioritizes Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in their workforce. It’s common to find global organizations investing in initiatives that promote diverse hiring practices. For instance, many organizations are expanding their recruitment efforts to establish ERGs (Employee Resource Groups).

The opportunity to hire employees from any part of the world expands your talent pool. With this cultural shift, global organizations are working with a new generation of workers. This workforce perceives the future of work beyond the introduction of new operational conditions. They also prioritize the way businesses treat workers, communicate with them, and invest in their well-being. Businesses are allocating larger budgets for cultural projects that foster inclusivity. Organizations are also embracing advanced solutions for managing international payroll complexities with a diverse workforce.

Emphasizing Workforce Wellness as a Key Priority

The past year has witnessed a surge in employee burnout and a decline in employee retention rates. In 2022, “quiet quitting” used to be the buzzword. No wonder, why successful organizations prioritize employee well-being in 2023.

For employees, getting their needs and expectations addressed continues to be a priority. Therefore, HR initiatives that were previously overlooked are now taking center stage. Therefore, new HR standards are likely to be introduced in different industries in 2023. These include:

1. Fulfilling Employee Expectations

HR professionals are focussing on the implementation of pulse surveys to manage employee expectations effectively. These surveys will provide employees with an opportunity to express their thoughts on relevant aspects. This can range from employee benefits to internal organizational matters.

2. Additional Educational Resources

Organizations are allocating additional resources to educational initiatives for employees to foster continuous learning and development. This goes beyond educating the employees on company policies and tools. The approach is more holistic, encompassing comprehensive financial training. It should include topics like equity, wellness, mindfulness coaching, and other initiatives. Ultimately, these HR trends will contribute to a more engaged and informed workforce.

3. Balancing Work and Life

Striking a healthy work-life balance and ensuring sustainable work practices are imperative to HR processes. Thus, recruiters need to focus on creating sustainable work environments by introducing change management practices. They also need to train business leaders on healthier approaches. With this approach, employees would have additional resources to effectively manage stress and pressure. Organizations can, therefore, ensure the long-term sustainability and success of their workforce.

The Must-Have Duo: Automation and Data

Digital transformation has emerged as a prominent and enduring trend within the realm of HR. While certain individuals are still grappling with its implementation, others have successfully forged partnerships with AI and seamlessly integrated robots with endearing monikers into their workforce. To effectively adapt to this paradigm shift, what measures can you undertake to remain abreast of these changes? The foundation of people analytics rests upon the pivotal pillars of automation and data analysis. By embracing these pillars, organizations can alleviate the burden of manual, time-consuming tasks that deplete valuable time and resources. It is important to note that the objective is not to replace human involvement, but rather to enhance it. Therefore, it is imperative for every HR leader to leverage these tools to drive improvement.

Data analytics empowers HR professionals to gain deeper insights into their metrics, enabling them to make more informed and strategic decisions. This data-driven approach facilitates the implementation of crucial changes in areas such as employee engagement. In fact, all Chief Human Resources Officers (CHROs) should heavily rely on the data collected from their workforce when making critical decisions regarding company culture, employee retention, and addressing talent shortages.

Automation plays a vital role in people operations as it streamlines administrative tasks, reducing time and effort while improving accuracy and efficiency. By relieving HR teams from mundane tasks that do not contribute to employee development, automation enables them to focus on more impactful initiatives. The effective implementation of HR technology can be the key factor in reducing burnout and enhancing overall employee happiness, surpassing the benefits of traditional courses or webinars.

Prioritizing Skills and Revolutionizing the Hiring Process

In 2023, skill-based hiring takes precedence as organizations recover from widespread layoffs. Traditional parameters of success such as certificates and degrees are no longer the only criteria for HR professionals to evaluate candidates. Rather, organizations are prioritizing agility and adaptability, prioritizing the skills of candidates. Collaboration, communication, and problem-solving are some of the highly-sought skills, along with technical experience.

Besides, HR professionals are hiring employees with versatile skills to meet the evolving demands of the market. Companies are also designing clear and achievable career paths to attract and retain top talent. These include opportunities for horizontal mobility that would foster better growth and satisfaction for employees.

