Big picture to better outcomes: James Brassill on risk management

When it comes to helping customers who are facing financial challenges, early support is so important. James Brassill is passionate about finding new ways to identify and improve support for these customers. “I think we're all motivated by a sense of just trying to help customers as quickly as possible, when they need it most.’’

While James recently was recognised for his work in risk management at the IOB Future of Finance Awards, his role is not strictly confined to risk management. Though, as James explains, “the management of risk starts in the frontline”.

From Frontline to Risk: Bridging the Gap

James' team resides within the Retail bank, specifically the credit performance team in Portfolio Management. His team works closely with various customer facing teams including Homes, SME, and Consumer teams. They ensure that credit performance is effectively monitored and appropriately managed, including the provision of appropriate customer supports by customer facing teams. “We would, to some extent, be the bridge between the Risk function and the frontline teams sitting within the first line on the credit risk side,” he says. While talking about his role, James explains, “we look at monitoring the credit book on behalf of the first line. We would oversee the book, look to see where there's pockets of risk, and how key risk indicators are performing.”

A Fascination with Macro Trends

James’ interest in this field stems from a broader fascination with macroeconomic trends and their impact on banking. “I've always been interested in that kind of macro sense of it all, the performance of credit, how it behaves and what it means in terms of the wider significance of it,” he explains. He enjoys looking at the big picture, understanding how different elements interact, and predicting potential outcomes.

Keeping up with what's happening in local and global news is also really important. James shares the example of how weather events such as flooding may affect different parts of the portfolio. He says, “We'll need to be ready to talk about hotspots or exposure to a certain sector that might be in the news.” Regulation is also a big driver of innovation and change within his role, he notes.

Proactive Credit Management

One of James’ recent achievements has been his leadership on the development and continued evolution of an Early Warning Indicator (EWI) framework within AIB for proactive credit management. “It came out of a programme that was set up to ensure compliance with European Bank Authority guidelines around loan origination and monitoring. It's probably a good example where regulation drove innovation.” James says.

The project aimed to identify potential risks before they materialise into serious issues. “We wanted to see if there are any particular factors that can predict the potential for a customer to go into arrears within the next, say, three months so we can provide customer supports,” James explains.

His team worked with colleagues in Risk Analytics to develop account level EWIs based on historical data that are predictive of customers entering arrears – bringing together business insight and data analysis to introduce insightful EWI metrics.

The Human Element of Risk Management

At the heart of his team’s work is a genuine desire to support their customers. Working with colleagues across Retail teams, James introduced customer-focused monthly contact campaigns across Homes, Consumer and SME portfolios for customers indicating a heightened risk of entering arrears.

By monitoring the new EWIs, James’ team could proactively reach out to customers showing signs of financial difficulty. He explains, “it’s about trying to ensure customers can access support before they actually get into difficulty with their repayments, to engage with them early.” This proactive approach helps to provide early support for customers and prevent financial issues from escalating – this may range from advice on how best to manage their accounts to prevent unnecessary missed payments, to consideration of alternative repayment arrangements.

Working on this project has been immensely rewarding for James. The first month they got the campaign up and running was a significant milestone. He recalls, “knowing that the emails had gone out and just being able to see and feel that we were doing something to provide real help for customers and hopefully, better outcomes for them.”

IOB Future of Finance Awards

James Brassill won the Future of Finance Award 2024 in Risk Management category. Learn more about the IOB Future of Finance Awards 2024 winners here.