Following the latest Holistic Business Risk Workout, our Risk Team shared the core principles behind making controls not only strategic but effective and measurable.
The Risk Register must be seen as a dynamic management tool, not just a compliance checklist.
The main problem is that in most cases, the risk register is built from the bottom (based on actual functions) and not from the top, where strategic goals are. Building it from the bottom is easier, but since the functions are not connected to strategical goals, you often get a lot of informational and resource waste. You end up focusing on risks that mitigate only a particular function, not the strategic goal.
Here’s the golden rule: Risk is owned by process owners (everyone in the business), not just the Risk Team. Every risk should connect directly to a Strategic Objective, ensuring that our risk management efforts always align with what matters most to the organization’s future.
A control is only as valuable as the evidence that proves it works. That means moving beyond simple checklists toward quantifiable performance metrics. When building your control library or assessing effectiveness, always define these things:
- Risk Statement – What specific threat are you addressing?
- Control – What concrete action mitigates the risk? (e.g., Multi-Factor Authentication)
- Metric – What measurable evidence shows it’s working? (e.g., 99% MFA adoption rate)
This focus on measurable effectiveness creates a forward-looking operational model. When metrics highlight a gap, remediation should trigger immediate action, ensuring our operations remain resilient, adaptive, and robust.
