Blog tag

Policies & Risk Frameworks

Articles from the SimpleRisk blog tagged Policies & Risk Frameworks: governance, risk management, and compliance insights.

Navigating third-party risks with proper governance

Navigating Third-Party Risk with Robust Governance

Robust governance provides a sustainable way to mitigate third-party and supply-chain risk by establishing clear ownership, accountability, and transparency across all of the organization's vendor and partner relationships.
CISO presenting IT governance and business strategy alignment to enterprise leadership

IT Governance and Business Strategy: A CISO Playbook

With the right game plan, CISOs can turn IT governance from a perceived constraint into a driver of growth, resilience, and executive confidence. This nine-step playbook shows how to align security-centric governance with real business strategy.
Chaotic Assessments to Third-Party Risk Calm

From 16 Vendor RFIs to One Assessment

Tired of juggling 16 separate vendor RFIs every year? Discover how SimpleRisk transformed one client’s chaotic third-party assessments into a single, streamlined process.

An old man with a grey beard sitting at a computer with soldiers at the castle gate

From Chaos to Control: Centralize Your GRC

If Excel were enough for risk management, the GRC industry wouldn’t exist. Here’s why relying on spreadsheets and generic SaaS tools can actually increase risk, and how centralization restores control.

Risk matrix with likelihood on the y-axis and impact on the x-axis

Top 5 Tips for Building a Risk Management Plan

A successful risk management plan starts with clarity: knowing where you’re vulnerable and how those vulnerabilities translate into threats. In this post, we share five practical tips to help you design a plan that’s both measurable and actionable.

Risk puzzle pieces containing IT Risk, Supply Chain Risk and Operational Risk

Why 2025 Needs One Complete Risk Assessment

Your IT, supply chain, and operations teams may all see the same risks—but they don’t measure them the same way. That gap could be the biggest security vulnerability in your organization today.

Probability x Impact = Risk Formula

How to Conduct a Proper Cybersecurity Risk Analysis

Risk analysis and risk evaluation aren’t interchangeable terms. They’re distinct stages within the broader process of risk assessment. This blog breaks down the differences, why they matter in cybersecurity, and how to properly analyze risks using both qualitative and quantitative methods.

A high-tech digital dashboard interface for the NIST CSF

SimpleRisk: Your Foundation for NIST CSF Compliance

Struggling to align with the NIST Cybersecurity Framework? Discover how SimpleRisk streamlines governance, risk, and compliance to help you document, track, and manage your cybersecurity controls with ease.

An AI mapping a policy to multiple controls

What AI Can (and Can't) Do for Control Mapping

Struggling to match your policies to hundreds (or thousands) of controls? Learn how we combined AI, old-school keyword analysis, and smart engineering in SimpleRisk to turn a months-long task into minutes.

Risk Management is Like Camping But With Higher Stakes

Risk Management Is Just Like Camping—But With Higher Stakes

What do flash floods, frozen tents, and soggy sleeping bags have to do with business? Turns out, camping mishaps are full of risk management lessons every leader should know.

Streamlining an information security program using the templates created by SimpleRisk

Free Security Policy Templates from SimpleRisk

Building an information security program from scratch can be overwhelming, but SimpleRisk is here to help. Discover how our free, ready-to-use templates can simplify the process and get your security program up and running quickly.

A cybersecurity analyst is reviewing a vendor risk assessment on a laptop screen

Third-Party Risk Lessons from the Rock Face

Choosing the right third-party vendors is a lot like picking a reliable climbing partner—technical skills matter, but alignment in risk mindset is just as crucial. Learn how a harrowing descent from a multi-pitch climb revealed key lessons in risk management, trust, and the value of security certifications.

Combining GRC, HITRUST CSF and SCF for Streamlined Risk Management

Integrate HITRUST CSF and SCF in Your GRC Strategy

Struggling to align multiple compliance frameworks in your GRC program? Learn how to integrate HITRUST CSF and the Secure Controls Framework in SimpleRisk to streamline compliance, enhance security, and leverage AI for a more efficient risk management strategy.

Frustrated auditor not using SimpleRisk

From Audit Fatigue to Efficiency with SimpleRisk

Tired of audit fatigue and juggling multiple frameworks? Discover how SimpleRisk streamlines compliance by integrating the Secure Controls Framework (SCF) and centralizing audit activities, making it the ultimate tool for auditors seeking efficiency and precision.

Using Artificial Intelligence with FAIR

Using AI with FAIR for Precision and Scalability

Discover how combining the FAIR methodology with artificial intelligence revolutionizes risk management by providing precise, scalable, and data-driven insights. Learn how this powerful synergy enhances decision-making, optimizes resource allocation, and transforms how organizations approach risk quantification.

