Broadcasts.com - "Risk Management Education with Ken Goldstein and David Cisneros" (RIMScast)

News
RELATED

Risk Management Education with Ken Goldstein and David Cisneros

Published: July 11, 2023, 8:58 a.m.

Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.

\\xa0

We\\u2019ll talk about what\\u2019s happening with Spencer Educational Foundation and how educators and institutions can create risk management programs and how they can secure a grant via Spencer.

\\xa0

The risk management and insurance studies program at UNR was made possible by a RIMS-funded Course Development Grant through Spencer Educational Foundation. UNR had 102 students enrolled in the RMI program\\u2019s third semester in Spring 2023, up from 62 one year before! They hope RMI becomes a minor in Spring 2024.

\\xa0

Beyond that, UNR\\u2019s mentoring program remains viable, with 23 students and 19 industry professionals participating this past spring. They also have upcoming plans for an Insurance & Risk Management Fair, a Planned Networking Event.

\\xa0

David Cisneros is here to talk about the success of the program, the mentoring program that supplements it, his success rate in helping students prepare for risk careers, and a bit about his own resume.

\\xa0

Key Takeaways:

[:01] About RIMScast.

[:28] About today\\u2019s episode where we will discuss risk management education with Ken Goldstein of the Spencer Educational Foundation and David Cisneros, who leads the Risk Management Studies Program at the University of Nevado, Reno.

[:41] All about exciting, upcoming RIMS events! Registration is open for the RIMS Canada Conference 2023, which will be held September 11th\\u201314th in Ottawa! Visit RIMSCanadaConference.ca for more information.

[1:02] On September 14th, the Spencer Educational Foundation returns to New York City for its Annual Funding Their Future Gala. The event will be held at the Cipriani on 42nd Street. A link is on this episode\\u2019s notes. You can also visit SpencerEd.org.

[1:19] The RIMS Western Regional Conference will be held October 4th\\u20136th in Vail, Colorado. Visit RIMSWesternRegional.com for more information and to register.

[1:31] Head to the RIMS.org/Advocacy page to find information about The RIMS Legislative Summit, which is returning to Washington, D.C. on October 25th and 26th.

[1:45] We are very excited about the RIMS ERM Conference 2023, which will be held November 2nd and 3rd in Denver, Colorado! The theme is Elevate and Evolve. Registration will open soon as will a call for nominations for the ERM Award of Distinction. Visit the events page on RIMS.org for more information.

[2:11] We\\u2019re going to put the spotlight on education in today\\u2019s episode. We will be joined by David Cisneros who leads the Risk Management Studies Program at the University of Nevada, Reno. David was able to launch his program, thanks in part, to a RIMS-funded grant. The Spencer Educational Foundation was a key player in that relationship.

[2:38] Justin introduces his friend Ken Goldstein, the University Partnerships Director for the Spencer Educational Foundation, to talk about launching a Risk Studies Program, and how you can launch one at your university.

[3:43] The Spencer Educational Foundation funds the education of the next generation of risk management professionals with five core grant programs. Ken oversees Merit-based Scholarships for Undergrad, Grad, and Ph.D. students who are interested in risk management and insurance.

[4:03] Ken also oversees Risk Manager on Campus and a program that draws students into events like RISKWORLD in Atlanta, and oversees course development for colleges and universities domestically and into Canada. Ken tells about his experience in the industry and teaching.

[4:55] Ken explains grants and merit-based scholarships. The student has to have an interest in risk management and insurance. Funding for undergrad and grad typically ranges from $5,000 to $10,000 based on your category. Risk Manager on Campus brings practical application to campus with risk managers and seasoned professionals.

[5:21] Spencer Educational Foundation has a grant program that funds corporate risk management internships. General grants support travel to conferences like RISKWORLD and engaging in experiential learning with visits to corporate risk managers or insurance companies, even internationally to places like Lloyds of London.

[5:45] They are very excited about their course development grant program. They support RM 101 at colleges and universities throughout the U.S. and into Canada as well as upper-level programming in niche areas such as cyber security, privacy risk management, and insure tech. It comes down to student interest and faculty expertise.

[6:31] The RMI landscape is dynamically changing with technology. Figuring out how to protect private and proprietary information is key. Having institutions able to teach that is critical.

