CLIENT'S CHALLENGE
Despite operating in different sectors, these organisations experienced similar challenges that highlighted the need for a structured approach to risk maturity:
Not for profit sector
Navigated complex regulatory obligations, workforce pressures, grant funding challenges, and client safety risks during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Transport Sector
Faced rising infrastructure project risks, community expectations, and digital transformation demands.
Construction Sector
Required stronger project risk governance to manage cost escalations, contractor performance, and supply chain disruptions, and to monitor global threats such as geopolitics.
Electricity Utilities
Managed increasing climate-related risk exposure, cyber threats, and expectations under the Security of Critical Infrastructure (SOCI) Act.
Water Authorities
Balanced long-term asset planning, climate resilience, and community engagement while adapting to regulatory change.
Across these contexts, our clients needed to understand their current risk capabilities, prioritise uplift initiatives, and align stakeholders on the path forward.
OUR APPROACH
Metropolis Advisory applied a sector-aware yet enterprise-focused approach, using a structured risk maturity assessment model tailored to each client’s context:
Risk Maturity Assessment
- Assessed maturity across core domains: governance, leadership, culture, processes, systems, and continuous improvement.
- Applied ISO 31000-aligned maturity benchmarks to evaluate current state across strategic and operational layers.
- Identified gaps, strengths, and inconsistencies using interviews, workshops, desktop reviews, and staff surveys.
Cross-Organisation Engagement
- Worked across executive teams, business units, and governance committees to align perspectives on what “good” risk management looks like, and how uplift can align with other corporate priorities.
- Facilitated workshops to define or refresh the Risk Appetite Statement (RAS), tailored to each sector’s operating environment.
- Highlighted sector-specific opportunities to embed risk into capital planning, program delivery, regulatory compliance, and incident response.
- Applied change management to identify and address training requirements and any barriers to change.
Tailored Roadmaps for Uplift
- Co-developed with each client realistic, sequenced action plans tailored to organisational maturity, risk culture, internal priorities, and sector pressures.
- Roadmaps included initiatives such as:
- Standardising enterprise risk frameworks and tools
- Clarifying risk ownership at all levels
- Aligning strategic risks to corporate plans and reporting
- Enhancing controls assurance and risk capability uplift
FROM OUR CLIENT
“We now see risk not as a barrier, but as a lever for better strategy execution. The maturity assessment helped us focus on what matters most”
“This process gave us a shared language and a shared commitment to build a more risk-aware culture—without overcomplicating it.”
CLIENT OUTCOMES & STRATEGIC BENEFITS
Our cross-sector clients realised tangible benefits from the risk maturity assessments and uplift strategies:
Improved Strategic Alignment
Risk priorities now align with corporate objectives, enabling more informed decisions.
Strengthened Risk Culture
Leaders and frontline staff understand their role in managing risk—risk ownership is embedded.
Board & Executive Confidence
Boards are more confident in the reliability of risk reporting and oversight mechanisms.
Consistent Practices
A standardised, scalable approach to risk has improved reporting, escalation, and assurance.
Readiness for Disruption
Organisations are better prepared to anticipate, respond to, and recover from emerging risks.
At Metropolis Advisory, we understand that risk maturity is a journey—not a one-size-fits-all checklist. By partnering with organisations across sectors, we bring deep expertise, practical tools, and human-centred approaches to:
- Align risk thinking with purpose and performance
- Empower people to manage risk confidently
- Create frameworks that are scalable, sector-relevant, and built to last.