Navigating International Relocation and Global Talent Pool

In an interconnected operational paradigm, HR teams are expanding their talent acquisition strategies beyond borders. With international relocation and global mobility services in high demand, successful players are forging collaborations with efficient partners. Right from managing payroll for international employees, maintaining compliance with local regulations, and ensuring a seamless employee transition across borders, HR professionals need to prioritize several tasks. Therefore, partnering with Employer of Record (EOR) or Professional Employer Organization (PEO) services can provide valuable support in managing an international workforce.

IMC Group continues to be one of the leading partners offering EOR & PEO services. Collaborating with the right Global Expansion partner can help you take a progressive path to success amidst the competitive business environment.

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How to Choose the Right Zoho Implementation Partner for Your Business
  • Article, Global, India, U.A.E.

How to Choose the Right Zoho Implementation Partner for Your Business?

We are in the era of digitalization where rapid changes are happening in digital space. Many huge businesses are ruling their industries with the help of SaaS companies. One such SaaS provider is Zoho which is a popular name in providing CRM services to businesses.

Zoho is a SaaS company that provides various applications that allow businesses to manage customer relationships through various products offered by Zoho. It includes CRM, project management, emails, invoicing, an attendance platform, and more.

Many companies fail to understand that implementation of Zoho in the business is the most important step for using Zoho services according to your needs. You need the best partner to implement Zoho based on your requirements. The process is challenging and might be impossible for in-house developers until they know the ins and outs of Zoho. A Zoho implementation partner is the best way to proceed to avoid any costly mistakes during implementations.

Discussed below are some tips to guide you on how to find the best partner for your Zoho implementation.

Understanding Your Needs

What are the services you require? Is it CRM, emails, or project management? Whatever is your requirement, make an estimated budget for the same. After your requirements and budget are finalized, you can go ahead in selecting the Zoho partner to implement your needs in your budget.

Market Reputation and Experience

Being a part of the industry, every company maintains a market reputation. You should be in a partnership with a company that maintains good work with its clients and works as a reputed business in the industry.

Another vital thing to consider is the expertise and knowledge of the company in your domain of work. Choose a Zoho implantation partner who can easily understand your business and customize your Zoho based on your business requirements. For example, if your business needs CRM implementation from Zoho, choosing a partner who has first-hand experience in CRM implementations will make the process seamless and right on track.

Customer Experience and Support

Your Zoho implementation partner will be your first point of contact for any problems related to your Zoho. Your Zoho partner should be able to solve all technical hitches occurring during or after the implementation. A good support team will be able to solve all your problems and provide helpful advice to any question. Zoho Books support is another way to solve your issues which allows you to take direct help from Zoho. However, having a Zoho partner as your support team is helpful in the long run.

Quality over Price

The overall cost of a Zoho implementation partner depends on many factors including your business needs, Zoho license, users count, data migration, user training, and the location of the partner. The charge of your Zoho partner will depend on many other factors like the complexity of the project, time taken for the project, and the Zoho services you have opted for.

For example, you might have shortlisted some partners having different price budgets, it is not wise to go for the partner with the lowest cost. You should always consider quality over cost. Don’t settle for lower budgets which might increase your costs later if the implementation is not done as per your requirements.

Conclusion

A Zoho implementation partner is crucial to have for a better and more focused implementation of a Zoho product in your business operations. With so many partners online, choosing one can be overwhelming. However, you can consider the tips mentioned above and choose the partner best suited to your needs and budget.

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Developing a Strong M&A Strategy: 5 Tips to Support Business Growth
  • Article, Global

Developing a Strong M&A Strategy: 5 Tips to Support Business Growth

Embarking on a merger or acquisition (M&A) is a significant opportunity for your business. However, it comes with high stakes, and you can’t simply weed out the chances of failure! For middle-market companies, developing a robust M&A strategy that aligns with their personal and business goals is imperative.

