Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC)

Governance is the set of policies, rules, or frameworks that a company uses to achieve its business goals. It defines the responsibilities of key stakeholders, such as the board of directors and senior management. For example, good corporate governance supports your team in including the company’s social responsibility policy in their plans.

Good governance includes the following:

• Ethics and accountability
• Transparent information sharing
• Conflict resolution policies
• Resource management
   

Businesses face different types of risks, including financial, legal, strategic, and security risks. Proper risk management helps businesses identify these risks and find ways to remediate any that are found. Companies use an enterprise risk management program to predict potential problems and minimize losses. For example, you can use risk assessment to find security loopholes in your computer system and apply a fix. 

Compliance is the act of following rules, laws, and regulations. It applies to legal and regulatory requirements set by industrial bodies and also for internal corporate policies. In GRC, compliance involves implementing procedures to ensure that business activities comply with the respective regulations. For example, healthcare organizations must comply with laws like HIPAA that protect patients’ privacy.