The Perception of ERM in the Zimbabwe’s Short Term Insurance Industry: A Case for Bulawayo Metropolitan City

Abstract

The study was carried out to establish the perception of Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) by short-term insurance companies in Zimbabwe’s second capital city, Bulawayo. The Zimbabwean insurance companies have not adopted ERM despite the benefits that this holistic approach to risk management offers. The research instrument used was a closed questionnaire with a Likert five point scale on a sample of 35 short term companies in and around Bulawayo. The questionnaire sought to gain an insight on the perceptions on ERM from the short term insurance industry. The survey explored perceptions on the factors which could influence the short term insurance companies to adopt ERM, the benefits to be acquired by the companies that implement ERM, and the challenges that the companies are likely to encounter in their efforts to implement ERM. The results of the survey revealed that short term insurers perceive that ERM will bring benefits to their companies, and acknowledge that efforts towards finally adopting ERM will be influenced by both internal and external forces such as shareholder considerations. The short term insurers also acknowledge that there are challenges that may hinder their implementation efforts.