MASTER Risk Model - Learning Resources - Abilities

Which area or field do you primarily work in?

Strategic Planning

Write a one-sentence version of your vision—does it capture future advantage, market edge, and organizational direction?

List your top three strategic priorities—do they strengthen long-term goals or only address immediate operational concerns?

Review your strategic plan—highlight what still drives value, and mark initiatives ready for retirement.

Compare your core strategy with a rival—what unique advantage must you defend or sharpen now?

Identify one initiative misaligned with strategy—decide to pause, pivot, or stop it now.

Sketch a basic vision pyramid: vision > goals > initiatives—test alignment with your corporate strategy.

Operational Execution

Identify one initiative stalled in execution—clarify ownership, define the next action, and unblock progress immediately.

Review this week’s commitments—highlight three with disproportionate impact, and complete those first without delay.

Create a repeatable decision framework for executives—reduce wasted cycles in recurring strategic reviews.

Apply the 80/20 rule—focus most energy on initiatives delivering the largest long-term impact.

Set a 15-minute slot daily—review progress on core deliverables with discipline.

Align your calendar with strategy—reserve time for deep work, not endless meetings.

Performance Monitoring

Select a single enterprise-wide KPI—track it weekly and use it to align cross-department performance reviews.

Set up a board-level dashboard—track three KPIs that indicate organizational health and resilience.

Add one standing item to leadership meetings: “Which initiative moved forward this week?”

Review your OKRs—identify one without a clear success metric and clarify expectations.

Send a performance snapshot to the board—summarize outcomes against expectations.

Create a visual tracker for a major initiative—review progress during each executive meeting.

Market Analysis

Review competitor investor updates—what messages are resonating with analysts and markets that you should anticipate?

Scan analyst reports in your sector—what risks or opportunities are consistently highlighted across your industry?

Identify one emerging market trend—document its possible upside and downside for your enterprise.

Use LinkedIn or industry trend tools—note one signal executives must anticipate.

Update customer personas using enterprise-level insights—highlight shifts among priority segments.

List five criteria customers use to choose providers—validate them through client conversations.

Branding and Positioning

Rewrite your brand elevator pitch—make it bold, strategic, and focused on future impact rather than current features.

List three unique brand differentiators—check if your website and investor decks showcase them clearly.

Refresh your executive bio—ensure it highlights strategic impact, not only operational history.

Compare your branding tone across channels—adjust to ensure consistency with corporate positioning.

Ask a peer how they perceive your brand in five words—compare with your strategic intent.

Add one storytelling element to your executive bio—signal leadership vision.

Digital Marketing Strategy

Identify your most effective digital channel—design one new campaign this week tailored to high-value stakeholder audiences.

Set one digital goal for your brand this quarter—decide how you’ll measure leadership visibility and impact.

Review your digital analytics—note one overlooked pattern in executive-level customer engagement.

Test one new executive-focused CTA on your corporate site—monitor results in lead engagement.

Review digital engagement data—tweak one channel message for improved executive impact.

Optimize your corporate social profile—align messaging with strategic campaigns.

Negotiation Skills

Write down your deal terms for an upcoming negotiation—set clear walk-away points aligned to strategic priorities.

Replace one weak phrase you often use in negotiations—choose language that strengthens executive presence.

Review your last negotiation—did you anchor decisively? Revise your template email to reflect stronger positioning.

Watch a short masterclass on negotiation silence—apply techniques in your next strategic deal discussion.

Prepare a probing question for your next deal—surface the other party’s underlying priorities.

Practice stating offer terms without apology—repeat daily until confidence is natural.

Customer Relationship Management

Identify your top five strategic clients—personally reach out with a forward-looking check-in not tied to transactions.

Add a personal insight to CRM notes for your top accounts—strengthen long-term relationship capital.

Block time to follow up with major clients—space touchpoints to strengthen executive-level relationships.

Reignite a dormant strategic relationship—reach out personally with forward-looking interest.