Often, businesses stumble across hurdles while working on their M&A tactics. These include:

  • Failure to understand a business strategy within the organization
  • Absence of a comprehensive roadmap
  • Confusion due to delayed decisions or leadership issues
  • Inadequate knowledge about what to prioritize on after closing

With professional mergers & acquisitions advisory services from experts, streamlining your M&A strategy becomes a reality. In this article, you will find five valuable tips for understanding the M&A process and fostering business growth.

5 Guidelines to Develop a Strong M&A Strategy

Established M&A advisors recommend the following tips to develop a powerful M&A strategy.

1. Align the Transaction with Your Business Case

A well-aligned business case is the foundation of any successful M&A. So, it’s crucial to articulate the reasons behind the M&A deal. Also, every organisation member should have a transparent understanding of their role in supporting the value proposition. The business case should be both the driver and metric for retaining customers, increasing revenue, and offering better products.

Stretch your goals

Businesses need to set high-risk and high-effort stretch goals to achieve significant results. Consider the M&A deal as a valuable asset. Naturally, it requires meticulous planning. Come up with highly collaborative and cross-functional integration plans. This way, organizations can transform the business case into a reality. Align the outcomes of the business case with your profit and loss. Thus, you can maintain commitment while propelling your organization to success.

Identify tangible value drivers

Identify the tangible value drivers the merger or acquisition will likely fulfil. Find the key gaps or needs you aim to address in your business through the transaction. However, transactions must fill this loophole partially. So, try to align the deal with your business goals and consider additional investments you may need. This way, you can emerge at the top in the competitive market.

2. Work Out a Master Plan

A well-defined master plan is essential for the success of any M&A. It serves as a blueprint, highlighting the milestones and critical tasks. Your master plan should establish early commitments to people-related decisions, investments, and timeframes.

For businesses undertaking M&A deals, it’s crucial to maintain clarity in the process. Therefore, they should establish an effective governance structure and review it regularly.

Address issues and risks that stem from the M&A process instantly. Also, ensure timely responses and prioritization for better management of potential roadblocks. It would be best if you had visibility into interdependencies between operations, departments, and teams.

3. Empowering Your Team for Better Accountability

Ensure that your leadership team remains accountable for the outcome of your decisions. Besides, the supporting departments should cultivate accountability. Each team member should understand their responsibilities and deliverables.

As the business or management head, you must nurture better team collaboration by clearly defining roles. Also, update relevant stakeholders on new processes and procedures.

In this context, it’s crucial to structure your meetings tactically to enhance communication and decision-making. Host structured sessions with a predetermined agenda to address issues like communication and decision-making. These meetings should involve the department managers, steering committees, and senior leadership. Effective collaboration ensures proper alignment with your integration goals and expectations.

4. Establishing a Highly Effective Governance Structure

An effective governance structure is critical even if you have a remote board. Here are three steps that would help you streamline your governance structure.

  • Define the process: Come up with a well-defined process addressing the risks, challenges, and issues that may potentially arise during the M&A process. Reviewing and updating the process regularly is imperative to ensure its effectiveness. Forward-thinking organizations habitually seek specialized transaction advisory services to develop their governance structure.
  • Cultivate accountability: Integrate the leadership team with responsibility. This fosters a collaborative environment, aligning your teams with the objectives of the merger or acquisition.
  • Host structured meetings: Various levels of your workforce should coordinate through structured meetings. These should include your steering committees and workstreams. Besides, have a predetermined agenda to guide these meetings and resolve issues.

5. Communicating throughout the Transaction

Establish a strong communication strategy to seamlessly convey your messages to the desired parties throughout the M&A process and beyond. Work on crafting a master narrative that outlines the overall story of the deal. This should drive the behaviour and actions of different departments in your organization.

  • Communication with employees: Communicate effectively with your employees, ensuring they understand their value. Once they realize their position in the new organization and the changes they might encounter, they will be ready for the change.
  • Communication with customers: Deploy a well-defined outreach program to communicate the deal’s value to your customers. Focus on benefits like improved customer service, expanded access, or enhanced product offerings. You can strengthen customer support and loyalty through regular updates and transparent communication.
  • Communication with suppliers: Keep your suppliers informed about their involvement in the deal. Ensure to provide detailed information and address any concerns they might have to maintain a strong bond.

