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Strategic Risk Management

Leveraging Opportunities and Identifying Risks

UZH is updating its risk management and thereby improving the basis for successful strategic development.
UZH Communications

Kategorien

The newly-established risk management process helps the Executive Board of the University, the faculties and other university units assess risks and proactively leverage opportunities. (Image istock/Andrii Yalanskyi)

In a complex organization like the University of Zurich, decisions with far-reaching implications are made every day. These decisions involve carefully weighing up numerous aspects. For example, digital resources can significantly improve teaching – but what can we do if they break down or are misused? Research excellence requires close international cooperation – but what happens if geopolitical tensions get in the way of that? And what does it mean for the university if operating costs rise due to energy shortages?

“Risk management is a key part of UZH’s strategic management. It helps us make sound decisions, adequately assess our performance and values, and protect our reputation,” says President Michael Schaepman. Over the course of the last year, UZH therefore updated and improved its risk management.

Michael Schaepman

Sound risk management not only allows us to assess and respond to risks, but also to identify opportunities and to utilize them in a purposeful way.

Michael Schaepman
President UZH

“Sound risk management not only allows us to assess and respond to risks, but also to identify opportunities and to utilize them in a purposeful way,” says Schaepman. It’s also important to strike the right balance between risk appetite and risk avoidance. “UZH weighs up very carefully in which areas it invests in potential corrective actions, and where it accepts certain risks in the interest of academic freedom and an open knowledge culture,” he says.

Supporting strategic goals

UZH developed its new risk management with a team of experts from Zurich Insurance Group. “We’re one of the first universities in continental Europe to put in place a system like this,” explains Daniel Hug, UZH Vice President Finance. “This new approach makes UZH more resilient and helps us seize future opportunities in strategic areas and advance the university in a sustainable and long-term way,” says Hug.

daniel hug

This new approach to risk managment makes UZH more resilient.

Daniel Hug
Vice President Finance

Ten key topics

A fundamental component of the new risk management is UZH’s central risk profile, which comprises 10 key topics that are crucial to achieving the university’s objectives:

•    Educational excellence
•    Institutional quality
•    Academic autonomy
•    Development of a resilient operating model
•    Sustainable financing
•    IT availability, cyber risks and information security
•    Promoting leadership qualities and recruiting talent
•    Real estate management
•    University medicine

For each of these key topics, the profile sets out potential incidents and actions to mitigate the risks. The profile is reviewed and updated by a central committee on an annual basis.

One example of a key topic is ensuring research excellence in an evolving environment. As UZH research has a global focus, political changes can affect its competitiveness. Switzerland’s exclusion from Horizon Europe made it very clear what this can mean and highlights the importance of bringing universities’ perspectives into policymaking at an early stage.

New Risk Management Office

The new approach to risk management was established at the level of the Executive Board and for its members. “What’s new is that risks are identified, assessed, evaluated and monitored at this level using standardized methods, processes and instruments,” says Peter Brun, head of Governance in the Finance Office. To this end a Risk Management Office was set up in the Governance Division, under which the risk management team, the Chief Information Security Officer and the Internal Control System (ICS) work together closely.

Kamil Mizgier, an experienced risk manager who holds a PhD in this field (see box), was recruited to fill the role of UZH Risk Manager and to head up the new Risk Management Office.

kamil mizgier

We see ourselves as a contact point and service provider, and offer the necessary tools and our expertise.

Kamil Mizgier
Head of the new Risk Management Office

IT security and protection of intellectual property

Mizgier stresses that risk analyses not only give us a clearer picture of potential risks, but can also initiate pioneering developments – in the field of digital security, for example. “To mitigate the risk of cyberattacks or IT outages, UZH has put together a comprehensive and forward-looking package of measures, featuring systematic security controls, recovery plans and training sessions,” explains Mizgier.

The protection of intellectual property – particularly in sensitive research fields – is closely linked to the area of cybersecurity. The risks are also increasing in research involving items that can potentially be used for civilian and military purposes (so-called dual use items). New internal guidelines, awareness campaigns and cooperation with expert groups help to detect potential threats early on and minimize them. Legal Services and Data Protection also offers extended services on export control and compliance to support the university in these sensitive areas.

Advice and support

Strategic risk management is now being gradually established at UZH – it is mandatory for the Executive Board of the University and is an optional service for other units. The Risk Management Office, which started operating in the summer of 2024, advises the Executive Board of the University and focuses on the key topics in the central risk profile. Meanwhile, the faculties and departments/institutes retain their autonomy in dealing with opportunities and risks. They can access support if they need it. “We see ourselves as a contact point and service provider, and offer the necessary tools and our expertise,” says Kamil Mizgier.