Practical expertise for risk, compliance, governance and control.
CATO connects boards and executive teams with proven practitioners to assess risk, strengthen governance and address compliance challenges.
Risk, governance and compliance capability built around real accountability.
The practice brings together practitioners who have held senior risk, compliance, audit, governance and regulatory roles.
CATO applies this expertise through focused expert access, structured advisory engagements, specialist reviews, executive learning and retained support, depending on the organisation's need.
Enterprise risk
Risk frameworks, appetite, reporting and the link between risk and strategy.
Operational risk and controls
How key processes and controls are designed, owned and shown to work.
Governance and board effectiveness
Board and committee structures, delegations and decision rights, and how the board oversees and challenges management.
Compliance
Compliance operating models, obligations management and readiness for regulatory change.
Assurance
Experienced review of how well risk and control arrangements work in practice.
Privacy and information governance
Privacy practice, records, retention and the handling of personal and organisational information.
Problems this practice helps solve.
Situations where experienced external input can help.
Unclear risk and control position
Uncertainty about whether current risk, governance, compliance and control settings are good enough for the organisation's size and exposure.
Independent perspective before a decision
A board or leadership team needs an experienced external assessment before making a significant decision.
Compliance behind the business
A compliance function that has not kept pace with the business's growth.
Governance arrangements need review
Board and committee structures, delegations and decision rights that have never been formally reviewed or documented.
Untested privacy and information practices
Privacy and information governance practices that have not been tested since a system or process change.
Preparing for greater scrutiny
A regulatory change, audit or period of increased scrutiny is approaching.
Five ways to work with CATO on risk and governance.
Advisory & Delivery
Structured advisory and specialist delivery for complex risk, governance and compliance needs.
Expert Access
Focused access to experienced practitioners for defined questions, decisions and specialist input.
Advisory Desk
Retained access to risk, governance and compliance expertise as needs emerge.
Executive Labs & Briefings
Practitioner-led workshops and briefings for boards, executives and professional teams.
CATO Academy
Expert-led professional education supporting practical risk, governance and compliance capability.
CATO Risk & Governance Review
A structured, independent assessment of risk, governance, compliance and control settings, with practical, prioritised recommendations.
Risk
How risk is identified, assessed, owned and reported.
Governance
Board and committee structures, delegations and oversight.
Compliance
How obligations are understood, met and evidenced.
Control
Whether key controls are well designed and operating as intended.
Example client situations.
Illustrative examples of how CATO's services can support different needs.
A newly appointed head of risk or compliance wants an independent baseline of the control environment early in the role.
Possible route: Risk & Governance Review
An audit and risk committee chair wants an experienced second opinion on a risk paper before it goes to the board.
Possible route: Expert Access
A company preparing for investment, acquisition or sale needs its board charter, delegations and committee structure formalised.
Possible route: Advisory & Delivery
A business taking on new regulatory obligations wants senior compliance input close to hand while it builds its own capability.
Possible route: Advisory Desk
A board wants to sharpen how it oversees and challenges risk ahead of its next board evaluation.
Possible route: Executive Labs & Briefings
An organisation wants staff who handle personal information to apply their privacy obligations confidently in daily work.
Possible route: CATO Academy
How CATO selects the right expertise.
Expertise is selected for the problem, based on the issue, sector, engagement type, availability and required experience.
Understand the business need
Clarify the question, who it affects and what a useful outcome looks like.
Define the scope and required expertise
Agree the scope and the experience the work requires.
Identify and structure the engagement
Propose a suitable practitioner and set out how the work will run.
Deliver the work and review outcomes
Stay involved through delivery and review the outcome with you.
CATO works through a curated network of experienced practitioners. We assess the client's issue, identify suitable expertise, and structure the engagement. If the proposed advisor is not the right fit, CATO can identify another suitable practitioner from the network.
Common questions.
What does CATO's Risk, Compliance & Governance practice cover?
CATO's Risk, Compliance & Governance practice brings experienced practitioners to organisations working on enterprise or operational risk, governance structure and board effectiveness, compliance operating models, assurance, privacy and information governance.
Does CATO carry out independent risk and governance reviews?
Yes. The CATO Risk & Governance Review is a structured, independent assessment of risk, governance, compliance and control settings, with practical, prioritised recommendations.
Can CATO help with privacy and information governance?
Yes. Privacy and information governance are part of CATO's Risk, Compliance & Governance practice. Depending on the scope of the issue, they can be addressed through an expert call, a structured review or advisory support.
Does CATO provide ongoing, not just one-off, risk or compliance support?
Yes. For organisations that want experienced risk, compliance or governance expertise close to hand on an ongoing basis, CATO Advisory Desk provides retained advisory access rather than a single project engagement.
Who carries out this work?
Work is carried out by experienced practitioners from CATO's curated network, selected for senior experience in risk, compliance, audit, governance or regulatory roles. CATO does not operate a public consultant directory; practitioners are selected based on the client's issue, sector and required experience.
How do I know which CATO service is right for my issue?
Start with the business need. A focused question may suit Expert Access, a defined assessment may suit a structured review or Advisory & Delivery, and ongoing needs may suit Advisory Desk. CATO can help clarify the scope and appropriate way to engage.
Discuss your risk, compliance or governance priorities.
Tell us what your organisation is dealing with. CATO will help clarify the scope and the most suitable way to engage.