Seek professional support from experts

Whether you need seasoned professionals’ advisory or due diligence services, we are here to help. At the IMC Group, we can impartially facilitate and manage your transaction. With expert professional support, you can position your business with authority in a competitive business environment.

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2023 GRC Outlook: Four Key Priorities for Effective Compliance and Risk Management
  • Article, Global

2023 GRC Outlook: Four Key Priorities for Effective Compliance and Risk Management

In the competitive global business ecosystem, effective Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) have emerged as critical priorities to align operations, mitigate risks, and ensure adherence to regulatory frameworks. Forward-thinking businesses implement robust and adaptable Governance Risk and Compliance Solutions to make informed decisions.

Businesses can make smarter decisions and mitigate risks by deploying smart GRC programs. In this post, we are going to prioritize four aspects that should streamline your operations in this regard.

Understanding the Components of a Strong GRC Framework

Before recommending the top four priorities in 2023, let’s evaluate the core components of a strong FRC framework.

1. Governance

Governance serves as the foundation of effective business management. It encompasses policies, rules, and responsibilities which stakeholders and senior management professionals need to adhere to. Governance ensures better operational efficiency and optimizes resources by emphasizing transparent information sharing, conflict resolution plans, and accountable practices.

2. Risk Management

Risk management goes a long way in identifying and mitigating risks on different fronts. It encompasses legal risks, business strategy risks, and informational security risks. Risk management involves a holistic approach to mitigate these risks. It offers a united framework that strengthens disaster recovery protocols.

Top organizations largely count on enterprise risk management solutions to ensure their business continuity.

3. Compliance

Compliance refers to the process of adhering to legal regulations, standards, and ethical policies. Forward-thinking businesses strive to maintain their organizational integrity by incorporating compliance. These legal protocols apply to every sector, including healthcare, IT, food and drugs, etc.

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The Importance of GRC: Mitigating Risks, Maintaining Compliance, and Enhancing Governance

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How Can the Power of GRC Solutions Future-Proof Your Business?

There’s no denying that your organization needs robust corporate governance solutions to navigate through these challenges. Under any circumstance, it’s imperative to embrace the potential of GRC solutions. This way, you can effectively manage risks and capitalize on your opportunities.

However, these challenges continue to persist in the competitive business environment. Compliance leaders expect another 30% increment in compliance costs with the evolving regulatory demands and customer needs. Business leaders need to realign their priorities to address these challenges.

Here are four prime recommendations that should bail you out.

1. A Business-First Approach

Prioritizing the needs of your business is of paramount importance while working on GRC. Regulatory compliance is important for all organizations. However, each business operates under unique circumstances, which calls for a highly customized approach. Rather than viewing GRC as a mere box-ticking exercise, make sure to craft a GRC program aligning with your business goals.

A business-oriented stance ensures that your GRC program spearheads you to success and helps in cultivating resilience while navigating risks. GRC leaders need to engage with stakeholders across the organization to strategize an effective and relevant program. It’s crucial to remember that GRC involves fostering an accountable and compliant culture. This calls for building stronger relationships within the organization.

2. Prioritizing Risks after Categorizing Them

Eliminating risks from your business environment is virtually impossible. For organizations with limited resources, effective risk management turns out to be crucial. Therefore, these organizations need to consider their legal obligations and manage these risks.

At the outset, your strategy should involve categorizing and prioritizing risks in such a way that the tactic aligns with your business. Carefully scrutinize the chances of each risk affecting your business and the corresponding intensity. Also, include both internal and external factors, ranging from employee errors to cyberattacks.

Many successful enterprises are heavily counting on third-party risk management solutions in the wake of attacks targeting their supply chains and vendors. Vulnerabilities in third-party relationships continue to be a significant threat even when you have robust internal policies and controls. This explains the importance of establishing a single source of risk truth providing visibility to risks of all sizes.

