qualitative assessment

Why Quantitative Risk Assessment is Not Just the Best But the Only Option – A Conversation

Periodically, I have the pleasure of speaking one-on-one with Hans Læssøe on a variety of topics around ERM, strategic risk, and other issues and trends. As you know from my previous conversations (here, here) and posts featuring his work, Hans was formerly a practitioner at the iconic LEGO Company, but even more notably, is a…

One Simple Method to Validate Risk Assessment Results

Everyone sees the world a bit differently…it’s one of those fun facts that makes life so interesting. Think about how boring the world would be if we all thought the same way! As with a group of any size, a company’s personnel will have a variety of perspectives or biases on a particular risk. It’s…

Asking Unbiased Risk Assessment Questions

Originally coined by the U.S. Army War College in the early ‘90s, the acronym VUCA, short for volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous, has become a popular term for describing today’s business environment. I agree this oft-repeated mantra could almost be considered cliché, but that doesn’t make it any less true. To make the best decisions…

Another Baby Step in the Qualitative to Quantitative Risk Assessment Journey

To achieve success either as individuals or collectively as a group, we must resist the temptation to be stagnant and always seek improvement. A previous article where I discuss how to develop a growth mindset is one example of putting this idea into action. Kaizen, a Japanese term that literally translates to “continuous improvement,” is…

Qualitative vs. Quantitative Risk Assessment – Can There Be a Middle Road?

In my years as both a risk practitioner and ERM consultant, there has and continues to be intense debate around methods for assessing risks. (If you are unfamiliar with the meaning of qualitative and quantitative, this article provides a quick overview.) To illustrate this debate, take the following two comments from a previous article asking…

Can We Trust the Experts during Risk Assessments?

The nature of being a risk manager requires us to engage extensively with subject-matter experts (SMEs) to understand concepts, processes, and risks. We use this information to understand how the SMEs’ activities fit into the bigger picture of the organization. Without their input, it’s almost impossible to determine the appropriate risk response unless you have…