Glossary

B

Blind Spot (in Risk Mapping)
A risk that is recognized by some stakeholders but remains invisible or unacknowledged by others—often due to communication gaps, power dynamics, or cultural silencing.

Business Model Canvas (BMC)
A framework used to understand how a product or service creates, delivers, and captures value. In this course, adapted to model risks across patient experience.

C

Contingency Plan
A structured plan that outlines what to do if a specific risk event occurs. Includes trigger conditions, immediate actions, roles, communication steps, and escalation paths.

Control (Risk Control)
A process, action, or tool implemented to reduce the likelihood or impact of a risk. Can be preventive, detective, or corrective.

Control Mindset
A leadership orientation that views every risk as a potential opportunity to evolve system design, team learning, and long-term resilience.

Co-Risk
A risk shared across multiple stakeholders, roles, or systems—indicating a high-priority area for joint attention.

D

Decision Tree
A visual model used to structure decision points and their consequences. Helps teams map risk tradeoffs, predict outcomes, and evaluate scenarios.

Delphi Method (Modified)
A stakeholder consensus technique used to gather and synthesize expert opinions on risk prioritization, used in Milestone 3.

E

Escalation Path
A predefined sequence of decision-makers or roles who become involved when a risk surpasses the team’s ability to resolve it locally.

Emotion (SEW Model)
The internal feeling that follows a sensory trigger in a risk context—such as anxiety, embarrassment, defensiveness, or frustration.

F

False Alignment
A scenario where team members appear to agree, but hold conflicting interpretations or unspoken concerns.

Friction Forum
A psychological safety ritual where team members are explicitly invited to raise uncomfortable questions, concerns, or uncertainties—especially early in project cycles.

G

Gap Analysis (in Risk)
An assessment comparing current risk management practices to desired or required practices. Highlights vulnerabilities, omissions, or design flaws.

H

High-Leverage Control
A risk control that reduces multiple risks or has an outsized effect relative to its cost or complexity.

I

Impact Matrix
A prioritization tool that helps assess the relative impact and likelihood of various risks. Used to rank and select risk themes.

Integrated Risk View
A cross-milestone synthesis of risks, controls, and decision outcomes—used to identify patterns, recurring themes, and structural insights.

L

Living Risk Register
A continuously updated document or tool that tracks emerging risks, current status, and control responses. Differentiates from one-time or static risk logs.

M

Memory Gap (Organizational)
A failure to document, retain, or reuse lessons from past risks—often leading to repeated failures or missed improvement opportunities.

Milestone
A scenario-based module in this practicum that simulates a real-world risk task. Each milestone produces a tool, decision, or framework.

O

Organizational Memory
The collective ability of a team to remember, reuse, and evolve lessons learned from past experiences and risk events.

Opportunity Risk
A risk that, if managed well, could result in an unexpected advantage or positive outcome.

P

Preventive Control
An action taken in advance to reduce the likelihood that a risk will occur.

Portfolio Risk Assessment
An integrated analysis that examines risk across all domains, teams, and milestones in a project.

R

Residual Risk
The risk that remains after all planned controls have been implemented.

Risk Breakdown Structure (RBS)
A hierarchical framework that categorizes and visualizes risk across broad domains and specific triggers.

Risk Culture
The shared behaviors, norms, and expectations that shape how people in an organization talk about, respond to, and learn from risk.

S

SEW Model (Sensation–Emotion–Want)
A human-centered framework for understanding how people internally respond to uncertainty. Helps teams surface early signs of risk and navigate silence, shame, or avoidance.

Stakeholder Convergence Map
A visual or tabular tool showing where stakeholder perspectives align, conflict, or diverge on key risks.

T

TOWS Matrix
A strategic analysis tool (inverted SWOT) used to identify risk responses based on internal strengths/weaknesses and external threats/opportunities.

Trigger Condition
A specific observable event or threshold that activates a contingency plan.

U

Unspoken Want (SEW)
The hidden desire or impulse that follows an emotional reaction to uncertainty—such as the urge to avoid conflict, rush to finish, or remain silent.

V

Value–Risk Tradeoff
A strategic decision framework where teams weigh the potential benefits of a path against the risks it introduces or amplifies.

W

Want (SEW Model)
The action impulse that follows a feeling—what someone internally wants to do or avoid after perceiving a risk trigger.

Weakness–Opportunity Strategy (TOWS)
A planning move where an external opportunity is used to reduce or compensate for an internal weakness that generates risk.