New Issue of Viewpoint Magazine Now Available

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (MMC) has published Volume 2, 2009 of Viewpoint, the journal that highlights the firm’s latest thinking on today’s critical issues and risks. The new issue is available for download on mmc.com and contains the following articles:

• The Hard Part: Strategy Execution — Bridging the Gap Between Vision and Reality — As many companies move from defense to offense in the current economic environment, Mark Nadler of Oliver Wyman Delta cautions senior leaders with six stumbling blocks that may appear when launching a new strategy initiative, with suggestions on how they can be overcome.
• Combating Pay Equity Risk in a Recharged Climate; Pay Discrimination Suits in a New Era of Federal Scrutiny — In light of new legislation – such as the widely heralded Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act – and increased regulatory scrutiny, companies must be more proactive in assessing potential issues of compensation equity. Michael Burniston and Brian Levine of Mercer’s Human Capital business discuss the issues and offer seven principles that can help companies mitigate the risk of pay discrimination and the resulting reputational damage.
• Confronting Fraud in a Downturn; Old Scams and Evolving Risks — The global economic downturn and uncertainty in market conditions have created an environment that both exposes existing financial scams and engenders new frauds. Richard Abbey, Alan E. Brill, and Brian G. Lapidus of Kroll take a close look at the manifestations of fraud in the current environment and suggest how companies can protect themselves, including detecting and investigating malfeasance.
• Enterprise Risk Management Did Not Fail in 2008; Look Deeper for the Underlying Causes — While even the most carefully planned ERM implementations were unable to fully protect insurers’ balance sheets from the dual pressures of financial and property catastrophes in 2008, Donald Mango, Chief Actuary of Guy Carpenter & Company, argues that the rush to blame ERM is hasty and overlooks several factors. Where ERM appears to have failed, the underlying causes were deep seated; in some cases the holistic approach to risk management meant insurers were beaten but not broken.
• Risk Management and Economic Change; A Catalyst for Re-evaluating Business Preparedness, Mitigation and Response — Gary S. Lynch of Marsh Risk Consulting’s Supply Chain Risk Management Practice takes a look at how organizations confronted with disruptive change in the current economic environment need to move quickly and efficiently to counteract the damage, basing their actions on an effective plan that takes the potential effects of change into account.

MMC is a global professional services firm providing advice and solutions in the areas of risk, strategy and human capital. It is the parent company of a number of the world’s leading risk experts and specialty consultants, including Marsh, the insurance broker and risk advisor; Guy Carpenter, the risk and reinsurance specialist; Mercer, the provider of HR and related financial advice and services; Oliver Wyman, the management consultancy; and Kroll, the risk consulting firm. With approximately 53,000 employees worldwide and annual revenue of $11 billion, MMC provides analysis, advice and transactional capabilities to clients in more than 100 countries. Its stock (ticker symbol: MMC) is listed on the New York, Chicago and London stock exchanges. MMC’s website address is www.mmc.com.