So much about risk management needs to be re-emphasized on the first day of class. To paraphrase the key points about risk in a new risk guidebook that I've been involved with:
- Risks are not always negative.
- If you manage risk, you are managing performance.
- Managing risks is about managing opportunities.
I've got 13 students registered for this advanced course that looks at whether or not risk is handled differently in the public sector than in the private sector. Add to this first class an additional seven visitors, who will be entering the MSIM program next fall.
I'm incorporating feedback I received from my winter risk course evaluation. We'll still have eight guest speakers in the first hour, but then I'm going to take the next hour or so to engage more in a discussion than a lecture, including scenarios that will allow the students to practice the art of risk assessment before they actually have to present at the end of each week. This quarter's guest speakers are superb:
- Lucianne Phillips, FEMA Regional Private Sector Liaison
- Mike Hamilton, CEO of Critical Informatics, former City of Seattle CISO
- Michele Turner, Sr. Compliance Mgr, Microsoft Universal Store
- Al Wilson, Director of Business Continuity, BECU
- Todd Mack, Deloitte Tech Risk, Risk and Resilience Director
- Mike Howard, Microsoft Chief Security Officer
- Mary Gardner, Information Security Officer, FredHutch
- Aaron Weller, Director of Cybersecurity and Privacy, PwC
Off I go....
 |
| New book. |
 |
| New me. |
We have good friends who devote an entire week to celebrating a birthday, with events/dinners/movies/visits scheduled throughout the week. Fortunately, we've never tried that for either Leroy's birthday or for my own. It has nothing to do with age, only with how busy we are.
My friend Lance, whom I had not seen for several years, said when we met that I never do just one thing at a time. That seems like a fair characterization. I'm teaching full time, which means prep and lecturing for two classes each quarter during the academic year. I've agreed to become the academic adviser for the UW chapter of ISACA, which will be open to both undergraduates and graduate students. I'm on two Information School year-round committees and one search committee, and try to attend other events sponsored by the iSchool as well. So you could say that my plate is full.
Tomorrow is the last day of this session's watercolor class. There will be another starting late in April. For my birthday, Leroy is giving me 10 hours with a personal trainer. And in a couple of weeks, I fly to New York City to speak at a risk conference on ethical misconduct. I'll have time to visit a couple of museums and catch up with colleagues in the city.
When I look at what I've written, I realize again what a lucky woman I am. I'll be in meetings or teaching all day on Friday, my birthday, but Leroy and I will be listening to Bach at Benaroya Hall the following evening. Life is good. We live like kings.
