To enhance your Risk Management skills and improve your chances of landing a job at a
Big 4 consulting firm, focus on acquiring certifications, training, and skills that are highly
relevant to their consulting practices. Below are key areas and certifications:
1. Risk Management Skills
Enterprise Risk Management (ERM): Ability to identify, assess, and manage
enterprise-wide risks, including financial, operational, and strategic risks.
Operational Risk: Understanding of operational risks such as system failures,
cyberattacks, or human error, and how to mitigate them.
Technology Risk Management: Specialization in risks associated with technology
(cloud, data, cybersecurity) is crucial for consulting firms.
Regulatory and Compliance Risk: Knowledge of regulations like GDPR, HIPAA,
SOX, and others that affect how businesses operate in different industries.
Cyber Risk: Managing risks related to cyber threats, including ransomware, data
breaches, and insider threats.
Third-Party Risk Management: Ensuring that vendors and third-party service
providers comply with organizational risk standards.
2. Key Certifications
CRISC (Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control): Offered by ISACA,
this certification focuses on identifying and managing enterprise IT risk and
implementing controls. Highly valued by consulting firms.
CISA (Certified Information Systems Auditor): Though primarily focused on IT
audit, it covers important risk management aspects, especially in regulatory and
compliance risk.
CIRM (Certified in Risk Management Assurance): Offered by the IIA, this
certification is focused on audit-related risk management and assurance.
ISO 27001 Lead Auditor or Lead Implementer: Understanding of information
security management systems (ISMS) and auditing.
ISO 31000 Risk Management Certification: Focuses on risk management
processes, policies, and strategies as outlined in the ISO 31000 standard.
CISSP (Certified Information Systems Security Professional): Includes a risk
management component that helps you understand and mitigate cybersecurity risks.
PRM (Professional Risk Manager) or FRM (Financial Risk Manager): These are
more finance-focused but can be helpful if you plan to work on risk management for
financial institutions.
PMI-RMP (Risk Management Professional): Provided by PMI, this certification
focuses on risk identification, analysis, and mitigation, particularly in the project
management context.
3. Training & Resources
ISACA Training: ISACA offers training modules for CRISC, CISA, and other risk
management-related certifications.
GRC (Governance, Risk, Compliance): Training on GRC tools and frameworks like
Archer, ServiceNow, and MetricStream, which are used by Big 4 consulting firms for
risk management solutions.
NIST Risk Management Framework (RMF): Familiarize yourself with the NIST
RMF, which is crucial in cybersecurity and IT risk management.
ISO 31000 Training: Available through PECB, BSI, and other accredited providers,
this training will help you understand ISO’s risk management guidelines.
COBIT 2019 Framework: Learn COBIT, a framework for IT governance and
management, which also covers risk management. It's widely used by Big 4 firms.
Regulatory Training (GDPR, HIPAA, SOX): Depending on the industries you want
to target, training on specific regulatory frameworks may be beneficial.
Big 4 Firm Webinars and Reports: Attend webinars and read whitepapers published
by Big 4 consulting firms on risk management trends to understand current market
demands and solutions.
4. Skills to Develop
Risk Assessment: Ability to identify potential risks, evaluate their impact, and
prioritize them based on severity and likelihood.
Risk Mitigation Strategies: Learn to create and implement plans to minimize or
eliminate risks.
Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery: Understand how to plan for continuity
in case of disruptions, a key area in risk management consulting.
Financial and Operational Risk Analytics: Proficiency in analytics tools (e.g.,
Excel, Power BI, Tableau) to assess risk data, trends, and insights.
Communication and Reporting: Learn how to effectively communicate risk
findings to stakeholders, executives, and boards of directors.
5. Actionable Learning Plan for Risk Management
Week Focus Area Certification/Training Resources
1-2 Enterprise Risk Begin studying for CRISC or ISACA training or
Management CISA Udemy course on ERM
(ERM)
3-4 IT and Cyber Risk Cyber Risk, ISO 27001 Lead PECB or BSI ISO 27001
Management Auditor certification Lead Auditor course
5-6 Governance, Risk, COBIT 2019 Foundation ISACA's COBIT 2019
and Compliance training
(GRC)
7-8 Risk Assessment ISO 31000 certification or Risk PECB, BSI for ISO
& Mitigation Assessment Workshops 31000, Udemy courses
on risk assessment
techniques
9-10 Regulatory Risk GDPR, HIPAA, or SOX training Coursera courses on
GDPR or compliance-
specific frameworks
11-12 Third-Party Risk Focus on NIST RMF and third- NIST RMF framework
Management party risk management resources and training
methodologies
13-14 Case Studies & Review Big 4 firm reports and Big 4 websites, LinkedIn
Big 4 Webinars attend industry webinars webinars
By focusing on these areas, you'll be well-prepared for risk management consulting roles in
Big 4 firms.