[6:51] Since 2014, Spencer Educational Foundation has funded over 40 course development grants, spending over $1 million at colleges and universities. A third of that funding has come from RIMS. In addition to finances, a benefit of collaborating with RIMS is in tapping into the local chapters with Risk Manager on Campus.

[7:28] A number of the chapter members act as adjuncts or clinicals and appreciate their time in the classroom with students.

[7:34] The Funding Their Future Gala is coming up on September 14th, 2023 at the Cipriani in New York City. Justin attended last year and had a blast! It was also RIMS CEO Gary LaBranche\\u2019s first time there.
[8:06] Ken offers details about the Gala. It\\u2019s their largest fundraising event of the year. It feeds the grant programs, scholarships, and course development. It assists with supporting next-generation risk management and insurance talent. This year they are honoring Lucy Fato, EVP, General Counsel, and Global Head of Communications at AIG.

[8:29] Lucy Fato is a supporter of next-generation talent, factoring in issues around diversity, equity, inclusion, and career-pathing. It will be an exciting night.

[9:00] There are some wonderful developments at the University of Nevada, Reno. Our next guest, David Cisneros, is a faculty member there. He launched a program of classes that Spencer and RIMS funded. Ken describes it. Course development started in 2022. There are a number of classes. The program scaled quickly to over 100 students.

[9:47] Ken suggests the secret to such growth is to bring risk management and insurance talent from both an industry and teaching perspective into the classrooms. David leads the RMI studies program at UNR. He\\u2019s also the Corporate Grant Development Lead, so he interacts with Spencer Educational Foundation frequently.

[10:14] Something that resonates with students is to have practical application in the classroom. David and his colleagues do a great job in supplying that, as well as securing internships and positions. Ken looks forward to hearing from him!

[10:33] RIMS plug time! Sponsor an episode of RIMScast! Contact us at pd@rims.org. For upcoming virtual workshops visit RIMS.org/virtualworkshops for the calendar. The RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep is July 19th and 20th, 9:00 am\\u20134:00 pm EDT. August 15th through 17th is the RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Prep 9:00 am\\u20134:00 pm EDT. See the links.

[11:37] Join us on July 14th at 5:00 p.m. India Standard Time for a jointly presented webinar with Prudent Insurance, Brokers Private Limited, titled Trade Credit Insurance Managing Risk and Promoting Growth. A link is in the show notes. That\\u2019s early morning in the U.S. I, Justin, will be hosting it. Register and attend!

[12:14] David Cisneros is the Director for Risk Management and Insurance Studies at the College of Business at University of Nevada, Reno (UNR). The Risk Management and Insurance Studies Program at UNR was made possible by a RIMS-funded course development grant.

[12:29] UNR had 102 students enrolled in the RMI program\\u2019s third semester in Spring 2023, up from 62, one year before! They hope RMI becomes a minor in Spring 2024.

[12:44] David is here to talk about the success of the program, the mentoring program that supplements it, his success rate in helping students prepare for risk careers, and a bit about his own resume. Justin welcomes David Cisneros to RIMScast.

[13:05] David shares some background on his risk career at Oracle, IGT, and more and how he is teaching now at UNR what he did in risk and where it\\u2019s going. It\\u2019s not as stressful for him. He loves teaching students about the industry and what he did for 25 years, and looking at where the industry is going!

[14:44] David has five elective classes. He teaches two; adjunct professors teach three. When he asks students on the first day how many want a career in insurance or risk management, no hands go up! He tells them that by the end of the semester, there will be a handful of students working in the industry. After three semesters, there are 21!

[16:05] David\\u2019s favorite part of the industry had always been negotiating the deal, either the settlement of a claim or the purchase of a policy. His students love to hear war stories from the risk management field. Halfway through the semester, they want more.

[17:25] The five courses in the program are geared toward risk management. Three courses are waivers for the ARMTM through The Institutes. You can get your Associate in Risk Management designation. The other courses are Property & Casualty and Life & Health. The program will be a minor in 2024, and hopefully, a major in five to 10 years.

[18:41] David was aware of Spencer Educational Foundation during his career. AT UNR, he learned about the grants through an email list, so he applied and that\\u2019s how he became involved in it and got the grant awarded to UNR.