Ask a major client how they define current value—use insights to refine strategic positioning.

Share a valuable non-sales resource with a client—reinforce thought leadership credibility.

Sales Strategy and Planning

Define three enterprise sales priorities this quarter—link each directly to measurable business growth outcomes.

Review your sales funnel—identify a stage with revenue leakage and direct leadership attention toward fixing it.

Identify one underperforming customer segment—direct your team to test new targeting or pricing.

Block weekly time to review sales results against enterprise-level goals.

Create or update your Ideal Customer Profile—ground it in data, not assumptions.

Sketch the journey from lead to close—highlight drop-off points for executive review.

Talent Acquisition and Recruitment

Review one executive-level job description—rewrite the opening to emphasize vision, culture, and organizational impact.

Reconnect with a strong candidate who declined previously—explore if conditions have changed since then.

Record a short “why join us” message—share it on LinkedIn to strengthen employer brand visibility.

Add inclusive language checks to all executive job postings—signal cultural leadership.

Identify your top three referral sources—engage them directly for executive-level recruitment.

Create an executive scorecard for interviews—prioritize the top three leadership traits.

Performance Management

Choose one strategic performance goal—define what excellence looks like and share it clearly with leadership.

Review your performance framework—remove one metric that measures activity rather than real value creation.

Send specific recognition to a manager for outstanding results—highlight the organizational impact achieved.

Identify one performance KPI not aligned with long-term outcomes—revise or retire it.

Schedule an executive check-in with a direct report—focus purely on leadership development.

Update your leadership calendar to include quarterly reflection sessions.

Learning and Development

Ask a direct report: “What skill would most elevate your leadership if developed further this year?”

Share one curated leadership article in your next meeting—use it to spark reflection and dialogue.

Identify a leadership skill gap recurring in evaluations—curate a top-tier resource to close it.

Establish a shared leadership forum for curated learning—promote knowledge flow across divisions.

Turn a recent win or failure into an executive learning story—share implications for leadership culture.

Endorse one leadership program—personally encourage enrollment.

Financial Analysis and Budgeting

Review a divisional budget—flag one area of questionable allocation and prepare to challenge assumptions in review.

Build a concise monthly finance dashboard—track only the most strategic indicators visible at leadership level.

Reconcile forecast vs. actual for a major initiative—use findings to refine next quarter’s planning.

Identify one chronic cost overrun in a unit—explore if strategic assumptions require correction.

Add a financial review line to leadership agendas—keep oversight constant.

Watch a tutorial on zero-based budgeting—extract one actionable concept.

Risk Management

Identify the single biggest financial risk in current strategy—document it and raise it with the board.

Review your risk register—highlight one blind spot not discussed in the last board session.

Flag the three most significant enterprise risks—rank by potential impact on market position.

Add a risk-awareness step to planning—push executives to assess downside before decisions.

List small failures this quarter—did any mask strategic risks?

Skim an industry report—note one external risk requiring attention.

Capital Allocation

List your top three capital projects—rank them strictly by ROI potential, not political visibility or legacy attachment.

Identify a portfolio area with declining returns—decide whether to divest or restructure for growth.

Compare capital allocations with long-term strategy—flag one misalignment to discuss at next review.

Review a recent major decision—did it balance short-term optics with long-term resilience?

Sketch a pie chart of organizational time—does resource allocation match priorities?

Estimate upside of reallocating 10% of capital to high-growth areas.

Supply Chain Management

Map your global supply chain—highlight one weak link that poses significant reputational or operational risk.

Ask procurement to confirm whether your top three suppliers remain strategically aligned to growth goals.

Review current supplier contracts—highlight one risk area needing executive renegotiation.

Ask for alternative sourcing options on critical materials—assess supply risk proactively.

Review last quarter’s supply disruptions—what systemic issues caused them?

List your three costliest inventory items—compare against demand forecasts.

Lean and Agile Methodologies

Set up a Kanban board for a core initiative—use it to spot executive-level bottlenecks.

