More than 70% of operational losses in financial services come from process failures and human error — not cyberattacks.
For banks and insurers, that is a wake-up call. It is no longer enough to react when things go wrong. Risk must be managed proactively, with the right tools, frameworks, and insights.
This is where IBM OpenPages is gaining momentum. It is not just another GRC platform — it is a modular, AI-driven solution that helps organizations move from reactive firefighting to proactive, intelligent risk management.
A Modular, Industry-Agnostic Platform
One of the strongest advantages of OpenPages is its modular design. Organizations can start with the modules they need and expand as their governance, risk, and compliance requirements mature.
Some of the core modules include:
- Operational Risk
- Internal Audit
- IT Governance
- Policy Management
- Financial Controls
- Model Risk
- Third-Party Risk
OpenPages also comes prebundled with IBM Cognos Analytics, providing powerful reporting and dashboards without additional tools. Whether deployed on cloud, on-premises, or IBM Cloud Pak for Data, the platform offers the flexibility to adapt to diverse environments.
While this article focuses on Banking and Financial Services, OpenPages is industry-agnostic and is widely adopted across energy, oil and gas, healthcare, and government. Its scalability and configurability make it relevant to organizations of all sizes and sectors.
What is Operational Risk Management (ORM)?
Operational risks emerge from the everyday flow of business: failed payment runs, miskeyed securities trades, or missed regulatory deadlines.
The ORM module in OpenPages enables organizations to:
- Capture and track operational risks.
- Record and analyze loss events.
- Monitor key risk indicators (KRIs) and key performance indicators (KPIs).
- Run scenario analysis to prepare for “what if” situations.
- Track both losses and recoveries.
- This transforms ORM from a compliance exercise into a framework for better, faster decision-making.
Real Scenarios in Banking and Financial Services
Payment Processing Failure
A bank experiences downtime during peak payments processing. OpenPages logs the loss event, links it to KRIs such as average system downtime, and models the impact of outages during critical settlement windows.
Trade Processing Error
A miskeyed securities order results in a significant financial exposure. The error is recorded in ORM and connected to weak process controls. KPIs highlight the proportion of manual trades, and the system supports recovery tracking with insurers or counterparties.
Regulatory Reporting Delay
An insurer misses a solvency filing deadline, incurring penalties. The lapse is captured as a compliance-related loss event. Dashboards highlight recurring issues, and scenario analysis estimates the cumulative impact of repeated delays.
These examples illustrate the real and frequent operational risks that BFSI organizations face — and how OpenPages provides a structured, data-driven response.
IBM & Timus Consulting – Trusted Partnership
Technology alone does not guarantee success. Implementation and adoption are what drive transformation.
IBM works with trusted partners such as Timus Consulting to ensure organizations realize the full value of OpenPages. As IBM’s trusted partner for OpenPages implementations, Timus Consulting helps financial institutions:
- Deploy OpenPages modules seamlessly.
- Customize and integrate with existing business processes.
- Leverage advanced reporting and automation.
- Stay future-ready through continuous advisory and support.
Together, IBM and Timus Consulting enable financial institutions to achieve a 360-degree view of operational risk — from the boardroom to frontline operations.
Why ORM Matters Now
For banking and insurance, ORM delivers three key advantages:
- Resilience – Preparing for system failures, errors, and compliance lapses.
- Accountability – Linking incidents directly to KRIs, KPIs, and controls.
- Trust – Demonstrating robust governance to regulators, investors, and customers.
With OpenPages, operational risk is no longer just controlled — it becomes a strategic advantage.
This article is part of my IBM OpenPages Series. Today we focused on Operational Risk Management in the Banking and Financial Services sector. In the next article, I will explore Internal Audit Management (IAM) and how AI and automation are transforming the audit lifecycle.
About us
We are Timus Consulting Services, a fast-growing, premium Governance, Risk, and compliance (GRC) consulting firm, with a specialization in the GRC implementation, customization, and support.
Our team has consolidated experience of more than 15 years working with financial majors across the globe. Our team is comprised of experienced GRC and technology professionals that have an average of 10 years of experience. Our services include:
- GRC implementation, enhancement, customization, Development / Delivery
- GRC Training
- GRC maintenance, and Support
- GRC staff augmentation
Our team
Our team (consultants in their previous roles) have worked on some of the major OpenPages projects for fortune 500 clients across the globe. Over the past year, we have experienced rapid growth and as of now we have a team of 15+ experienced and fully certified OpenPages consultants, OpenPages QA and OpenPages lead/architects at all experience levels.
Our key strengths:
Our expertise lies in covering the length and breadth of the IBM OpenPages GRC platform. We specialize in:
- Expert business consulting in GRC domain including use cases like Operational Risk Management, Internal Audit Management, Third party risk management, IT Governance amongst others
- OpenPages GRC platform customization and third-party integration
- Building custom business solutions on OpenPages GRC platform
Connect with us:
Feel free to reach out to us for any of your GRC requirements.
Email: Business@timusconsulting.com
Phone: +91 9665833224
WhatsApp: +44 7424222412
Website: www.Timusconsulting.com
