Risk Management Fundamentals

Why Use These Fundamentals 

Below are fundamental areas of risk that United Educators’ (UE’s) RM experts have identified as critical for carrying out campus RM. For example, if you’re interested in learning more about how to review contracts or draft waivers, explore the resources in our “Contracts and Waivers” fundamental.

Who Should Use These Fundamentals

Whether you’re an administrator responsible for an area of risk or a professional risk manager, use these fundamentals to help your RM expertise.

Where to Start

Each institution has unique needs. Use the list of topics below as a starting point, but go in the order that makes sense to you and your risk priorities.

• Analyzing Risks
• Contracts and Waivers
• Documentation Practices
• Establishing Enterprise Risk Management (ERM)
• Identifying Risks
• Responding to Injuries and Crises
• Training on Risks

Analyzing Risks

Use this four-part framework to help you approach and analyze different campus risks. Learn about the risk, plan for policies and procedures, engage key stakeholders, and respond to an incident.

• Risk Mitigation Strategy Framework  (resource not ready yet)

Contracts and Waivers

UE claims show that poor campus contracting practices, including the misuse of waivers and releases, remain a significant source of liability claims. To better understand the root problems and improve your institution’s use of contracts, explore tools in this collection.

• Contracts and Waivers Resource Collection 

Documentation and Retention Practices

Failure to properly document a known risk and your institution’s response to it can lead to injuries and create challenges in defending claims. To preserve timely and appropriate information, review the following resources.

• The Importance of Documentation 
• Properly Documenting Employee Disciplinary Actions
• Checklist: Assessing Your Employee Performance Evaluation System
• Review Your Performance Management System
• Sample Incident Audit Reporting Form

Establishing ERM

Enterprise risk management (ERM) is a strategic process for managing institutional risks, such as risks that threaten the institution’s mission, reputation, or financial viability. Explore our ERM collection for resources to help launch and mature your institution’s program. 

• Enterprise Risk Management Resource Collection

Identifying Risks

An important part of campus risk management is identifying potential risks. As the largest liability insurance carrier of K-12 schools, colleges, and universities, UE is uniquely poised to offer insights on campus risks. Use the resources below to help identify risks for your institution — whether they’re big, complex risks involving multiple functions (often referred to as “institutional risks”) or smaller risks that only may impact a single department.

Critical Risks Reports: These reports are based on UE risk management and claims experience and highlight liability risks that represent some of UE’s largest loss areas.

• Higher Education: Manage Critical Risk Areas
• K-12 Schools: Manage Critical Risk Areas

Annual Top Risks Reports:Each year, UE surveys members about their institution’s most pressing risks. These reports reflect survey results.

• 2022 Top Risks Report: Insights for Higher Education 
• 2022 Top Risks Report: Insights for K-12 Independent Schools

Large Loss Report: This annual report summarizes publicly reported major damage awards and settlements of at least $1 million that affected K-12 schools, colleges, and universities in the prior year.

• Large Loss Report 2023

Responding to Injuries and Crises

UE’s claims experience shows that how an institution responds to reported injuries can greatly impact the likelihood and value of related claims. The resources below can help promote a well-executed response.

• Responding to Injury-Causing Incidents: An Audit Guide 
• Our Cool Head, Warm Heart® Philosophy 
• Use Cool Head, Warm Heart® for Catastrophic Campus Incidents
• Guide to Creating and Improving a Campus Crisis Communications Plan
• ProResponse® 

Training on Risks

Training on institutional policies and procedures for handling risks is critical for effective risk management. Implement UE’s online training and tabletop exercises to help with training efforts.

• Crisis Response: A Library of Tabletop Exercises
• Online Course Library