In modern life, there are risks associated with almost any action that a person takes. For example, the morning commute to work isn’t without a degree of risk. At any point in the journey, there’s the potential for an accident to occur or a vehicle malfunction to take place that may lead to losing control of the vehicle. While many such accidents aren’t fatal, they can be extremely distressing and may even have life-changing implications. 

In the world of business, there’s an inherent risk in many daily operations. When you buy and sell products internationally, the fluctuating exchange rates can serve to improve or reduce your profitability with each trade. In addition, business decision-making is often hampered by not having a comprehensive picture of all the factors that will influence the success (or failure) of the venture. 

Business managers, leaders, and other senior staff are constantly searching for ways to reduce or eliminate risk in a range of their operations. Put simply, lower risk can help to reduce uncertainty, providing the basis for more reliable and consistent outcomes. 

In this article, there’s a focus on how businesses can reduce risk in their operations. Two examples will illustrate this, with information on how online assets can be protected and how uncertainty and inherent risk in high-level decision-making can be reduced.

Protecting online assets in the cloud

Millions of businesses now rely on cloud-based computing to aid their daily operations and functioning. Online applications and software platforms can effectively support a remote and hybrid workforce, allowing them to access key business applications from any location with a strong and reliable internet connection. In addition, cloud computing can be a more efficient way to work. There’s less need for physical premises to hold IT systems, and upgrades to the system can be rolled out online with lower levels of disruption. 

However, as the number of online digital assets increases, there’s a need for them to be adequately protected. Today, an estimated 17,280 cyberattacks are unleashed online daily. These can target all types of businesses and no firm is ever 100% protected from these risks. 

Thankfully, online services can be protected and the risk of a successful attack is reduced by using API security solutions. With these business platforms, layers of additional security can be added to the cloud-based systems. Traffic volumes and access requests can be effectively monitored to spot potentially malicious actions. In addition, security protocols can be established to limit access to key systems, eliminating weak points in the online architecture. In short, such API security is now a vital consideration for minimizing the risks of cyberattacks in business cloud computing systems.

Reducing uncertainty and inherent risk in decision-making

In business, high-level decision-making has variable levels of uncertainty and risk. Traditionally, business leaders would make such decisions by relying on a small amount of company information and their insights and expertise in the field. 

Today, risk and uncertainty can be minimized by using advanced business intelligence platforms such as Tableau and Metabase. These systems take high volumes of business information from multiple sources, combine it, and subject it to advanced analytics. The outcome is business information, reports, statistics, and information that are derived from the data. In short, the level of uncertainty in decision-making is reduced when using BI platforms and feeding in complex and relevant business data.