VIA Rail received top honours on October 28, 2015 in Chicago where it was awarded an honorable mention in Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) by the Risk Management Society (RIMS), which holds its annual conference in Chicago.
Members of the RIMS selection committee underlined how VIA Rail’s risk management system provides added value to VIA Rail’s operations and also assists its Board of Directors in their oversight role of the company’s activities. The most notable advantages of this system are its ability to better manage and prevent risks, to support the company’s development and growth strategy and to react with agility when a risk materializes.
“This recognition once again confirms that VIA Rail does a remarkable job to anticipate and mitigate risks in the management of its daily business, as much as in the context of its strategic planning,” stated Yves Desjardins-Siciliano, President and Chief Executive Officer of VIA Rail. “The implementation of this approach provides us with benchmarks and guidelines for taking calculated and thoughtful decisions.”
Over the past five years, previous award winners include large organizations such as Harley Davidson (winner, 2013) and Sysco Corporation (honorable mention, 2012). This is the first time that a passenger carrier is on the list of recipients.
Withhis team and with the cooperation of VIA Rail employees, Denis Lavoie, Director of Enterprise Risk Management, developed this innovative approach. He has also been recognized for his leadership in this area in the “Newcomer of the Year” category by the Institute of Risk Management, in London, last February.
In his own words, Denis Lavoie described the importance of this recognition for our risk management policy: “It is a great honour forVIA Rail to receive such an award from the RIMS, since it indicates that our work is sufficiently important to be noticed and recognized.”
VIA Rail’s risk management system has also recently received a Safety Excellence Award, awarded by the Railway Association of Canada.
(Source: VIA Rail)
