At Manchester Digital we like to interview our members to find out a bit more about what they do and their work in the Greater Manchester digital and technology sphere. This week we're speaking with Ryan Swann, Founder of RiskSmart.
What does your organisation do?
RiskSmart is an all-new risk management platform designed specifically for SMEs.
Sounds simple, right?
That’s because its purpose is. We’re not just here to make the lives of risk professionals – who have been historically underserved - easier.
We’re here to help them excel at their work, cutting out the faff and allowing them to get the the recognition they deserve.
But on a technical level, RiskSmart is a far more advanced piece of tech than has previously graced the GRC world.
It provides a hub for all things risk management: an in-built library of customisable risks; quantifiable risk scores so you know when to take action; data-driven insights for smarter decision making; and our very own artificial intelligence, ARi, that helps ensure your risk management is future-facing.
In order to tackle today’s challenging economic climate, businesses need empowering. Managing risks with confidence is critical to growth – and that’s exactly what RiskSmart is here to help you do.
What do you think is currently the biggest issue facing the tech industry?
Debatably, there are three: distractions, accessibility, and talent.
We all know that tech offers a lot of critical solutions for the modern world. A lot of the time, we give them due praise, jumping from bandwagon to bandwagon.
Occasionally, though, that means some of the new tech filtering through can serve to distract from the bigger issues.
No one is denying the cultural impact that cryptocurrency and NFTs have already had or will continue to have. The reality is, though, that the UK economy is facing a recession and a cost of living crisis that has already begun to bite.
Both businesses and consumers need solutions that make a tangible impact on people, planet, and profit.
The accessibility of tech is vital, too.
This applies to both its usability – so that its designed with people of all abilities in mind – and its distribution.
We need affordable services that account for the current inequalities in scope and resources.
If we can’t manage that? Well, we’ll start to see the tech sector lose talent. It’s already happening.
What is your organisation’s biggest achievement?
As a start-up, simply being here is something we’re hugely proud of.
Most businesses don’t make it this far, so the fact that we getting ready to take RiskSmart to the next level – and still learning along the way – isn’t something we take for granted.
That being said, our biggest achievement to date has to be our brand’s launch.
As an out-of-nowhere tech brand, we were confident in our proposition and our tech – of course, we were (and are!). But that doesn’t mean you’re going to land gracefully.
Thankfully, we did. After netting £1,000,000 in investment, we unveiled RiskSmart to the public back in August.
Since then, we’ve starred in over 30 publications and quickly amassed an organic following of over 700 over on LinkedIn.
And the most exciting thing? We’re just getting started.
What would you consider to be your organisation’s biggest challenge?
Risk management hasn’t changed significantly in years.
Since the turn of the millennium, we’ve known that digital threats are our biggest concern. Outside of, you know, pandemics.
In some ways, there’s nothing wrong with that. There’s comfort in familiarity and risk in change. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
The problem for us, though, as former risk professionals ourselves, is that we think some of it is broken. Or, at least, it’s fallen into a bit of disrepair.
Risk managers are open-minded critical thinkers, and we should all be glad for it. But to truly convince that there’s a better, more efficient way of managing risk will be a challenge when their business’s operations are on the line.
The most important thing to note is that Risksmart isn’t here to replace risk professionals, far from it. We work how you work, so we’ll slot in right alongside any of your existing software or processes.
What do you think the future looks like for Manchester’s tech sector?
Macroeconomic changes aside, there’s absolutely no reason to believe that the future of Manchester’s tech sector doesn’t look as bright as ever.
Our universities are world-class, and we’re seeing an increasingly diverse interest from students.
We’re already starting to see the next generation of tech thinkers emerge – and they’ve all grown up with technology.
They know how this stuff works. They’re brimming with new ideas and unprecedented enthusiasm. If anything, we may be about to be schooled.
And as for the tech that’s already out there, it’s becoming adopted at rates like we haven’t seen before, whether it’s B2B or B2C.
Tech is here in Manchester, and it’s here to stay.
You only have to take one look at Manchester Digital to see that...
Tell us something that we might not know about your company?
We’re passionate about giving back.
For example, we’ve registered as a pending B-Corp. Business should be about people, planet, and profit – but too many simply chase the latter.
Other than that, we’re a bunch of nerds - plain and simple.
One of our most recent social media posts was looking at examples of poor risk management in cinema, and to us, the risk bowtie framework is a risk TIE fighter instead.
It doesn’t matter if you’re not... but feel free to get us chatting when you’re on a demo or call with us.
Just know that the conversation might take a lengthy detour.
Thank you Ryan!
To find out more about RiskSmart, click here.
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At Manchester Digital we like to interview our members to find out a bit more about what they do and their work in the Greater Manchester digital and technology sphere. This week we're speaking with Ryan Swann, Founder of RiskSmart.
