Rating: 
Summary: Too much and not enough!
Review: This book is good for those who already know what OpRisk is all about, or at least are familiar with banking terms and financial measurement systems. If you are new to the game, you are likely to become very frustrated. Mr Hoffman throws a multitude of operational risk "building blocks" on the floor in the opening chapter, tells us that we will use them to build a "house", picks them up one-by-one and explains them - sometimes well, sometimes poorly. If you already have the big picture, i.e. you know what the finished "house" is supposed to look like, you will be able to follow - most of the time (see below). If you know little or nothing about OpRisk, I am fully convinced that the book would be easier to understand backwards - i.e. the chapters are read in reverse order (no joke). There are also several points in the book which had me scratching my head at the consistency of it all! To pick just one example, on page 186 there is a list of what Mr Hoffman calls "Top Down" and "Bottom Up" risk assessment methodologies. In this list, "Delphi Scenarios" is listed as one of the TOP DOWN methods. Two pages later, under the heading "BOTTOM-UP RISK ASSESSMENT METHODS", Delphi Scenarios are discussed/mentioned!!! What is it really - a Top Down or Bottom Up method?? There are several other examples throughout the book likely to cause more than a little confusion to the attentive beginner.
Rating: 
Summary: Highly Recommended!
Review: Timely and dense, this comprehensive treatment of risk assessment and management maps the minefield of business and financial risks. Although professional-level information on banking and financial risk management cannot avoid a certain intensely mathematical character, this volume also pays careful attention to the "softer" side, and stresses the importance of cultural and attitudinal factors. It is a very well-balanced presentation of the subject. However, this very valuable information is written in a turgid, repetitive, convoluted and confusing style that makes it a chore to read. This risk could have been managed by a ruthless editor able to cut half of the undergrowth to clear a path to the meaning. Are advice to bankers and risk managers: brew some strong coffee and slog through the text. The content is too important to ignore.
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