Identifying critical measures for third-party risk management (TPRM) has become vitally important as risk professionals face an uphill battle in fighting for resources, experts discussed at Compliance Week’s National Conference in Washington, D.C.

Rodney Campbell, senior vice president, head of TPRM at Valley National Bank, said building a strategy is the first step in confronting risk. This can be done by realizing impact and activity.

“I thought I had a strategy at first, and it was a fragment of what needed to be done holistically,” he said, explaining that demonstrating impact can go a long way in justifying activity. Campbell added the board, senior management, and peers and colleagues need to understand what TPRM and enterprise risk management do—the what, how, and why.

Asha Palmer, senior vice president of global compliance solutions at digital learning software company Skillsoft, said TPRM can demonstrate value by having a clear strategy, breaking down silos, and not just doing something because it’s “best practices” or a regulatory agency said so.