Bloomberg Businessweek - USA (2020-04-20)

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◼ SOLUTIONS Bloomberg Businessweek April 20, 2020


THEBOTTOMLINE Riskmanagers,oncerelegatedtothebackoffice,
arein demandasCovid-19illustratestheneedforexecutivestoprepare
forcatastrophes.

spotlight,thefieldhasbeensteadilyexpandingforyears,
spurredbya successionofnationaltragedies,starting
with9/11.K.Campbell,whobegana Pentagonjobon
Sept.4,2001—aweekbeforetheterroristattacksonthe
U.S.—watchedasa newfoundappreciationforcrisisand
businesscontinuityplanningemergedovernightwithin
theprivatesectorandgovernment.“Therewasmorevis-
ibilityfortheseplannersbothinsideandoutsidethegov-
ernment,”saysCampbell,nowa principalatBlueGlacier
Security& IntelligenceLLC,a securityconsultingcom-
panybasedinWashington,D.C.
Fortune 1000 companiesbegantoemploya riskman-
ager,andperhapsa stafferortwo,usuallyseatedamong
lawyersin thedepthsofthelegaldepartmentandreport-
ingtothechieflegalofficerorperhapscampedoutin the
financedepartmentreportingtothetreasurerorchief
financialofficer.Theirjobwastocollectextensiveinfor-
mationfromacrosstheorganizationforinsuranceand
riskanalysis.Ambitiousriskmanagersdiplomatically
communicatedvulnerabilitiestotheirbosses,whooften
ignoredtheissues.
The 2008 housingmarketcrashfocusedtheprofes-
sionmoreonenterpriseriskmanagement,andrecent
cybersecuritybreachesextendedriskmanagers’over-
sightintonewareasincludinghackingandprivacy,but
thecareerpathremainedstunted.A careerriskman-
agercouldaspiretotherankofvicepresidentor,if lucky,
maybeseniorvicepresident. Apart from those in finance
and insurance, “very few companies had chief risk offi-
cers,” says Nancy Green, executive vice president at

insurer Aon Plc. “Too many organizations viewed it as
an insurance-buying position.”
Only 80 university programs exist in the U.S., com-
pared with more than 5,000 accounting programs. As
recently as two months ago, business degree programs
didn’t include mandatory risk management coursework.
With the pandemic rattling boardrooms and head offices
globally, that’s about to change. “I think some schools will
make risk management part of the business curriculum,
and make it mandatory,” says Brion Callori, a senior vice
president at insurer FM Global and former chairman of
the Spencer Educational Foundation, which funds risk
management and insurance education. “Millions of jobs
over the next 10 years are going to be open.”
Graduate and certificate programs are already see-
ing a shift under way. The one-year graduate program
in emergency management and continuity planning at
the University of Illinois at Chicago enrolls 10 students
annually; this month, a recruitment webinar attracted 28,
the largest crowd ever, and the program is expanding
to meet demand. Zach Finn, who directs the risk man-
agement and insurance program at Butler University in
Indianapolis, says his program has also seen a surge in
interest. He’s thrilled to see his profession emerge from
the sidelines. “We’ll finally be respected for holding the
world together,” he says. �Arianne Cohen

Therelentlessmarchoftechnologyevokesfearsthat
machineswill oneday displacemosthumansfrom
work,andwithgoodreason.Artificialintelligencecan
coachsoccerplayersandwritenewsstories,andmore
than2 millionrobotsmakeeverythingfromPorschesto
pizzas—anumberthatresearcherOxfordEconomics
predictswilljumptenfoldoverthenextdecade,sending
20 millionfactoryhandstotheunemploymentlines.So
howtofindpurposeinthislow-employmentfuturein
whicherstwhileworkershavealmostunlimitedfreetime?
Someresearcherssuggestlookingatoneofthe

world’smosttraditionalcommunities:theultra-Orthodox,
orHaredim,ofIsrael.
ThousandsofHaredimen—distinguishedbya look
modeledafter18thcenturyPolishnobility,withlongside-
curls,blackfedoras,andknee-lengthcoats—don’twork
andinsteadspendtheirdaysstudyingreligioustexts.
Theyliveoffgovernmentsupportandtheirwives’sala-
ries,andtheyshunsmartphonesforfearofencounter-
ingunfilteredinformationandimmodestimagery.Yetin
a governmentsurveypublishedlastyear,98%ofultra-
Orthodox said they’re satisfied with their lives, more

Israel’s tradition-bound
Haredim offer lessons for
the post-work future

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