Refreshing risk management to strengthen governance and decision-making at a major public events organisation
Objectives
Right Lane Consulting was engaged by a state government statutory entity responsible for major public event venues (the client) to provide risk management support, led by Dr Marc Levy, Right Lane’s Founder and Chair. The client was seeking to uplift its approach to risk management in a way that builds confidence, strengthens decision-making and embeds risk as a core part of strategy and organisational performance. A key priority was to support the Audit and Risk Committee and the Board to have confidence in the client’s risk management framework, including the supporting artefacts, governance rhythm, accountabilities and reporting mechanisms that enable effective oversight.
The engagement was designed to deliver four things: a clear, practical and aligned view of the client’s major risks; a fit-for-purpose risk appetite statement with related tolerances and key risk indicators; a clarified risk governance cadence and rhythm; and targeted scenario analysis to test the organisation’s resilience.
About the client
The client is a statutory entity responsible for premier public venues that host major national and international conventions, exhibitions and events, generating significant economic and social value for its state. Operating in a rapidly evolving events landscape, the organisation must manage a complex mix of environmental and market, strategic and operational risks – both existing and emerging – while continuing to deliver on its strategic priorities.
Description of services provided
Right Lane Consulting delivered the engagement over four stages between April and July 2026, working closely with the client’s executive leadership team, the Audit and Risk Committee and the Board:
- Identifying and prioritising major risks. We conducted a desktop review of the client’s risk framework and artefacts, and facilitated an enterprise risk discussion with the leadership team to identify the risks that matter most to the organisation.
- Agreeing controls and defining risk appetite. We designed and facilitated a three-hour working session with the leadership team and the Audit and Risk Committee, exploring draft risk management beliefs, improvement imperatives, major risks and the architecture supporting them.
- Engaging the Board. We designed and facilitated a three-hour workshop with the Board, structured around five interconnected areas: risk management beliefs, risk improvement imperatives, major risks and appetite, risk scenarios, and the risk management calendar. Executives presented their respective risks, covering appetite, inherent risk, controls, treatments, residual risk and key performance indicators.
- Embedding ownership, governance and Board engagement. We synthesised workshop outcomes into updated risk artefacts, including the risk management framework, major risks and risk appetite statement.
Each session was supported by carefully prepared pre-reading materials, including compounding ‘headwinds’ and ‘tailwinds’ risk scenarios developed to test the adequacy of the client’s risk appetite and the effectiveness of its controls under both adverse and favourable conditions. Sessions were deliberately designed as working sessions rather than presentations, drawing on the candid perspectives of Board members, Committee members and executives.
Outcomes
The engagement gave the client a clearer, more confident and more organisation-wide approach to risk – one that supports effective governance, enables better strategic conversations and helps the organisation manage uncertainty with greater discipline. Key outcomes included:
- An agreed set of risk management beliefs and improvement imperatives, shaping how risk is understood, discussed and managed at leadership and Board level.
- A clear, practical and aligned view of the client’s major enterprise risks, with appetite, controls, treatments and residual risk articulated for each.
- A fit-for-purpose risk appetite statement, with related tolerances and key risk indicators to provide clearer guidance for decision-making across the organisation.
- Scenario-tested resilience, with priority actions identified to improve preparedness, strengthen controls and clarify appetite thresholds.
- A risk management calendar embedding risk discussions, reporting and engagement into the client’s governance rhythm over the year, aligned to Committee and Board meeting cycles.
- Strengthened risk culture and capability, with clarified ownership and accountability for risk across the executive leadership team.
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