Procedures Reducing the Impact of Risks on Shipping Company's Operations

Shipping companies face a wide range of risks, many of which arise from legally mandated activities. It is difficult for an company of any size to identify the full spectrum of risks. The expanded view of risk that takes into account a full range of exposures goes by many names (enterprise, holistic, integrated, or strategic) and fundamental goal – the broadest possible view of the risks that the company faces – should be realized. A company that adopts this broader perspective can better assess, evaluate, and assign priorities to risks, and then select the best short- and long-term approaches for managing those risks. Managed properly, some risks may actually present opportunities. The purpose of this paper is to provide shipping companies with a user-friendly approach to identifying risks and developing an action plan to address them. Because every shipping company has different needs and circumstances, all the approaches described in this paper should be modified as necessary.