Papers and Studies

The Shared Assessments Mid-Year Risk Report explores how recent global disruptions are reshaping the top risk domains impacting Third-Party Risk Management (TPRM) programs in 2025. Drawing on industry-leading research and insights from our member community, this paper examines the shifting landscape and provides practical guidance for risk leaders navigating an increasingly complex environment. Key topics […]

In and outside of work, the Covid-19 pandemic was a mandatory exercise in flexibility. What are the workplace shifts we see impacting third-party risk management as we emerge from the pandemic? This guide emphasizes how the pandemic has affected profile and management of third parties by:  Comparing “Pre-Covid” and “Post-Covid” insights  Highlighting the evolution of work […]

This guide introduces and defines 21 of the most critical and current risk domains within four key areas. The guide describes why organizations need to acknowledge each risk domain and offers concrete suggestions of how organizations can account for risks presented by each domain.

Impact of Covid-19 On Profile and Management of Third Parties In and outside of work, the Covid-19 pandemic was a mandatory exercise in flexibility. What are the workplace shifts we see impacting third-party risk management as we emerge from the pandemic? This FREE guide emphasizes how the pandemic has affected profile and management of third parties […]

Guide: Geopolitical Risk What does geopolitical risk mean for your organization and third party risk management (TPRM)? The risks emerging from recent Russian aggression against Ukraine have potential consequences for your organization’s Business Continuity, Compliance, Cyber, Data Privacy, Supply Chain, and Technology risks. This guide helps those managing third party risk to understand and manage […]

In the current business landscape, organizations rely on numerous third and Nth parties to produce goods and services. The complexity of these outsourcing activities makes it difficult to understand risks across the supply chain. At the same time, new risks are mounting, and the frequency of severe events is increasing placing new demands on risk […]

Third Party Risk Management: Landscape Overview We surveyed more than 600 third-party risk management (TPRM) executives and practitioners directly involved with their organizations’ approach to vendor risk management. This infographic gives an overview of what we learned about trends, challenges, and priorities in risk management. What Topics Does This Cover? Security and Privacy. Emerging and Cascading Risks. […]

Geopolitical risk stems from war, terrorism, and even ongoing tensions between states that derail normal and peaceful international relations. Geopolitical risk has an adverse impact on the delicate balance of the world’s economy, security, and political relations. What does geopolitical risk mean for your organization and third party risk management (TPRM)? Risks emerging from recent Russian aggression against Ukraine have potential consequences […]

This paper provides a unified continuous monitoring cybersecurity taxonomy. A living document designed to evolve with the cybersecurity landscape, the taxonomy advances communication about evaluating and monitoring the impact of cyber threats. Cybersecurity monitoring solution providers, outsourcers, and third party service providers collaborated in Shared Assessments’ Continuous Monitoring Working Group to develop this first version […]

This briefing paper provides insight into gaining greater supply chain sovereignty by identifying critical dependencies across both inbound and outbound supply chains. Adopting this proactive stance provides many opportunities for organizations, including being ready to respond to the regulatory changes reverberating across industries. The related blog “Nth Party Suppliers – Gaining a Toehold on Down […]

This briefing paper provides a foundation for a more robust TPRM style – one that applies complex adaptive systems to the field of risk management to help practitioners understand step-function, cascading improvements in risk management processes they can apply to their own programs. The related complex chain human resources blog “The Upstream Impact of Downstream […]

This “Gaining Ground” briefing paper is phase one of the two-phase cooperative project led by the Shared Assessments’ Continuous Monitoring working group. This group has galvanized practitioners from 57 member organizations, as well as non-member CM solution providers in the Taxonomy Subgroup, to establish a common set of terms and standards for identifying, alerting and […]