Environmental, health and safety professionals are approaching risk management more stringently than ever before – according to new research.
The survey, conducted by cloud software provider, Rivo, found that 50% of EHS professionals spend the largest proportion of their budget on improving their business’ risk management performance, indicating this is where they feel they need to improve.
The research, which analysed data from 181 respondents across 55 countries, also revealed that nearly two thirds (64%) of EHS professionals named reducing the number of incidents and adverse events their top priority.
In comparison, sustainability professionals are most concerned about their business’ reputation and profitability, with 41% placing the reduction of their corporate impact as their number one priority.
Less than a quarter (23%) of safety and sustainability professionals in Asia Pacific named the reduction of incidents as their top priority, with risk management further down the agenda compared to their counterparts in EMEA and Americas.
James Jameson, VP Product Strategy at Rivo, said: “It’s reassuring to see the business landscape placing more and more emphasis on environmental, health and safety. We are seeing a clear increase in commitment to going beyond compliance, to reducing the number of safety and environmental incidents and prioritising their budgets accordingly.”
He added: “Professionals are increasingly aware of the reputational impact of not getting it right. We have seen a number of cases in the media recently of the potential reputational backlash caused by poor environmental, health and safety standards and practices.
“How safety and sustainability professionals can work together to get a collective grip on compliance and risk to move their businesses forward is crucial to how they are perceived by potential customers and investors.”