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3. Keeping Track of Global Regulations

Rather than being a periodic task or a one-time project, GRC is a continuous process. It’s a type of change management adapting to the evolving economic conditions amidst complex regulatory norms. Businesses often find it challenging to achieve continuous compliance and maintain the same. The reason is that it requires you to monitor the security posture of your organization continually and adhere to industry best practices and new regulations.

While regulatory initiatives usually give breathing time to businesses before they apply, changes can occur more rapidly than anticipated. For instance, many organizations were caught off guard during the introduction of GDPR and CCPA. Thus, it’s crucial to keep track of global compliance regimes proactively.

4. Align GRC and ESG Initiatives Together

There’s a common element between GRC and ESG (environmental, social, and governance) strategies, and it is governance. ESG involves the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR). Therefore, both serve as different self-regulation forms that leave a positive impact on the communities. While ESG and CSR aim to meet specific targets, aligning them with GRC makes the approach more holistic.

GRC primarily focuses on risk reduction and legal compliance. However, ESG takes businesses a step further by exceeding current regulations and industry best practices. So, it’s wise to align GRC and ESG to bring substantial value to your organization and enhance your brand image. This would also help your business stay ahead of regulations.

Is It Time to Invest in Business Integration?

At IMC Group, we understand the significance of GRC in helping your organization unlock its full potential. Our governance risk and compliance solutions can empower you to ensure compliance and drive sustainable growth. Explore our range of solutions and invest in business integration to embrace the path to success.

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A Complete Guide to Obtaining an ICV Certificate in the UAE
  • Article, U.A.E

A Complete Guide to Obtaining an ICV Certificate in the UAE

In a bid to streamline the industrial bidding process and boost the country’s economy, the government of UAE has introduced the ICV (In-Country Value) certification programme. Obtaining your ICV certificate can provide your business with a competitive advantage during tender assessments. This explains why forward-thinking businesses are applying for the ICV certificate to gain an edge over other bidders. As a business entity operating in the Emirates, you would be keen to obtain your ICV.

Most business entities can easily obtain the ICV certificate by adhering to the guidelines. Only an ICV-approved audit firm or advisory company reserves the authority to give this certificate.

Guidelines to obtain your ICV Certificate in the UAE

1. Furnish the documents

The process of applying for your ICV certificate begins with obtaining relevant financial statements. Established audit firms can assist in preparing these documents. This would ensure your compliance with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). If your company is newly established, management accounts can be used for the application.

2. Use the latest statements

Established audit firms would recommend using ICV certification templates during the application. The auditors would use the latest financial statements (preferably the last 2 years’ statements) that have been audited and are IFRS compliant. For companies established within the last 10 months without audited statements, the figures from management accounts (not older than 9 months) can be used.

3. Get the application evaluated and approved

The Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MOIAT) has established guidelines and procedures for evaluating ICV applications. Businesses need to get the ICV template verified along with the supporting documents. After evaluating your application, the ICV committee will approve it. You need to review the unsigned ICV certificate and approve it before sending it to the certifying body.

4. Issuance of the ICV Certificate

Upon receiving the approved document from you, the certifying body would finally get your ICV certificate issued. With the ICV certificate in hand, your business can participate in bidding processes with relevant entities.

FAQ

How many certificates do I have to apply for?

Being a supplier in the industrial sector, you need separate certificates for all the business licenses in your possession. The authorities consider each business license as a separate legal entity. If your business operates at multiple branches under a single license, you need a single, comprehensive certificate.

How long does the ICV certificate remain valid?

The ICV certificate remains valid for 14 months after the audited financial statements get issued. Businesses may use the same financial statements to reapply for the certification before this period elapses. If you receive an updated ICV certificate, the previous one would remain valid.

Can I switch to a different certifying body?

When your business entrusts an Empaneled Certifying Body for validating the certification, you are not entitled to switch to a new body throughout the ICV certification process unless you have a valid reason.

IMC Group continues to be one of the trusted auditing and advisory firms in Dubai. Industrial suppliers can fast-track their process of obtaining ICV certificates with professional support.

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