Insights from Jitesh Avlani, IPI Singapore Innovation Advisor
- Safety, compliance and risk management can strengthen efficiency, resilience and long-term growth when embedded into business strategy
- Managing risk effectively is not about avoidance, but about enabling better performance and unlocking new opportunities
- A structured, incremental approach helps businesses build capability while managing cost, complexity and resource constraints
With clear regulations in place, many business leaders know that safety, compliance and risk management must be taken seriously. However, according to IPI Singapore Innovation Advisor Jitesh Avlani, few treat them as strategic drivers of growth. In many businesses, safety, compliance and risk management are treated as bureaucratic operational requirements rather than strategic priorities and are not always fully integrated into day-to-day decision-making. This compliance vs conviction syndrome often leads to a mismatch between competency and capability, resulting in hidden costs, increased operational and regulatory risk over time and an inability to realise value-accretive benefits.
"Safety, compliance and business risk are three very distinct aspects of a business," IA Jitesh explains. "Regrettably, they are often uttered in the same breath as they are wrongly perceived by businesses as mandatory requirements that only increase cost and administrative complexity, without adding much value."
A Strong Business Case
When safety, compliance, and risk management are embedded into business plans and operationalised, the outcomes are measurable. IA Jitesh has observed a consistent pattern among businesses that invest in these areas: stronger operational efficiency, reduced downtime, greater appeal to prospective employees, improved relationships with customers and suppliers, and significantly lower exposure to regulatory risk. Over the longer term, these translate into improved profitability.
Many businesses instinctively tend to think of risk as something to be minimised or avoided. IA Jitesh challenges that framing. “A common misconception is that risk is bad for the business,” he said. “Unknown risks, or risks that are not addressed or mitigated, are harmful. But calculated risk, when managed well, can significantly improve an organisation's performance.” There are many examples of companies that have witnessed substantially improved performance by taking on more, not less, risk in a managed, disciplined and quantified manner.
Internationally, environmental, health and safety (EHS) and compliance practices are rapidly evolving, with growing pressure on organisations to move beyond regulatory minimums and treat safety as a company-wide strategic priority. SMEs that move early stand to differentiate themselves in ways their competitors cannot easily replicate.
Understanding the upside does not necessarily make implementation straightforward. The most immediate challenge SMEs face is cost. Implementing and maintaining robust safety and compliance systems require upfront investment that can be difficult to absorb, particularly without a dedicated team. Many smaller organisations rely on generalist staff rather than specialists, which can make compliance and value-creation more challenging.
Knowledge and skill gaps follow closely behind. Regulatory frameworks shift constantly, and keeping pace demands staying abreast, if not ahead of, these changes. Even when leadership is committed, pushback from internal teams is common. Both a top-down, and bottom-up approach is required in order to ensure deep buy-in.
Finally, there is the challenge of justifying the return on investment. Compliance benefits tend to be long-term and distributed across the business, while costs are immediate and concentrated. When competitors are not investing in similar practices, the pressure to deprioritise becomes more compelling.
These barriers can make it difficult to prioritise safety, compliance and risk management, even when their long-term value is clear.
A Practical Path Forward
To address these challenges, IA Jitesh recommends taking a structured and incremental approach.
“The results of the early investments will hopefully be evident, making subsequent investments easier to justify,” he said.
He identified five key principles that can help SMEs make the shift:
Adopt an incremental approach
Start small and build progressively. Early investments can demonstrate value, making it easier to justify further commitment across the organisation.Establish visible ownership
Identifying internal champions (especially at the C-suite level) to signal leadership commitment and ensure accountability. Communicate and share deep within the organisation to ensure buy-in. Draw a clear line for everyone involved between the task and the outcome.Tap into available support
Government grants, industry bodies, regulators, peer networks and specialist consultants are resources that many businesses underutilise. By tapping into existing networks and resources from organisations like IPI Singapore, which offer access to innovation advisory, technology expertise, and global networks, SMEs can accelerate progress and reduce the cost of getting things wrong.Build it into the strategy
Safety, compliance, and risk management must be included in the strategic business plan and the organisational structure. A seat at the table is a pre-requisite to effective inculcation of these practices.Treat failure as learning
Businesses that create cultures of psychological safety around failure build more resilient compliance frameworks over time. Transparency is the engine of this process: communicate “wins” to forge employee buy-in, but don't cover up mistakes or failures. Be comfortable with acknowledging and communicating failures, and it will encourage honesty at all levels.
What This Looks Like in Practice
Drawing on these principles, IA Jitesh’s work with Singapore-based emulsifier manufacturer GIIAVA demonstrates how a culture of managed risk, supported by strong compliance and clear strategy, can open new frontiers.
The long-established company has built its reputation on turning agricultural byproducts into high-value products. The company's pivot began with a chance lab discovery: a proprietary plant-based egg replacer developed while working with chefs on recipes using their oil products. For years, it remained proprietary know-how. When consumer interest in eggless products accelerated, GIIAVA began to take the opportunity seriously, but recognised that it lacked the food expertise to bring it to market alone.
This is where managed risk and structured compliance with strategic processes paid off. Rather than moving speculatively, GIIAVA engaged IPI Singapore through its Innovation Advisory Service. Working with IA Jitesh, the company developed an internal sales team with a three-year growth strategy, built cohesive organisational structures across its Singapore and India offices, and defined clear commercial goals for the egg replacer.
IPI Singapore then leveraged its technology scouting capabilities to connect GIIAVA with Republic Polytechnic, where students co-developed four egg-free food prototypes. Each was validated with data on taste, shelf life and production processes.
The outcome reflects an organisation that embedded managed risk, strategic structure, and a willingness to seek external expertise into how it operates.
The Strategic Imperative
For SMEs, the question is no longer whether to invest in safety, compliance, and risk management. Regulatory expectations are rising, customer and investor scrutiny is increasing, and the reputational cost of failures in these areas is growing. The question is how to build these capabilities in a way that is sustainable, proportionate, and genuinely additive to business performance.
Businesses that take a structured and proactive approach will not only reduce risk, but also build stronger, more resilient and future-ready organisations.
Reach out to IPI Singapore to explore how you can strengthen safety, compliance and risk management while unlocking new growth opportunities.
