Cathleen Berrick — Director, Homeland Security and Justice Team, US GAO — 4th Plenary Session

Bio (From the SARMA Conference Agenda)

Cathleen Berrick is a senior executive with GAO’s Homeland Security and Justice Team.  In this position, she oversees GAO’s reviews of aviation and surface transportation security matters and DHS management issues.

Abstract (Sarma Agenda)

From the terrorist attacks of 9/11 to Hurricane Katrina, homeland security risks vary widely.  The nation can neither achieve total security nor afford to protect everything against all risks.  Managing these risks is especially difficult in today’s environment of globalization, increasing security interdependence, and growing fiscal challenges for the federal government.  It is increasingly important that organizations effectively target homelad security funding — totaling more than $57 Billion in 2007 federal spending alone — to address the nation’s most critical priorities.  GAO convened a forum of experts on 25 October, 2007, to advance a national dialogue on applying risk management to homeland security.  Participants included federal, state, and local officials and risk management experts from the private sector and academia.

Background

She spoke about how Risk Management can improve Resource Allocation.  the DHS is making progress in this field and has implemented 5 stages: Setting Strategic Goals, Risk Assessments, Alternate Evaluation, Management Selection, and Implement and Monitor.  They are faced with some challenges that face the Risks Analysis field as a whole such as the need to strengthen the idea that Risk Management is itself an issue that needs to be covered.  This leads us to the point of the forum

25 October 2007 The Forum

The forum itself was titled, “Strengthening the Use of Risk Management Principles in Homeland Security,” and was aimed towards advancing the national dialogue on Risk Management and hammer out some long term possible ideas.  The forum had three sessions.  Session one was a presentation on the effect that Risk Management Practices had on Homeland Security, session two was an overview of what challenges face us, and session three looked at what actions needed to be taken in the long and short terms.

The next topic covered was what the role of a Chief Risk Officer (CRO) should be.  Well, for one, they should thoroughly understand risk and all its bits and pieces.  Second, they must be able to communicate down the Risk Process.  This means that they would be able to influence all workers who are dealing with any sort of risk.  The CRO should not be “too high” to talk to anyone.  However, they must be high enough to make important decisions for the company while having the leadership above them support and back any and all decisions made.  After this, the forum discusses the Coast Gaurd’s Cost Effective Risk Management, US Army Corps of Engineers and the Residual Risk of rebuilding after Hurricane Katrina, the Port Authority of NY and NJ and how a common Risk Process was adopted across more than 40 ports, and the comparison between public and private challenges.

Forum Polls

A poll was taken of all contributors of this forum both before and during the proceedings.  The pre-polling showed that most people believed that, “overcoming political obstacles to risk based resource allocation,” was most important based on the list given (25%).  However, once the list was tailored and given again in the middle of the forum, 35% believed that, “improving risk communication,” was most important, with, “improving strategic thinking,” and, “overcoming political obstacles to risk based resource allocation,” came in second with 19% each.  Now, Cathleen Berrick outlined the previously mentioned three areas that members found most important.

The Risk Communication Challenge

The need for a common lexicon for the risk community was again highlighted in this plenary session.  Being that the basic theme of the conference lied in this area, I was not surprised.  Also, she said that we need to stay away from focusing on unlikely risks that have dramatic consequences because they are not as likely as the everyday threat we are faced with.  There is also a need to engage in public dialogue about an acceptable level of risk and that there is a lack of consideration of behavioral impacts.

Political Obstacles

Three major focus points fall in this area.  One, the reluctance of politicians to focus on long term trade offs and perception shifts needs to come to an end.  Two, an absense of clarity related to federal spending decisions should be overcome.  Three, Federal Grant Programs could conflict with National Security.

Lack of Strategic Thinking

We need a public discourse to create a strategy for Homeland Security because of the lack of progress currently being made.  Also, the public sector lacks opportunity analysis.  This means that they don’t Know or understand what they have to gain or lose.

Next Steps

Four steps for the future were the final topics of the session.  Creating an Advisory Board to oversee processes.  Developing a List of Effective Practices, such as seen in a post I will do later on Julian Talbot.  Review the DHS Risk Management efforts.  Develope an informal White Paper, this is where I asked my only question of the conference.  I learned that the White Paper was in the process of being written but is not available at this time.

What Do I Recomend?

Go read the report that I linked to above.  This is a great topic for future classes for all you SRA Majors out there.  Become very familiar with the terms I am talking about and the ideas behind them because you will see them again.