Edith Bunker

*/By Rick Nason, PhD, CFA
Partner, RSD Solutions Inc./*

Jean Stapleton passed away this week.  For those of us from a certain era
she was a staple in our households as she made us laugh at the foolishness of
Archie's bull-headed attitudes.  Ms. Stapleton of course was best known as
Edith Bunker, the long suffering, but loving wife of Archie Bunker on the hit
1970's sitcom All in the Family.

As Edith, she played a slightly old school 60's housewife who kept and
managed the house for the working husband all within the context of the more
liberal 1970's.  In most situations she would cede control to Archie, no
matter how silly his ideas were.  In that sense she was very loyal. 
However, Edith also had a strong moral sense.  Although portrayed as a
simple subservient housewife, she was a character that had a strong sense of
right and wrong.  When push came to shove she would always step up to the
plate for right.  That is just one of the many reasons that audiences loved
Edith.  (It sure wasn't her singing on the opening credits.)

In risk management, managers too often tend to be subservient to the risk
management department, or to the regulators, or perhaps even more frequently
to their superior bosses.  Most of the time this is fine, and indeed it is
proper.  However, just like Edith, managers should develop a strong sense of
what is right or wrong when it comes to risk management, and they should not
be afraid to "pull an Edith" and step up to the plate for right.

The Middle

*/By Rick Nason, PhD, CFA
Partner, RSD Solutions Inc./*

A recent report by Toronto Dominion Bank shows that the demand for "middle
skill" workers is diminishing.   The need for high skill workers is
increasing, while the demand for low skill workers is more or less staying
the same.  The report makes the obvious statement that this is leading to
increasingly polarization in the workplace.  What this ultimately means for
the overall economy as well as what the long term social implications will be
is anybody's guess.  It does appear to be a bit of a troublesome trend. 
One way it may play out is as outlined by Kurt Vonnegut in his first novel
"Player Piano" which I previously blogged about. 
(http://rsdsolutions.blogspot.co.uk/2010/02/player-piano.html [1])

Anecdotal evidence would indicate that something similar is happening in risk
management.  Either you are becoming a highly trained specialist in risk, or
a low skill worker in risk.  The technical and regulatory details of
managing risk are too convoluted for the typical manager to efficiently deal
with, or the paperwork required is perceived as too low value for the typical
manager.  What the long term implications of this all is remains anyone's
guess, but my gut feeling is that it is a trend that should not be encouraged
for prudent risk management.


[1] http://rsdsolutions.blogspot.co.uk/2010/02/player-piano.html

Airport Lounge

/*By Rick Nason, PhD, CFA
Partner, RSD Solutions Inc.*/

As I write this, I am sitting in an airport lounge.  My flight has been
cancelled.  I am on a later flight.  The later flight may be delayed –
not sure yet.  The only reason I am making this trip is because two months
ago I spent a day in the airport lounge as flight after flight got
cancelled.  This current trip is the make-up trip for a training course I
was contracted to run.  I sit and wait.  Yes, I am enough of an experienced
traveler to know that these things happen.  I have packed work with me so it
is not total dead-time (I am getting my weeks work of blogs done for
example.)  I also booked myself an early flight so I would have a higher
probability of getting to my destination on time in case there was a delay. 
However all of the contingency risk planning does not make it less
frustrating.  Sometimes in risk management, as in life, there is not much we
can do when circumstances go against us.  That is not bad risk management;
it is simply the way things happen.