INTERIM COMPLIANCE · RISK MANAGEMENT · INTERNAL CONTROLS · GOVERNANCE
Interim internal controls and risk management professionals for your ICS and governance work
Alpinum Solutions provides interim internal controls and risk management professionals to companies and financial institutions in Switzerland, Germany and Austria: for the risk register and risk report, building or revising the internal control system (ICS), and regulations, authority matrices and policies. The professionals work at junior to senior level via staff leasing or freelancing, part-time or full-time, individually or as a team. Your company directs the assignment and makes the decisions.
Risk management and the internal control system are ongoing tasks that often depend on a few people. When the risk manager is absent, a system change is coming or internal audit asks for revised control documentation, capacity runs short quickly. Alpinum selects professionals by industry, control environment, languages and seniority and provides them for as long as the need lasts. The professional works inside your organisation with your process owners; Alpinum does not provide audit or legal advice.
The four scenarios illustrate how such assignments run; they are not individual client cases.
Typical assignments in risk management, internal controls and governance
Risk manager during a vacancy
The risk management role is open and the next risk report to management and the board is due. An interim risk manager updates the risk register, runs the assessment rounds with risk owners and drafts the report. Duration: until the successor is up to speed, often several months. Workload: full-time in most cases.
Re-documenting the ICS
Process descriptions and the control matrix are outdated; controls are performed but not evidenced in a traceable way. A small team maps processes with the business units, describes key controls, defines evidence and aligns everything with the risk map. Duration: several months. Workload: juniors full-time, the lead part-time.
Closing audit findings
The list of open points keeps growing: missing control evidence, unclear responsibilities, outdated policies. A professional prioritises, agrees actions with the owners and documents the closure of each point. Duration: from a few weeks to several months, depending on the list. Workload: part-time or full-time, depending on the list.
Governance documents after a reorganisation
New units, new reporting lines: organisational regulations, authority matrix and signing rules no longer fit the organisation. An experienced professional drafts the changes and aligns them with legal and management. Duration: usually several weeks, rarely more than a few months. Workload: mostly part-time.
Interim internal controls and risk professionals: what they take on in your company
Risk management
Maintaining the risk register, running assessments with risk owners, tracking actions and preparing the risk report for the governing bodies. Risk appetite and the assessment of risks are set by management and the supervisory body.
Internal control system (ICS)
Mapping processes, recording risks and key controls in a control matrix, defining evidence, organising first- and second-line control testing and reporting gaps back to process owners.
Governance structure
Organising and updating regulations, the authority matrix, the policy framework and the roles of control functions, so it is clear who decides and who oversees what.
Scope of this page
This page covers risk management, the ICS and governance structures within the company. Corporate law relating to governing bodies, such as shareholder meetings or board resolutions, belongs to the practice area corporate law, M&A and governance. The ongoing compliance function is covered by interim compliance. Whoever helps design the ICS does not also test it: testing stays with internal audit and the statutory auditor.
Risk and ICS profiles at every level and what stays with you
- Junior (0–2 years): collecting and filing control evidence, minuting process walkthroughs, keeping action lists and the risk register up to date.
- Mid-level (experienced, 3–6 years): documenting one process area of the ICS independently, preparing assessment rounds, clarifying findings with the owners.
- Senior (7+ years): leading the risk management or ICS function on an interim basis, presenting the risk report and governance documents to management and governing bodies, guiding a team.
Your company sets scope, reporting line and priorities and decides on risk assessment, control design and regulations. With staff leasing, you generally hold the right to give professional instructions, and the professional becomes part of your organisation. In freelancing, they take on an agreed mandate, such as documenting one process area, and deliver it independently.
Engagement models for risk management and internal controls in Switzerland, Germany and Austria
A workload anywhere from 20 to 100% is possible. A risk management vacancy usually needs one person full-time, an ICS documentation project rather a team with mixed workloads. Professionals working with control evidence, risk data and board papers are usually integrated via staff leasing; a defined documentation package can also go to freelance professionals.
- Switzerland: freelancing, or staff leasing (Personalverleih) with Alpinum Solutions AG as contracting party.
- Germany: temporary agency work (Arbeitnehmerüberlassung) through Alpinum Solutions GmbH, or freelancing; more on interim lawyers and compliance professionals in Germany.
- Austria: freelancing or staff leasing, contracted through Alpinum's German or Swiss company.
Limits: Alpinum is neither an audit firm nor a law firm. Audit opinions on the ICS, legal opinions and responsibility for risk management remain with your company, its governing bodies and its auditors.
Process: from your risk management need to the right professional
01 · Clarify the need
Vacancy, ICS project or open findings? Plus industry, control environment, languages, timing and preferred workload.
02 · Receive profiles
Within 48 hours, selected profiles are with you. You hold the interviews; the start of the assignment is agreed between you and Alpinum, with no guaranteed date.
03 · Onboarding
Risk register, control matrix, recent audit reports and the list of process owners are available to the professional from day one.
04 · Completion
The assignment ends with updated documents and a handover to the business or the new post holder; moving into your team (temp-to-perm) is possible.
What risk management and internal controls professionals cost
Hourly rate ranges excluding VAT (status: 18 October 2026). Austria uses the German values.
- Junior: CHF 75–100 · EUR 60–90 in staff leasing, 90–120 in freelancing
- Experienced: CHF 100–150 · EUR 90–120 in staff leasing, 120–170 in freelancing
- Senior: CHF 150–225+ · EUR 120–180+ in staff leasing, 170–250+ in freelancing
An ICS project costs less when juniors handle evidence and process walkthroughs and a senior professional only leads control design and alignment with the governing bodies. Daily rates and a comparison with permanent hiring are in the guide cost models in interim legal and compliance.
FAQ on interim risk managers and internal controls projects
Does the professional replace internal audit or the statutory auditor?
No. The professional designs and documents risk management and the ICS in the first or second line. Independent testing stays with internal audit and the auditors.
Do we need someone from our industry?
At banks and insurers usually yes, because supervisory practice and terminology should be familiar. In industry and trade, process knowledge, for example in procurement, finance or sales, and experience with control documentation matter more.
Can an interim risk manager work part-time?
Yes. For the ongoing risk report, a part-time workload is often enough; it can rise before board meetings.
Can one person grow into a team?
Yes. Often an experienced professional first analyses the state of the ICS; once the documentation effort is clear, juniors join.
Who is responsible for the control system?
Responsibility for risk management and the ICS stays with your company and its governing bodies. The professional prepares, documents and implements what you decide.
Related pages: interim compliance for the ongoing compliance function · clearing open reviews and investigations · vacancy cover. Overview of all 18 practice areas and six occasions: strengthen your team with interim legal and compliance.
Discuss your needs: support for risk management and internal controls
Describe the vacancy or project, timing and workload. A selection of profiles follows within 48 hours.