South African companies are sleepwalking into the next crisis, stuck in outdated risk rituals while global volatility accelerates. That was the blunt warning from Volker von Widdern, Strategic Risk Head at Riskonet Africa, speaking at the Economic Resilience Africa Conference in Fourways in Johannesburg.
“Too many risk committees are running on stale data, generic registers, and backward-looking reports,” von Widdern told a packed room of executives, policymakers and analysts. “It’s governance theatre and it’s killing business resilience.”
He didn’t hold back: South Africa’s current approach to risk is not just ineffective, it’s also undermining competitiveness. Von Widdern argued that the tick-box culture of Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) has become a drag on agility, innovation, and long-term value.
“Risk reports landing on boardroom tables have information that is six months out of date. Meanwhile, the world’s moving in six-minute cycles, from commodity price shocks to cyberattacks, from political disruption to extreme weather. If your business can’t see around corners, it’s already behind.”
His call for change comes as South Africa faces a convergence of systemic threats: economic stagnation, climate instability, power insecurity, and rising geo-political friction. Yet, said von Widdern, most businesses still treat risk as a cost centre instead of a competitive edge.
“What we need is a mindset reset,” he said. “Strategic risk is not about limiting damage. It’s about unlocking upside. Resilience is about optionality, not just insurance.”
According to von Widdern, South African firms are chronically over-insured in some areas and dangerously exposed in others, often misunderstanding their own risk-bearing capacity. “Boards talk about appetite and tolerance, but can’t quantify what that actually means to capital and qualitative exposures in the medium term,” he said.
He urged companies to stop outsourcing project risk to suppliers, start scenario planning for distressed asset plays, and overhaul capital allocation models that currently favour short-term cover over long-term agility.
“There’s huge upside in volatility if you’re ready for it,” he said. “Black swans are turning grey. Predictable unpredictability is the new normal. South African businesses need to build for that, not cling to risk models from 2010.”
The real wake-up call? Strategic risk mismanagement isn’t just a business issue, it’s a national one. Without resilient firms, economic recovery is a pipe dream. Von Widdern’s message was clear: risk isn’t something you delegate to compliance, it belongs at the centre of strategy.
His call to action? “Stop managing risk by spreadsheet. Start measuring exposures thoroughly, targeting exposure reductions and managing it by design.”