Run a 15-minute executive stand-up—focus only on critical blockers slowing organizational performance.

Identify one low-value recurring report—stop it, and track impact on efficiency.

Pilot a one-week executive sprint—plan, execute, and review with top team.

Map a core enterprise process in five steps—highlight inefficiencies.

Shorten planning on one task—track speed without losing quality.

Quality Assurance

Create an executive checklist for a recurring decision—reduce reliance on memory and improve leadership consistency.

Choose one key quality metric—review it daily this week to spot hidden patterns or risks.

Run a spot quality audit on your flagship product or service—note improvements needed.

Review a key client-facing deliverable—confirm clarity and accuracy before it reaches market.

Review one process step causing rework—design a fix this week.

Ask a trusted peer to review a deliverable—capture feedback before launch.

IT Systems Management

Identify one IT process slowing executive reporting—note actions to streamline decision delivery today.

Schedule IT infrastructure reviews quarterly—ensure alignment with enterprise continuity objectives.

Review system logs weekly—flag anomalies impacting enterprise stability or board oversight.

Keep list of IT vendors, renewal terms, and obligations—review before executive meetings quarterly.

Review top customer issue—note strategic implications for board reputation management.

Run short IT health review—note recurring issues requiring enterprise investment oversight.

Cybersecurity

Review executive access rights—ensure high-level accounts have multi-factor authentication enabled.

Require automatic patching across enterprise servers—reduce cyber risk exposure at board scale.

Test senior leadership awareness with phishing simulation—note results for CISO discussion.

Skim login activity—flag anomalies requiring CISO escalation for executive attention.

Confirm encryption—ensure board communications and sensitive executive data are fully secured.

Draft checklist for executive cyber incidents—share with CISO for refinement.

Software Development and Integration

Check alignment between system integration plans and strategic growth priorities—flag one misfit.

Check one core system integration—verify it supports enterprise resilience and scaling strategy.

Check documentation quality—ensure critical systems have clear instructions for leadership review.

Ensure version control—check clarity and governance in critical enterprise code commits.

Create executive integration checklist—ensure enterprise systems merge smoothly post-acquisition.

Confirm coding standards—review enterprise linter rules for long-term sustainability.

Customer Experience Management

Skim last customer satisfaction report—highlight insights with board-level impact for discussion.

Review top 3 customer themes—note which require enterprise-level policy or product adjustment.

Add executive survey item—measure confidence in service reliability after major initiatives.

Review customer touchpoint—adjust messaging tone for brand consistency at leadership level.

Shadow customer call—note tone and implications for leadership brand oversight.

Map customer journey—highlight service touchpoints with strategic implications for reputation.

Service Recovery and Resolution

Review one major failure escalation—did it reach leadership quickly with clear resolution options?

Skim executive service reports—check whether recovery time aligns with brand protection goals.

Create executive escalation guide—ensure major issues reach leadership within one business day.

Publicly acknowledge service mistake—frame as leadership example of accountability.

Add apology protocol—ensure automated flows reflect leadership accountability tone.

Categorize complaints—note systemic issues requiring leadership risk review.

CRM Systems

Confirm CRM pipeline views show forecast accuracy for quarterly board or investor presentations.

Set CRM alerts for key accounts—ensure leadership visibility before renewal or escalation risks.

Confirm CRM reports show top 10 enterprise opportunities—prepare insights for board meetings.

Add CRM field—track executive-level insights like loyalty or enterprise risk signals.

Clean CRM tags—keep executive reporting clear and aligned with growth priorities.

Audit 10 CRM entries—ensure data accuracy for board-level reports and forecasts.

Regulatory Compliance

Read one new compliance bulletin—note its implications for high-stakes executive decision-making.

Review compliance dashboard—suggest one refinement to improve clarity at board level.

Flag sensitive clauses in contracts—ensure leadership visibility on non-standard compliance risks.

Add board review reminder—ensure compliance reports are evaluated quarterly by leadership.

