26 As the NIBTT worked towards our mandate of Fund sustainability within the reporting period, we continued to implement and maintain management systems for all material risks so as to enable us to: • Identify, assess and manage risks in an effective and efficient manner • Integrate the outputs of Business Unit risk assessments into a Corporate Risk Register which represents an overall risk profile that was actively managed and monitored • Embed risk management into all our business activities, with an awareness of risk instilled in all employees • Make risk-based decisions that will ensure consideration of the reward-to-risk balance • Provide greater certainty of the delivery of strategic and operational objectives; and • Satisfy our corporate governance requirements. The NIBTT maintains a level of risk oversight that involves the Board, the Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee (ARCC), the Executive Management Risk Committee (EMRC), the Risk Business Unit (which includes a compliance section) and the Internal Audit Department. The independence of the Risk and Internal Audit functions is maintained via a direct reporting line to the ARCC. The ARCC supports the Board in its risk oversight responsibilities, by providing oversight of the governance, risk management, compliance and financial reporting responsibilities of the NIBTT, making recommendations to the Board in relation to its responsibilities. The Risk Business Unit is charged with the responsibility for implementation and continuous improvements to the Enterprise Risk Management Framework and the EMRC is responsible for the formulation and implementation of risk policies and the review of risk reports for presentation to the ARCC/ Board. The Audit function is responsible for reviewing the ERM framework and providing assurance that it continues to be relevant and fit for its purpose. The Risk Governance Structure of the NIBTT ensures a balance between the level of risk control and the need for enterprise and innovation, whilst maintaining compliance to sound risk management and corporate governance principles. Technology In ongoing efforts to further improve operational efficiency, our Technology Business Unit is working to meet the ICT needs of the NIBTT’s full staff complement, which in turn will result in the enhancement of our customers’ experience. During the financial year 2017, significant projects undertaken and completed included: • In-house programme upgrades for the implementation of the ninth AR recommendations, • Evaluation and Implementation of the new Network Monitoring System. This will allow for a proactive approach to increasing efficiency and mitigating downtime instances, • Planning and execution of the relocation of all hardware and communications equipment to the new Corporate Headquarters at QPE. Phase II – Relocation of the computer room systems is in its planning phase. Over the next three years, we will undertake an ICT transformation initiative which will involve the designing, procuring and implementation of an end-to-end ICT enterprise-wide solution for the entire organisation. This project, which commenced in November 2016, is envisioned to better employ ICT at the NIBTT to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of service offerings for both internal and external stakeholders. This system will cater primarily to the requirements of the core Social Insurance System including web-based access to client businesses and individuals and feature either optional functionalities, or integration with, other areas of business needs such as Human Resources, Accounting, Investments and Customer Relations Management. Legal Services Our Legal Services Business Unit was restructured in the first quarter of FY2017 to better serve the business needs of the organisation through a closer alignment with the required functions. Thus, our Claims Investigation function was reassigned to the Insurance Operations Business Unit, while the Appeals Section was assigned to Legal Services. During the reporting period, there was an increasing number of legal claims made against the NIBTT outside of the appeals process, in respect to NIBTT’s decisions in processing claims and personal injury matters. Hence, for the financial year ending June 30, 2017, a total of 259 new requests were received to commence legal proceedings regarding National Insurance