Risk monitoring and detailed contingency planning can help a firm with a reputation under fire, but boards looking ahead by a decade or more are the leaders best placed to see off existential threats.

Board Agenda reports on risk-related convulsions across the globe, from Spain’s constitutional crisis to Washington’s ongoing conflict with North Korea.

A lot is spoken about organisational risk, but non-executives should remember their reputations are on the line too. Nick Hood describes the steps need to protect a personal reputation.

Do female board directors have less appetite for risk? Recent research attempted to reveal whether there is a link between gender in the boardroom and measures of risk.

Handling risk should not be viewed as the domain of a boardroom “expert” but as an area for collective decision-making, where everyone recognises there is no such thing as certainty.

Personal data security is increasingly important, but many companies may not be ready to comply with tougher data protection laws.

A communications gap in the boardroom will only get wider unless members embrace new technology, says Blake Stephenson, Nasdaq Corporate Solutions.

Companies with greater board risk oversight involvement achieve better operating performance, says Thomas Keusch.

Richard Fenning, chief executive of Control Risks, argues that digitalisation will bring many threats, but the benefits will prevail.

In May David Cameron announced his intention to introduce a new corporate offence: failing to prevent an economic crime. Simon Airey and Joshua Domb discuss what it means for boards.

Cyber-security and data breaches have been making headlines following high-profile incidents at TalkTalk and Vodafone, but cyber-attacks can jeopardise the security of any company.

In his second article Neil Britten outlines the reasons behind failing to identify strategic risks, an essential role for board directors.

The Bribery Act 2010 should not be pigeonholed as compliance regulation; the Act falls within the sphere of corporate responsibility and employee engagement and is an opportunity for non-executive directors to add wider value.

Changes to the UK's corporate governance code are an opportunity to reconsider risk and internal control.

Risk is the hot topic for non-executive directors, but many boards fall short at defining their appetite for risk. Ruth Ireland takes a look at risk culture and the art of taking acceptable risks.

Research may show that FTSE risk appetite is improving, but is it translating into action?