Industry Descriptor: A Major Regional Healthcare Payer and Insurance Provider
The Challenge
Following the modernization of their internal governance, the organization needed to address the growing risk associated with their vast network of vendors and medical partners. The existing third-party risk assessment process was labor-intensive, relying on manual questionnaires and email-based evidence chasing. This created bottlenecks in procurement and left potential gaps in the oversight of Business Associate Agreements (BAAs) and security certifications.
The Solution
The organization implemented a strategic Third-Party Risk Management (TPRM) solution natively within ServiceNow, transforming vendor oversight from a manual campaign into an automated lifecycle.
Key highlights included:
- Automated Vendor Intake: Integrated risk assessments directly into the vendor onboarding process to identify risks before contracts are signed.
- Standardized Assessments: Launched a dedicated vendor portal for third parties to complete security questionnaires and upload certifications (e.g., HITRUST, SOC 2).
- Intelligent Risk Scoring: Configured automated tiering and risk-rating models to prioritize assessments based on vendor criticality and data sensitivity.
- Closed-Loop Issue Management: Automated the generation and tracking of remediation tasks for vendor-related security gaps found during assessments.
The Impact
- 50% Faster Onboarding: Automation of due diligence workflows significantly reduced the time required to vet and approve new third-party partners.
- Enhanced Visibility: Real-time dashboards provided a portfolio-level view of third-party exposure and BAA compliance status.
- Platform Leverage: Utilized the existing ServiceNow foundation to link vendor risks directly to internal control objectives and enterprise risk registers.