Bookmark regulator site—share critical changes with executive peers quarterly.

Confirm compliance in major projects—flag gaps requiring executive escalation.

Contract Management

Skim a strategic supplier contract—check penalty clauses that could escalate to board visibility.

Centralize strategic contracts—ensure leaders can retrieve critical agreements in under 10 minutes.

Save latest approved templates—ensure executives can access without legal bottlenecks.

Flag most negotiated clause—note where enterprise flexibility is acceptable for strategy.

Confirm contract sign-off ownership—clarify process for enterprise-level obligations.

Skim contract renewals—prepare executive briefing thirty days in advance.

Corporate Governance

Review governance chart—confirm committees still match current strategic and market priorities.

Verify code of conduct—check coverage on ESG, whistleblowing, and governance transparency.

Check board minutes—confirm strategic decisions are logged and accessible across leadership tiers.

Skim ESG policy—check alignment with executive commitments and investor communication.

Review key governance policies—confirm coverage of whistleblower and conflict standards.

Flag oversight gaps—note areas needing stronger executive governance checks.

Innovation and Product Development

Scan innovation pipeline—flag one initiative with potential to shift market share at enterprise level.

Review industry innovation case—note lessons relevant to enterprise investment decisions.

Bookmark three trusted trend sources—share them with executives during strategy sessions.

Create backlog of unmet strategic needs—review quarterly with innovation leadership.

Sketch bold concept—test innovation potential in executive workshops without filtering.

Review innovation framework—ensure leadership applies consistent approach to new ideas.

Research Methodologies

Revisit one recent board decision—ask what data or methodology truly supported the final choice.

Review one dataset—highlight what questions remain unanswered for strategic risk discussions.

Skim one new white paper—extract methodology relevance for enterprise decisions.

List 3 research approaches—note which informs enterprise risk or opportunity assessment.

Run quick team survey—assess strategic clarity at leadership or enterprise level.

Capture one strong research insight—share with executive peers in decision sessions.

Intellectual Property Management

List one core asset at executive risk—mark whether IP safeguards are sufficient for long-term defense.

Confirm legal has reviewed IP strategy—note areas where portfolio weakens enterprise valuation.

Review differences between patents and trade secrets—note implications for strategic assets.

List 3 knowledge assets—flag those requiring stronger IP protection for valuation defense.

Ask peer leaders which IP protections proved most valuable for enterprise assets.

Verify IP symbols—ensure trademarks and patents are displayed and protected correctly.

Supplier Relationship Management

Note top 5 suppliers—flag which pose reputational, regulatory, or financial risks at enterprise scale.

Review supplier scorecards—highlight partnership gaps that could threaten resilience or margins.

Send recognition note to strategic supplier—strengthen relationship visibility with leadership.

Identify high-risk supplier—confirm executive contact is established and regularly updated.

Schedule executive supplier review—check alignment with long-term strategy quarterly.

Ask suppliers for improvement ideas—build innovation into enterprise partnerships.

Logistics and Distribution

Map global logistics—highlight geopolitical, compliance, or resilience risks needing board oversight.

Skim lead times—flag delays creating systemic risk to market reputation or investor trust.

List critical partners in value chain—note which require leadership attention or board oversight.

Review delivery SLAs—check monitoring against promises with executive-level impact.

Flag delivery issue—trace upstream cause for executive risk review.

Map distribution process—share with executives to highlight potential bottlenecks.

Cost Management

Review top three enterprise costs—check if allocation supports growth targets and profitability aims.

Review corporate spend—identify one area overshooting planned strategic budget allocations.

Scan enterprise spend—flag hidden or recurring costs missed in standard reporting.

Skim approval limits—verify they match risk scale at enterprise spending levels.

Request finance snapshot—review enterprise budget buckets in leadership sessions.

Flag manual process—note automation potential for strategic savings.

Data Analysis and Visualization

Replace a cluttered performance slide with one crisp insight executives can use for clear direction.

