Risk manager jobs can include overseeing loan, credit and insurance risks to limit the loss of company funds. In all these jobs, individuals aim to increase the profit for the company and decrease the probability of loss. Many times this risk pertains to money, but sometimes it also pertains to data and injury.
Many risk manager jobs involve assessing new ventures to determine the probability of financial loss and whether or not that loss can be limited or avoided. This is very important in the world of bank-to-business or even business-to-business loans. A company may be considering a loan to start a new business and decides a loan is needed. The potential lender may need a risk manager to determine whether it is a sound investment or not, and this assessment can include factors like how probable it is that the business idea will succeed and the owners will pay back the loan. Most any company which deals with loans has risk manager jobs within its structure.
Another position which is similar to this is the credit risk manager job. This manager is primarily responsible for deciding how risky it is for his company to make a loan to a business or individual. Using information about the borrower obtained from various locations, the risk manager can decide how likely it is that the borrower will default on a loan. The decision he makes based on this information, in turn, helps the lender decide whether or not it is in his interest to make the loan or extend credit.
One fairly well-known example of risk manager jobs an insurance risk manager. This individual uses many different factors to determine how risky it is to insure a person or company. Whether the insured is looking for personal coverage, auto coverage or insurance for his home, the risk manager uses data to decide how likely it is that something will happen that his company will have to pay for. This decision helps the insurance company determine whether or not to insure the person in question and for how much.
The position is known to be varied and is usually lucrative. While many computer software programs also exist to help a company calculate risk based on certain factors, they do not have intuition like a human risk assessment would.