By Vicki J. Missar, Associate Director, Aon Global Risk Consulting, and Kristine Kennet, Casualty Claims Consultant, Aon Global Risk Consulting.
When one thinks of colleges and universities, the concerns of aging
may not be in the forefront as we conjure up images of young students
with all of life’s opportunities ahead of them. However, when we look
at the staff and faculty who work for these institutions, a different,
more seasoned employee population emerges.
As we age, we are exposed to such things as decreased strength,
decreased cardiovascular and lung capacity, decreased spinal strength,
reduced pupil size, decreased hearing and memory and increased body fat
among several other physical changes. Depending on the size and
mission of the institution, the job duties, physical demands, safety and
risk exposures for employees are greatly varied. Whether the job is
that of a sedentary administrator or faculty member or a more active
athletic coach or campus police officer, the physiological changes of
the natural aging process can result in a higher risk of injury. These
changes are affected by many factors and can greatly impact our ability
to work effectively and productively as we age. Risk managers and HR
staff are re-orienting their thinking of the aging workforce as today’s
reality. They are beginning the necessary planning to mitigate this
risk before it negatively impacts their institution. This is
ageonomics.
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By Dr. Daniel Diermeier, IBM Professor of Regulation and Competitive Practice, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University. This article was produced in partnership with On Call International.
In September 2013, Islamic militants entered an upscale Nairobi
shopping mall with assault guns and other weapons. Over the next two
days, they killed nearly 70 people and injured many others; at the time
of this writing, dozens were still missing as Kenyan authorities
searched the mall’s rubble. Among the confirmed dead were a Canadian
diplomat, three Britons, two French women, and a prominent Ghanaian
poet.
In large-scale attacks, natural disasters, or accidents, many of those
killed or injured are foreign citizens. And in many cases, these
individuals are in the region representing corporate, educational,
non-profit, or other organizational interests, often without protection
of any kind, unless they have made personal arrangements for their
safety. The lack of protection leaves them, their families, and their
organizations vulnerable to further damage, whether financial
(emergency medical evacuation expenses, for example), legal (potential
lawsuits against an organization for inadequate protection),
personnel-related (diminished employee morale/satisfaction), or
reputational (diminished public perception of a company for failing to
protect employees).
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By David Olson, Assistant Director of Safety for The Master's College, and Glenn Klinksiek,
CPCU, ARM, MBA, DRM, Knowledge Center Content Manager for URMIA. This
is part 4 of a 4-part series discussing results of a survey of URMIA
members' risk identification practices.
The University Risk Management and Insurance Association (URMIA)
conducted a survey, “Identifying Risk - A Survey of Practices in Higher
Education,” of its members in early June 2014 to find out how do risk
managers anticipate new or emerging risks. More than 125 URMIA members
completed the survey and generated interesting insights into how the
risk identification process. In the earlier installments, Insights
shared the results regarding who has responsibility for the risk
identification process, what the survey said about the risk
identification process and the risk identification methods used. In this
issue, Insights shares the emerging risks that respondents found through their risk
identification processes and gives our conclusion from the survey.
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By Jennifer Whittington,
Executive Director of URMIA and liaison to the Inter-Association Alliances Committee.
Welcome to the board corner report from the Inter-Association
Alliances Committee. Initially, the IAAC was formed to provide a system
of outreach to other associations supporting higher education risk
management. As URMIA's mission and strategic plan advanced, so, too, did
the IAAC's. Currently, the IAAC’s purpose is to assist in advancing the
reputation and visibility of URMIA as the preeminent (re)source in
higher education risk management through partnerships and alliances
with other associations that have an impact on and/or role in risk
management in higher education. Strategic partnerships and alliances
with educational partners are outlined in URMIA's business plan and
managed by the IAAC. The IAAC updated its bylaws definition in 2014
to reflect this, and I have taken on the role of liaison.
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Each year, URMIA hosts in-person regional and annual (national)
conferences around the country as well as online webinars designed to
minimize your cost and time away from the office while maximizing your
educational and networking opportunities.
Read on to learn about URMIA's 2014 Distinguished Risk Manager and Innovative Risk Management Solutions awards, Risky Business Week recordings, URMIA's 2014 scholarly journal, and our FREE ARM study course from Erike Young.
Each month, this article provides some of the latest risk management resources, as well as a calendar of upcoming events, webinars, conferences, and other learning opportunities in which you or your campus colleagues may be interested.
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Help us welcome our newest members, and see what professional updates your colleagues have to share from the last month.
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