5
industry and regulatory standards. A holistic systems
approach would enforce the Golden Thread (Rowland et
al, 2023) of Resource Governance strategy at the highest
level to operational practices at site level, which is essential
if companies are to deliver on their intentions and promises
to stakeholders.
With a holistic systems approach, it is possible to iden-
tify synergies and minimize conflicts that arise from imple-
menting solutions to governance issues that arise. Focusing
on issues in isolation can lead to unintended consequences/
risks or sub-optimal trade-offs. As an example, creating a
mine plan that optimizes financial gains in the short-term
without considering longer term social or environmental
impacts that may harm a company’s reputation as well as
damage stakeholder relationships. As mining companies
take a systems approach and perform integrated planning
to maximize their supply chain performance while being
mindful of upstream and downstream dependencies and
consequences, so must they also manage their Resource
Governance knowledge base in the same “systems” way.
Stakeholder Expectations
A company’s commitment to long-term value creation
and responsible business practices can be demonstrated
within the framework of a holistic approach. Stakeholders
increasingly expect companies to demonstrate a compre-
hensive commitment to Resource Governance challenges.
Enhanced stakeholder trust and loyalty can be achieved by
embedding an approvals workflow that pro-actively, confi-
dently, and transparently authorizes information disclosed
in the public arena.
When evaluating projects or operations economically,
mining companies must know the risk associated with
projected cashflows and return on investment. From that
perspective, a holistic systems approach can not only allow
wise capital allocation across different projects, but also
increase stakeholders’ awareness of cashflow sensitivities
when incorporating a wide range of social and environmen-
tal risks in their projections.
Future-proofing Regulatory Compliance
Governance regulations and reporting requirements
are constantly being changed and updated. Within the
framework of a holistic systems approach, which entails a
comprehensive knowledge base, companies are much bet-
ter prepared for future regulatory requirements and can
more easily comply with emerging standards as they are
introduced.
Circumstances arise, such as they have recently in
Eastern Europe, where regulators may ask mining companies
to declare how much of their mineral inventory is in high-
risk locations, a request that demonstrates the value of a
holistic systems approach to Resource Governance.
In addition, a company that takes a holistic systems
approach is well positioned to defend itself from accusations
of greenwashing because it will have the ability to demon-
strate alignment between its Golden Thread (Rowland et
al, 2023) and its performance, it will be able to show inter-
nal accountability and an audit trail leading from data to a
decision.
Risk Management
When solutions are applied to Resource Governance issues
in an integrated manner, risks can be identified and man-
aged comprehensively such that a company can proac-
tively mitigate risk, adapt to evolving market conditions,
and enhance a company’s resilience against shock events.
Drawing on a central source of spatial, people and busi-
ness process information, data scientists can tap into these
vast heuristics bases and study past performance and live
data feeds to predict future events. This type of capability
is highly valuable because it provides the organisation with
the opportunity to avoid or mitigate failures before they
occur. An example of this approach to managing ground
disturbance and associated ESG risks is detailed in Spence,
Arvidson and Helm (2023).
Innovation and Competitive Advantage
Applying a holistic systems approach allows a company to
evaluate the mine value chain and identify opportunities for
innovation which in turn leads to the creation of novel solu-
tions, delivery of operational efficiencies, attraction of new
customers, and tapping into new markets. These behaviors
and outcomes can lead to a competitive advantage.
Long-Term Value
It is important for companies to recognize that Resource
Governance challenges are long-term issues that require
a forward-looking perspective. If companies integrate
Resource Governance considerations into their forward-
looking core strategies, they will be able to foster and
encourage long-term value creation. This eliminates reac-
tive short-term fixes and superficial actions, which lead to
unsustainable performance.
