Zurich North America, a unit of Zurich Insurance Group Ltd., has launched a new enterprise risk management assessment tool for financial institutions.

ERM Healthcheck Assessment aims to help financial institutions adapt to recent regulations making them more accountable for risk management, the Schaumburg, Ill.-based insurer said in a statement Monday.

“ERM Healthcheck helps financial institutions to objectively assess their current ERM strategy and processes to find opportunities for improvement,” said Chris Taylor, Zurich North America's head of financial institutions for commercial markets, in the statement. “Based on their responses to the assessment, they will receive recommendations for improving the institution's ERM framework.”

The assessment will evaluate a financial institution's risk awareness based on its responses to a 10-question test, according to the statement.

The test will give the company customized recommendations on creating a more risk-aware internal culture, how to assign responsibilities, building risk tolerances into their framework to gain efficiencies, identifying impacts of events and causes, recognizing the elements necessary for a solid communication plan, and evaluating the interdependencies of units to determine the impact several events may have on each business unit individually and together, according to the statement.

Customers also can schedule a free one-hour meeting with a Zurich ERM specialist for a more detailed analysis of the test results, the insurer said.

“ERM develops a framework that ensures alignment of risk management objectives with the objectives and strategies of the organization and develops a process that promotes an active and transparent risk culture,” Mr. Taylor said in the statement. “ERM is also a great tool to establish one's appetite for risk, which could then be used in a merger and acquisition opportunity. It allows the institution to evaluate the opportunity against their own risk strategy and tolerance.”