Gartner defines governance, risk and compliance (GRC) tools as tools designed to support a holistic enterprise risk management (ERM) process, encompassing risk identification, assessment, mitigation, monitoring and reporting. These tools enable ERM teams to create a unified view of top enterprise risks, facilitating coordination across first- and second-line teams (e.g., corporate compliance) and partnering with internal audit on aligned assurance. GRC tools empower leaders to automate, manage and report on enterprise-level risks comprehensively. These tools facilitate the risk assessment process, enable workflow automation and streamline information exchange among leaders and first-line risk owners, enhancing the identification, assessment and communication of top enterprise risks. GRC solutions also support decision making through data visualization, reports and dashboards, offering insights for executives and the board, and integrating with other risk management technologies to provide a comprehensive risk view. Increasingly, GRC tools incorporate AI capabilities for advanced automation, including risk score validation, recommended controls and risk quantification.
Gartner defines IT vendor risk management (IT VRM) as the discipline of addressing the residual risk that businesses and governments face when working with external service providers, IT vendors and related third parties. The scope typically addresses risks related to data protection, business continuity, security and other risk domains as relevant to laws, regulation and industry practices.