I have always argued that risk managers must remember mistakes to help businesses learn from them, but that does not mean we should only remember mistakes. Sometimes we need to remember the good in what we do, and in who we are. That is why it has been a privilege to be involved in the RAG Hall of Fame, which inducted ten outstanding telecoms risk professionals this year. My only regret is that we moved too slowly to honor three of the inductees during their lifetimes. I hope that is one mistake we will not repeat.
The ten inductees are (pictured clockwise from top left):
- Luis Cardoso (posthumously)
- Peter Coulter
- Hayley Daniels
- Katia Gonzalez Gutierrez
- Santhosh Gopalan (posthumously)
- Ambrose Nwadike (posthumously)
- Kathy Romano
- David Smith
- Glen Winn
- Colin Yates
I barely knew Santhosh and Luis, but there is no doubting the esteem expressed by their former colleagues. It has been my good fortune to get to know the other eight inductees, and they represent so many of the ideals of our profession, including diligence, generosity and courage. They each deserve more praise than I can give here, so it is best that you read their biographies at the Hall of Fame webpage. Most of the inductees recorded short videos that reflected on their careers, and family members stepped in for those who are sadly no longer with this. Risk management has a reputation for negativity, but it was striking how the videos conveyed so much positivity and joy. I am grateful to my friend and colleague Rob Chapman for recording the videos, and to all the inductees for being so inspiring.
RAG is not a wealthy association but we hope the simple commemorative plaques sent to each inductee will convey our respect. 2020 has been a difficult year but we can aspire to always remember the good we encounter.