Use executive dashboards—highlight anomalies requiring immediate C-suite intervention.

Add one-line insight to executive slide—improve clarity in board discussions.

Build executive dashboard—highlight only metrics that matter for board decisions.

Track KPI trend weekly—add visuals for leadership clarity and direction.

Add clear visual to executive pack—highlight key issue without detail overload.

Predictive Analytics

Identify one key forecasting metric—verify models align with executive planning timeframes today.

Verify forecasting methods—confirm they fit strategic cycles, not just operational horizons.

Plot strategic data trend—ensure visuals highlight direction over raw complexity.

Note one predictive success story—consider relevance for enterprise forecasting adoption.

Draft predictor list—map external factors influencing executive decisions on key KPIs.

Run correlation test—explore link between two strategic KPIs for planning insight.

Business Intelligence

Confirm dashboards track metrics directly tied to investor trust and regulatory expectations.

Schedule recurring executive dashboard reviews—spot anomalies affecting long-term direction.

Attach concise executive summary to BI report—clarify main strategic implication.

Explore advanced BI feature—confirm executive reports gain from added functionality.

Share BI report with peer leader—validate if insights are useful for executive steering.

Automate alerts—set triggers for metrics needing immediate executive attention.

Enterprise Risk Management

List top 3 enterprise risks—mark those requiring escalation to audit or board-level monitoring.

Review enterprise risk register—note one item requiring urgent escalation to senior committee.

Schedule risk committee check-in—highlight emerging risks impacting strategic priorities.

Review incident reports—note systemic issues demanding executive intervention.

Review risk control—document effectiveness and readiness for board audit discussions.

Bookmark ISO or COSO risk frameworks—align enterprise risk policies accordingly.

Crisis Management

Check crisis plan—confirm executive roles and public communication steps are explicitly defined.

Identify three potential crises—outline initial C-suite response steps for each scenario.

Run C-suite crisis drill—validate speed and clarity of executive communication roles.

Confirm emergency channels—verify leadership can activate communication instantly.

Test executive alert system—confirm speed and reliability for high-stakes communication.

List executive stakeholders—ensure immediate contact paths in crises are confirmed.

Regulatory Compliance 2

Review main regulatory calendar—confirm board is briefed on obligations with highest strategic risk.

Check compliance framework—note where reporting misses board-level visibility requirements.

Add compliance review to executive calendar—build routine for top-level monitoring.

Subscribe to regulatory updates—ensure leadership sees critical obligations immediately.

Confirm all compliance training—ensure executive team remains certified and updated.

Check one enterprise process—confirm regulatory compliance standards are fully observed.

Product Lifecycle Management

List all active products—flag which stage requires executive decision on invest, sustain, or retire.

Review product KPIs—flag one showing deviation from expected lifecycle trajectory.

Map executive ownership across lifecycle—clarify accountability for each critical stage.

Review roadmap—note which products require enterprise repositioning or divestment.

Identify product nearing decline—outline renewal or exit options for leadership review.

Review product docs—verify lifecycle milestones are aligned with executive accountability.

Market and User Research

Review market research—highlight three trends demanding strategic positioning or M&A exploration.

Draft three survey questions—validate strategic assumptions about customers before scaling plans.

Review competitor analysis—flag insights affecting investor confidence and long-term strategy.

Set up alerts—track competitor or market signals requiring executive intervention.

Review product usability—note reputational risks requiring executive intervention.

Review customer personas—ensure diversity informs executive positioning strategy.

Go-to-Market Strategy

Confirm go-to-market playbook links clearly to board-level growth, risk, and compliance priorities.

Review last launch playbook—highlight one executive lesson to replicate or change next cycle.

Map key sales channels—align executive resources for optimal market entry.

Draft value statement—align core messaging with investor and board expectations.

Skim competitor playbook—note tactics influencing enterprise positioning today.

Review pricing—confirm alignment with value perception and enterprise positioning.

MASTER Risk Hub