Integrated Risk Management: Techniques and Strategies for Managing Corporate Risk

Rating:
Summary: Risk Aggregation?
Review: Having read the text on the flap of the book, as advertised by Amazon, I immediately asked our library to purchase the book. Its contents however did not contain some details that I was hoping to find. Integrated risk management is not treated comprehensively (as it is supposed to do), as risk measurement and the possible aggregation of risk measures in the framework of integrated risk management are left out. There is a long introduction into the basics, which is admittedly very good. Later on, there is a wonderful discussion on risk management strategies. As a textbook, this would do fine, since the basics are explained, and the structure of the discussion is good. But I do miss the real integration of risk measures into one figure. And also, the text of the flap mentioned how insurance methods have been incorporated into finance. This is however only in the level of strategies. Nothing on for example how credit risk measurement has taken up methods used in insurance management. In any case, the book is quite useful for those involved in strategical risk management.

Rating:
Summary: It is the best of what is available in a book format.
Review: The book is a delight to read, especially if the reader has a corporate finance background. For those with out, Doherty devotes the first six chapters to a thorough review of key corporate finance concepts. I strongly recommend it. The book does not provide quick solutions or "to do lists". It is designed to create in you an in depth understanding of the issues surrounding the field of risk financing and the interrelationship between insurable risk, business risk and economic value. This is a book well worth the trees it took to make the paper for its 600 plus pages. If you want more, perhaps you need to enroll in an MS program...

Rating:
Summary: Good strategic read - let down only by its editor
Review: This book is an excellent read on the importance of integrated risk management (although as the previous reviewer indicated it does not attempt to describe in any detail an integrated risk measurement system - although it does hint at the use of simulation for this purpose at the end of Chp 14). It also highlights rather well the tools that exist in the insurance markets that can be used to achieve risk management ends consistent with corporate finance theory. The book does not attempt to focus on any particular risk since the theme of the entire book is that the effect of risk, not its source, is the most important factor in managing risk.

As with many first releases this book suffers a large number of editorial oversights but given the simple presentation of the many examples in the book these errors are fairly straightforward to pick.