While Stephanopoulos may seem to have been needlessly obsessed about where he sat, his anxiety illuminates a stark truth: by losing influence, you risk losing effectiveness. The structure of an organization informs who can work with whom, who exerts influence, and who is subject to power. Healthy Risk Immune Systems acknowledge this very fact, and

An Unclear Mission. The organization does not understand what it’s trying to do. This is all too common. Lack of a Strategy—or Failure to Follow It. There is a lack of alignment across the team on “how” the mission is to be accomplished. Often strategies brief well but are either unrealistic or simply ignored. Poor Communication. The parts of the o

Detect threats. Assess the risk they represent, based on our own vulnerabilities. Respond to avoid or mitigate any negative effects of the risk. Learn so that we are well prepared if the risk reappears.

The art of war teaches us to rely not on the likelihood of the enemy’s not coming, but on our own readiness to receive him; not on the chance of his not attacking, but rather on the fact that we have made our position unassailable. —Sun Tzu, Chinese philosopher and military strategist To study risk is to reconsider what we think we know about being

Your Turn Does your organization’s structure function as envisioned? Does it help your team achieve its goals? Where is power located in your organization? Who benefits from being close to this power? Where in your structure is responsibility for risk? Is this responsibility understood and respected? The Bottom Line Structure enables or inhibits th

Time and again we see that the greatest risk to us as individuals, and to our organizations, is us.

SYMPTOMS OF TIMING CHALLENGES Hurry Up and Wait. Poorly timed decisions can often cause some parts of the plan to be rushed, and others to be painfully delayed. Undercooked Cake. Taking a cake out of the oven too early means a soggy, unappetizing mess. Cutting corners and speeding up processes can compromise the end result. Jumping the Gun. Sprinte

Is leadership facilitating or inhibiting the Detect—Assess—Respond—Learn process? How does leadership help the Risk Control Factors function individually and in concert? From your leadership perspective, what factors need the most work to ensure your Risk Immune System is performing? Do members of your organization identify with and feel committed

In the end, we don’t know what a baseball pitcher’s next throw will bring. We must be well practiced in hitting, in a stance that allows us to watch him release the ball, decide whether we should swing, watch, or duck—and then act. And it’s useful to remember that baseball’s iconic Ted Williams, who set an unmatched standard when he batted .406 in