ERM - Enterprise Risk Management: Issues and Cases

13 Case Study: Managing Risk at the OPAC du Rhône

Interviewee: Samiha Viand, Directeur Gestion des Risques et Assurances, The OPAC du Rhône

Interviewer: Professor Jean-Paul Louisot, Formerly Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, Directeur Pédagogique du CARM Institute, Paris, France

Date: August 10, 2013

13.1 THE ORGANIZATION

13.1.1 Context

The OPAC¹ du Rhône, later OPAC, is the public housing office related to the local authority in charge of the department (Conseil Général du Rhône²); it operates under the statutes of public establishment with commercial and industrial activity (EPIC³), meaning it is a not-for-profit entity in France.

Therefore, the OPAC has a public service mission, to provide social housing, and it is the first social lessor in the department. It is currently managing 42,570 housing units after having sold all the units outside of the department (the French equivalent of a county in the USA).

13.2 ACTIVITY

The OPAC is engaged in three main activities:

• Builder and Developer:
  • Housing for the public.
  • Specialized housing for the elderly, the handicapped, students, and young workers, including assisted living housings that are rented to management associations.
  • Public equipment like sports venues, media centers, and nurseries. For these, the OPAC acts as project manager on behalf of the final owner.
• Lessor: Managing family housing and commercial premises.
• Planning and urban renewal: Interventions in assistance to local authorities for the development ...