Boat Stranded on a River

The River Crisis That Taught Me to Always Have a Plan B

When our outboard motor failed in the middle of the Trinity River, leaving us adrift in a strong current, a cascade of unexpected challenges tested every backup plan we had. This story of quick thinking, layered preparedness, and lessons learned is a perfect metaphor for mastering risk management in life and business.

ISO 27001 Compliance in 18 Months

ISO 27001 Compliance in 18 Months

When a lost deal with the world’s largest healthcare company revealed a critical gap in SimpleRisk’s compliance posture, it set us on an 18-month journey to achieve ISO 27001 certification. From assessing our maturity and closing governance gaps to leveraging AI and tackling a rigorous third-party audit, we turned a challenge into an opportunity to enhance our operations and platform.

Barbed wire fence and security cameras in front of a building

Demystifying Residual Risk with SimpleRisk

Understanding residual risk is crucial in effective risk management, but calculating it can be complex, especially when considering multiple mitigating controls. In this post, we explore how SimpleRisk simplifies the process with an easy-to-understand mitigation percent approach that streamlines your risk reduction efforts.

Putting the pieces together for an effective GRC program

8 Simple Ways to Effectively Launch Your GRC Program

Learn the 8 fundamentals we recommend to establish an effective Enterprise Risk Management process from the ground up, which will set the stage for a successful GRC program rollout.

People celebrating together about the ease of using a Common Control Framework

The Benefits of a Common Control Framework for GRC

Struggling with managing compliance across multiple different control frameworks?  Learn how a common control framework can help you to simplify your compliance, saving you time and money.

Understanding the basic principles of governance

Governance 101: Back to Basics

Let’s go back to the basics and talk about what governance is and how you can use it to ensure that the information that reaches your executive team and other key stakeholders is complete, accurate and timely.

Measuring the effectiveness of risk mitigations

How To Calculate Inherent vs. Residual Risk

Learn how to minimize the level of effort required to track a risk’s progress over time and how to measure the effectiveness of your risk mitigation.

Understanding the basics of compliance

Compliance 101: Back to Basics

Let’s go back to the basics and break down what enterprise compliance is and how you can use it to ensure your organization is conforming with its stated requirements.

Risk management using spreadsheets is time consuming and painful

Why Spreadsheets Are Killing Your GRC Practice

Many of the prospects we speak with are currently using spreadsheets to manage their risks. In this blog post we explore why that is a bad idea and how SimpleRisk provides a simple, effective and affordable alternative.

Frustrated CISO because his integrated risk management isn't very integrated

These CISOs GRC is Failing Them And I Know Why

Today I attended a CISO roundtable where a number of the attendees talked about their GRC platforms that have taken over a year to "connect all the wires" and they're still in the process of implementing. I know why their GRCs are failing them and there is a better way.
Understanding the basics of risk management

Risk Management 101: Back to Basics

Let’s go back to the basics and break down what enterprise risk management is and how you can use it to mitigate the risks that threaten your organization.

Custom Development

How SimpleRisk Can Meet Your Custom GRC Requirements

Risk management isn’t one-size-fits-all—it’s about finding your way. At SimpleRisk, we ensure our platform adapts to your unique needs, even offering Custom Development to deliver the exact functionality your organization requires, all while staying intuitive and cost-effective.

Two Plus Two Equals Five

Normalizing Risk Scoring Across Different Methodologies

Risk scoring often involves complex matrices, but prioritizing risks effectively is key. In this post, we explore how SimpleRisk’s Classic Risk Scoring methodology ensures consistency across various scoring systems, allowing you to prioritize risks on a uniform scale.

Customize Your Risk Management Program

Quickly Customize Your Risk Program in SimpleRisk

SimpleRisk started as three PHP pages and evolved into a flexible risk management tool for any industry. With the Customization Extra, users can easily tailor workflows to meet their unique needs—simplifying complex requirements!

GRC is Dead

GRC is Dead, Long Live GRC!

Gartner’s John A. Wheeler highlights the decline of GRC and the rise of Integrated Risk Management (IRM)—a shift I’ve seen firsthand. Learn how SimpleRisk is revolutionizing risk management with a simple, intuitive approach.

Vulnerabilities vs Risks

Should Vulnerabilities and Risks be Managed in the Same Place?

Should vulnerabilities be managed as risks? While both are essential to cybersecurity, understanding their differences and how they complement each other is key to deciding whether to track them together in a single risk management system.

Risk Management Program

Why Management Doesn't Understand Your Security Woes

Feeling overwhelmed by security vulnerabilities that seem beyond your control? Learn how implementing a formal risk management program can help you communicate more effectively with management and shift the focus to actionable risk mitigation strategies.

The Origin of SimpleRisk

The Origin of SimpleRisk - A Founder's Story

Every superhero has an origin story, and so does SimpleRisk—born out of a need for better risk management tools. Discover how a simple web form turned into a powerful, open-source solution that’s now revolutionizing risk management for organizations everywhere.