Part of a risk manager’s job is to create a risk assessment plan to determine which ones are likely enough and could have a serious enough impact to warrant mitigation. It is the lack of knowledge about a particular event’s outcome, and exists for every individual and every organization. They are closely related, but are not one and the same “uncertainty” has a broader scope. This is why thinking about risk versus uncertainty is important. This is why the risk identification process is so important. The possibility of “missing” a serious risk is a disturbing one, but it’s impossible to be completely certain about everything that touches your business. This can result in ineffective risk mitigation and duplicate work across departments, or even serious risks flying under the radar. Diving into identification and assessments without a sufficient framework inhibits prioritization. A big mistake in risk management, especially when it comes to companies with newer programs, is underestimating the importance of standardized risk prioritization.

Strategic risk priority matrix