integrating

[ReviewAZON asin=”158799061X”]Integrating Corporate Risk Management, by Prakash Shimpi and several colleagues at the Swiss Reinsurance Company, is a decidedly forward-thinking and practical resource for any manager seeking innovative ways to boost shareholder return. Based on the increasingly harmonious relationship between corporate finance, risk management, and insurance, it shows how concepts from each discipline can be effectively combined for superior overall results. The first section explains why a solid risk-management strategy is critical to earnings growth and corporate reputation–“because it reduces a firm’s chances of experiencing financial distress and shields it against events that might thwart or distort its agenda”–and how a tightly coordinated effort can produce maximum payoff with minimal cost. The second section lays out specific products and procedures from both the insurance and capital markets (such as double-trigger options and credit derivatives) that, taken together, provide “a formidable addition to the conventional techniques currently employed.” The final part looks at future prospects and challenges in the U.S., Europe, and Asia, and ways that companies can prepare for this new environment. In all, the total presents a surprisingly accessible framework that could certainly help committed readers decrease their corporate risk and increase their bottom line. —Howard Rothman[/ReviewAZON]