What entails risk management maturity in public organisations?

Abstract

Abstract This article investigates which attributes and contingent factors are crucial to develop a public sector risk management maturity model (PSRMMM). The purpose of this study is not to provide a PSRMMM per se, but to be a scientific reference in the creation of future models to better guide public organisations. Accordingly, enterprise risk management literature and specific public sector factors were analysed to build a questionnaire that was carried out in Brazilian federal and state public organisations. Next, a path of multivariate statistical techniques (CATPCA, K-modes, and multinomial logistic regression analysis) was used to analyse the data collected from 330 survey responses. Results reveal that 12 statistically significant variables explain 5 different levels of public sector risk management maturity. This study stands out for its originality in indicating the main contingent factors and attributes a PSRMMM must have per level of maturity, facilitating the development of prescriptions to guide implementation improvements. Moreover, this study has practical implications to government policymakers who use PSRMMM to assess the performance of public organizations in implementing risk management frameworks.