A strong fiduciary governance program is built on clarity—clarity about your organization’s goals, responsibilities, and the level of risk you are willing to accept in fulfilling your fiduciary duties. Our services help fiduciaries define that clarity through the creation of a Risk Appetite Statement and the facilitation of comprehensive Fiduciary Risk Assessments. Together, these tools form the foundation for a targeted, efficient, and defensible oversight framework.

Defining Your Risk Appetite

A well‑crafted Risk Appetite Statement sets the direction for all fiduciary decision‑making. It expresses the level of risk your organization is prepared to take in pursuit of its objectives, and it guides committees, leaders, and service providers in aligning their activities with your strategic and regulatory expectations. A clear risk appetite statement helps fiduciaries:

• Establish a shared understanding of acceptable and unacceptable risks
• Strengthen decision‑making across administration, investment, operational, compliance and other fiduciary activities
• Provide evidence of prudence and intentionality to auditors and regulators
• Ensure governance practices are aligned with the interests of the trust company and its clients

This Risk Appetite Statement becomes a guiding document—anchoring your governance program and informing how resources are deployed on a risk-based basis.

Fiduciary Risk Assessments: Turning Intent Into Insight

With the risk appetite defined, we conduct a fiduciary risk assessment, to evaluate how current practices compare to your risk appetite statement. This assessment identifies and measures risks across key fiduciary activities, including:

Directing Resources Through Risk‑Based Oversight

One of the most valuable outcomes of a fiduciary risk assessment is the ability to allocate audit, compliance, and monitoring resources based on actual risk—not tradition or guesswork. Using risk assessment results, we help organizations:

• Prioritize high‑risk areas for deeper review and more frequent monitoring
• Scale oversight in lower‑risk areas to match exposure levels
• Build annual fiduciary compliance and audit testing scheduled and workplans grounded in objective risk data
• Optimize use of internal teams, committees, and external advisors
• Create a defensible rationale for how oversight and business decisions are made

This risk‑based approach increases efficiency, reduces unnecessary costs, and strengthens your ability to your trust company and its clients.

Benefits to Your Organization

Stronger, More Transparent Governance - Clear documentation of risk appetite and risk exposure supports a robust governance framework and demonstrates fiduciary diligence.

Improved Readiness - Proactively identify gaps before they become findings—creating confidence during compliance testing. audits and examinations.

Better Decision‑Making and  Prioritization - Leadership and fiduciary governance committees gain a structured decision‑making foundation tied to your organization’s risk tolerance.

Efficient Allocation of Oversight Resources - Risk‑based planning ensures the right level of attention is given to the right activities at the right time.