25 Essential Operational Risks with Practical examples

Operational risk is the risk of losses from internal shortcomings, human errors, or system failures. It the context of information security it includes risks associated with cyber-attacks, data breaches, and system disruptions, directly threatening the safety, availability, and privacy of your digital information. 

In today’s post I’ll dive into operational risks with practical real world examples.

I hope this serves as a great starting point for those who are just starting out your risks registries / inventories, or if you already have a risk registry, maybe you find a risk here that you have missed. Always good to find new risks, right?

You can find a download link to a full CSV document at the end.

Example operational risks for GRC

1. Critical Third-party SaaS Outage: Outage of a critical third-party SaaS platform leading to service disruptions.
   Reliance on external software like CRM or collaboration tools can result in downtime or missed deliverables.
2. Remote Internet Connectivity Issues: Poor internet connectivity in remote work environments leading to reduced employee productivity.
   Inconsistent or slow internet connections among remote workers can delay projects, hinder communication, and affect client satisfaction.
3. Cloud Infrastructure Downtime: Server or cloud infrastructure downtime leading to disruption of customer-facing services.
   Unexpected failures in cloud or on-premises infrastructure can directly impact service delivery and customer trust.
4. Data Synchronization Failures: Data synchronization errors across systems leading to incorrect or incomplete customer information.
   Integration failures between systems (e.g., CRM and ERP) can lead to inconsistent or missing data, affecting decision-making and customer service.
5. Internal Process Inefficiencies: Inefficient internal processes leading to delays in meeting client deliverables.
   Operational bottlenecks, unclear workflows, or excessive manual work can reduce the company’s ability to deliver projects on time.
6. Vendor Lock-in Risks: Over-reliance on a single vendor leading to operational paralysis during vendor downtime.
   Vendor lock-in or reliance on a sole provider can magnify the impact of that vendor’s downtime or failure to deliver.
7. Remote Work Scheduling Issues: Mismanagement of remote work schedules leading to employee burnout or disengagement.
   Poorly structured remote work policies or a lack of work-life balance can reduce productivity and increase turnover.
8. Resource Forecasting Errors: Failure to adequately forecast resource needs leading to understaffing during peak workloads.
   Inaccurate forecasting can leave teams unprepared to handle critical projects, resulting in missed deadlines and dissatisfied customers.
9. IT Ticket Prioritization Failures: Improper prioritization of IT tickets leading to unresolved high-priority issues.
   A lack of clear prioritization can cause critical operational problems to remain unresolved, affecting systems and services.
10. Infrastructure Redundancy Gaps: Insufficient redundancy for key infrastructure leading to prolonged downtime during failures.
    The absence of backup systems for critical infrastructure can result in extended outages during hardware or software failures.
11. Delayed Software Updates: Delayed software updates leading to compatibility issues with third-party services.
    Failure to keep systems updated can cause integration failures and disrupt operations.
12. Workflow Documentation Gaps: Failure to adequately document workflows leading to operational inefficiencies during employee turnover.
    Without proper documentation, new hires or temporary replacements struggle to maintain productivity, leading to delays and errors.
13. Data Migration Losses: Loss of critical data during migration projects leading to operational delays.
    Data loss or corruption during transitions between systems can disrupt workflows and result in incomplete deliverables.
14. Misallocated Resources: Misallocation of resources leading to underperformance in priority projects.
    Focusing resources on low-priority tasks can leave high-impact projects underfunded or understaffed.
15. Vendor Payment Delays: Delays in vendor payments leading to service suspensions.
    Payment delays can result in vendors halting their services, affecting operational continuity.
16. Inventory Management Failures: Poor inventory management leading to delays in hardware repairs or replacements.
    A lack of readily available hardware replacements can extend downtimes and reduce productivity.
17. Remote Collaboration Tool Failures: Failure of remote collaboration tools during critical meetings leading to project delays.
    Technical failures in collaboration platforms (e.g., video conferencing or shared drives) can disrupt important discussions and delay decisions.
18. High Employee Turnover: High employee turnover leading to loss of institutional knowledge and reduced operational efficiency.
    Frequent departures can disrupt teams, increase onboarding times, and decrease productivity.
19. Lack of Disaster Recovery Planning: Inadequate disaster recovery planning leading to prolonged service outages during crises.
    Without clear recovery plans, the organization may struggle to resume operations after unexpected events like natural disasters or cyberattacks.
20. Client Expectation Mismanagement: Mismanagement of client expectations leading to dissatisfaction or loss of business.
    Failure to set realistic expectations regarding timelines or deliverables can erode client trust and harm long-term relationships.
21. Server Load Balancing Issues: Poor load balancing of server infrastructure leading to performance degradation during peak times.
    Uneven distribution of server loads can slow services, affecting both employee productivity and customer experience.
22. Project Progress Tracking Gaps: Failure to adequately track project progress leading to missed deadlines.
    Lack of real-time tracking and updates can result in projects running over schedule, harming client relationships.
23. Tool Integration Disruptions: Poor integration of newly acquired tools or services leading to operational disruptions.
    Unclear implementation strategies for new technologies can create compatibility issues and reduce efficiency.
24. Unmonitored Performance Metrics: Lack of monitoring for operational KPIs leading to unaddressed performance declines.
    Without continuous performance tracking, operational inefficiencies may go unnoticed, reducing overall productivity.
25. Remote Security Protocol Failures: Failure of remote work security protocols leading to delays in incident resolution.
    Security incidents in remote setups can take longer to detect and resolve, impacting operations and employee productivity.

Download the Example Operational risks

Download the full example operational risk list as a CSV file directly, with no credit card, email, or other payment required 🙂

This resource is freely available to assist you in developing a robust information security management strategy, ensuring you have a comprehensive view of your information security and compliance with ISO 27001, NIS 2, and DORA and other frameworks.

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