[19:37] The RMI program at UNR started with the curriculum. Once the curriculum was established, David knew he had to make insurance interesting and show students there was a career involved. Students look for three things: money, a work/life balance, and a challenge; not to be bored. Students promote the RMI by word of mouth.

[20:53] David gets students interested by bringing in industry professionals to talk about jobs and the career. He brings in four guest speakers in a semester. A mentorship program is helpful and it was not common at UNR. There have been close to 30 students involved in the mentorship program.

[21:29] There are job opportunities and mentors in risk management, insurance, and accounting. Most of David\\u2019s students are finance majors. He tells them the program will find them a job if they talk with their mentor. David has just applied for the Risk Manager on Campus program for the next semesters. He has been working in a similar program.

[22:27] David tells the students at the beginning that he\\u2019s going to be the professor that he always wanted in college that\\u2019s going to answer questions and help them find a job.

[22:56] The three adjunct professors were each previously mentors in the program. When David started, there were just two courses and he was teaching both. He started the mentorship program and three industry professionals agreed to be mentors. David asked them if they wanted to teach and they said yes. It\\u2019s been great!

[23:40] From an enrollment standpoint, the RMI program is the fastest-growing program in the business school. But other programs are already established minors and majors, so it\\u2019s hard to compare them. The semester starts in August and the cohort is already filled. The word gets out by the students.

[24:33] Spencer has been fantastic with direction for the program. They have given insight into what big programs are doing and how. The funding and guidance have been invaluable. Ken Goldstein and his predecessor have been great. When David launched the program, he had the curriculum in mind; going from there came from Spenser.

[25:53] All the teaching is done in person. There is no virtual component. David is able to connect with students and he believes that is the secret to the program\\u2019s success. He talks with them about their goals and dreams. He can\\u2019t do that over Zoom.

[27:16] The program at RMI UNR is based on three pillars: Curriculum \\u2014 courses students want, that can give them an industry designation, Experiential Learning \\u2014 bringing in guest speakers to talk about the industry, and Job Creation and Fulfillment \\u2014 David doesn\\u2019t make promises but he does what he can to get them a job.

[27:55] Once the students trust that David wants to get them a job, they\\u2019re interested in the program. David\\u2019s measure of success, according to the Dean of the School of Business, is jobs for students, post-graduation. From that standpoint, they are doing well!

[28:40] David\\u2019s thoughts for students thinking of any risk management course, \\u201cWhen you\\u2019re thinking about a career, it\\u2019s not just sales. The industry is so vast and so wide, that there are careers for every type of personality. \\u2026 Whatever your personality type, whatever your strengths are, there is a job for you in insurance and risk management.\\u201d

[29:26] Justin thanks David for joining us on RIMScast! David appreciates it.

[29:40] \\u201cSpecial thanks to David Cisneros and Ken Goldstein for joining me here today.\\u201d You can learn more about grants and course development at Spencered.org and remember to register for the Spencer Funding Their Future Gala on September 14 in New York City. A link is in the notes.\\xa0

[30:03] You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are on our show notes. RIMScast has a global audience of professionals, students, business leaders, and more. Contact pd@rims.org for more information.

[30:49] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email membershipdept@RIMS.org for more information. The RIMS app is available only for RIMS members! You can find it in the App Store.

[31:15] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today\\u2019s risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more.

[31:30] Read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com and check out the blog at RiskManagementMonitor.com. Email Justin at Content@RIMS.org. Justin thanks you for your continued support and engagement on social media channels! Listen every week! Stay safe!

Mentioned in this Episode:

NEW FOR MEMBERS! RIMS Mobile App

RIMS ERM Conference 2023.

RIMS Canada 2023 \\u2014 Sept. 11\\u201314 in Ottawa!

Spencer Educational Foundation \\u2014 Funding Their Future Gala \\u2014 Sept. 14, 2023

Contribute to Risk Management Magazine
RIMS Western Regional \\u2014 Oct 4\\u20136, Vail Colorado

RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP)

Dan Kugler Risk Manager on Campus Grant
Upcoming Virtual Workshops:

\\u201cRisk Appetite Management\\u201d | July 12\\u201313

See the full calendar of RIMS Virtual Workshops

RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep

July 19\\u201320, 2023