According to a study by Aon Polska entitled “Global Risk Management Survey 2023,” up to 2/3 of Polish companies have incurred losses due to changes in the prices of goods and services or the lack of availability of materials. Financial issues suffered by these companies are most often also due to an economic slowdown (62% of responses) and outstanding trade receivables (47%).
Polish companies are increasingly worried about cyberattacks, currently ranking as the third most frequently identified threat to their operations.
The past two years have been a series of challenges for entrepreneurs. The ongoing effects of the pandemic have been compounded by uncertainties due to geopolitical circumstances. According to the latest, 9th edition of the Aon report, almost 67% of organizations surveyed in Poland reported losses due to changes in the prices of goods and services or the lack of availability of materials. This risk was also the most frequently mentioned in the previous edition of the report from 2021. This time, an economic slowdown proved almost equally adverse for them (for 62% of those surveyed). There’s also a significant increase in the percentage of organizations that suffered due to unsettled trade receivables/payments from counterparties (an increase from 29% to 47% from 2021 to 2023).
“Our report also indicates that companies in Poland are becoming more aware of these types of risks and their consequences. In over 60% of the organizations we surveyed, there is at least a partial, formal risk management policy, and nearly 47% have created a special department for this purpose. However, the results in our country still deviate from the global ones. The risk to which organizations in Poland pay the most attention, thus limiting its effects, are precisely trade receivables,” says Dominika Kozakiewicz, CEO of Aon Polska.
In the rankings, respondents named the key types of risk they fear the most: economic slowdown, risk of price changes of goods, and lack of availability of materials along with cyberattacks. The first two risks were also at the forefront of the previous report but they’ve switched places. What’s new is that cyberattacks, which didn’t even make the top 10 in 2021, are now in the third place.
Other risks that featured in the Aon ranking included disruptions in the distribution process or supply chain, risk of loss of financial liquidity, trade receivables, increased competition, currency exchange rate volatility, technical or system failures, and the lack of suitable staff in the market.
Comparing Polish market results with global ones, it turns out that entrepreneurs in our country focus on different threats than the rest of the world. In the 10 most frequently mentioned key risk criteria, only half overlap. Internationally, cyber attacks were once again at top of the ranking, surpassing the risk of business interruption and economic slowdown, which are overlooked markers in the Polish market.
As Dominika Kozakiewicz adds, “Each country deals with different types of risks specific to their market. However, our observations suggest that sooner or later a globally noted threat will also reach Poland, as was the case with digital attacks. Therefore, there is an obligation on those managing the organization to implement appropriate safeguards early enough to protect the company from the resulting losses.”