ADVANCED ANALYTICS FOR RESOURCE
GOVERNANCE
The application of advanced analytics across mining is a
well-trodden path. Arguably all mining companies employ
analytics at varying levels across multiple areas of their
industry and regulatory standards. A holistic systems
approach would enforce the Golden Thread (Rowland et
al, 2023) of Resource Governance strategy at the highest
level to operational practices at site level, which is essential
if companies are to deliver on their intentions and promises
to stakeholders.
With a holistic systems approach, it is possible to iden-
tify synergies and minimize conflicts that arise from imple-
menting solutions to governance issues that arise. Focusing
on issues in isolation can lead to unintended consequences/
risks or sub-optimal trade-offs. As an example, creating a
mine plan that optimizes financial gains in the short-term
without considering longer term social or environmental
impacts that may harm a company’s reputation as well as
damage stakeholder relationships. As mining companies
take a systems approach and perform integrated planning
to maximize their supply chain performance while being
mindful of upstream and downstream dependencies and
consequences, so must they also manage their Resource
Governance knowledge base in the same “systems” way.
Stakeholder Expectations
A company’s commitment to long-term value creation
and responsible business practices can be demonstrated
within the framework of a holistic approach. Stakeholders
increasingly expect companies to demonstrate a compre-
hensive commitment to Resource Governance challenges.
Enhanced stakeholder trust and loyalty can be achieved by
embedding an approvals workflow that pro-actively, confi-
dently, and transparently authorizes information disclosed
in the public arena.
When evaluating projects or operations economically,
mining companies must know the risk associated with
projected cashflows and return on investment. From that
perspective, a holistic systems approach can not only allow
wise capital allocation across different projects, but also
increase stakeholders’ awareness of cashflow sensitivities
when incorporating a wide range of social and environmen-
tal risks in their projections.
Future-proofing Regulatory Compliance
Governance regulations and reporting requirements
are constantly being changed and updated. Within the
framework of a holistic systems approach, which entails a
comprehensive knowledge base, companies are much bet-
ter prepared for future regulatory requirements and can
more easily comply with emerging standards as they are
introduced.
Circumstances arise, such as they have recently in
Eastern Europe, where regulators may ask mining companies
to declare how much of their mineral inventory is in high-
risk locations, a request that demonstrates the value of a
holistic systems approach to Resource Governance.
In addition, a company that takes a holistic systems
approach is well positioned to defend itself from accusations
of greenwashing because it will have the ability to demon-
strate alignment between its Golden Thread (Rowland et
al, 2023) and its performance, it will be able to show inter-
nal accountability and an audit trail leading from data to a
decision.
Risk Management
When solutions are applied to Resource Governance issues
in an integrated manner, risks can be identified and man-
aged comprehensively such that a company can proac-
tively mitigate risk, adapt to evolving market conditions,
and enhance a company’s resilience against shock events.
Drawing on a central source of spatial, people and busi-
ness process information, data scientists can tap into these
vast heuristics bases and study past performance and live
data feeds to predict future events. This type of capability
is highly valuable because it provides the organisation with
the opportunity to avoid or mitigate failures before they
occur. An example of this approach to managing ground
disturbance and associated ESG risks is detailed in Spence,
Arvidson and Helm (2023).
Innovation and Competitive Advantage
Applying a holistic systems approach allows a company to
evaluate the mine value chain and identify opportunities for
innovation which in turn leads to the creation of novel solu-
tions, delivery of operational efficiencies, attraction of new
customers, and tapping into new markets. These behaviors
and outcomes can lead to a competitive advantage.
Long-Term Value
It is important for companies to recognize that Resource
Governance challenges are long-term issues that require
a forward-looking perspective. If companies integrate
Resource Governance considerations into their forward-
looking core strategies, they will be able to foster and
encourage long-term value creation. This eliminates reac-
tive short-term fixes and superficial actions, which lead to
unsustainable performance.
ADVANCED ANALYTICS FOR RESOURCE
GOVERNANCE
The application of advanced analytics across mining is a
well-trodden path. Arguably all mining companies employ
analytics at varying levels across multiple areas of their