The Future of ERM: 12 Hidden, or Not So Hidden, Threats
#6 Language Barrier
Enterprise Risk Management is like many areas, which uses a seemingly different language. The words that make perfect sense to risk professionals can sound foreign to executives, boards, and business leaders.
ERM is filled with well-intentioned terms like likelihood, impact, inherent, residual, controls, and heatmaps, but to many outside the field, it sounds like code. When people stop listening because they do not understand, ERM loses its ability to influence.
The Problem: Jargon That Divides
Risk discussions often get lost in technical language. Whether it is “ERM speak” or risk owners using unfamiliar acronyms, the result is the same: confusion. A good leader once told me, “Know your audience.” Executives, Audit Committees, and Boards do not care about complicated terminology or detailed frameworks. They want to know that you are capable, reliable, and that the risk or opportunity is in the right hands.
If they do not understand what you are saying, you have likely wasted their time. Speak clearly. Explain what matters. Build confidence through clarity.
So why do risk professionals still rely on words like “inherent” or “residual risk” when they do not connect with executives? Answer: Many come from audit backgrounds where structure is everything. The challenge is that ERM is not just structure; it is also interpretation. A solid ERM professional has to be comfortable with uncertainty and able to explain it in simple, direct language.
When ERM reports sound like they were written for auditors instead of decision-makers, they get ignored or dismissed. They become conformity paperwork, not strategic input. Let auditors be auditors. ERM should be something else entirely.
Think of football. The quarterback and linebacker both play critical roles, but you would never ask one to do the other’s job. The same applies here. Audit confirms that controls work. ERM ensures leaders make better decisions. When ERM starts talking like Audit, it loses its voice on the field.
Too often, risk reports are built to validate expertise rather than enable understanding. The charts, heatmaps, and dashboards look impressive, but they rarely change behavior. If executives do not use the information, it has little to no value.
Reflection for readers:
When was the last time an executive quoted your ERM report in a meeting because they found it useful, not because they had to?
Why It Happens: The Comfort of Technical Speak
Jargon is comfortable. It signals knowledge and ties to frameworks like COSO and ISO. It also creates distance. Many risk professionals use technical terms not to simplify complexity, but to mask uncertainty.
These words sound precise but rarely make the issue clearer. They give a false sense of control.
In reality, business and life are rarely that neat. When I go mountain biking, I do not think about “inherent risk.” I check my equipment, make sure my tires are good, and wear my helmet. I understand that I may fall, but I manage what I can. I do not need a heatmap to tell me that a crash is bad.
We complicate what should be simple.
Risk professionals also tend to be more comfortable talking to one another than to business leaders. They want to be seen as experts, when their real strength should be facilitation. ERM is not the expert in operations or finance (or any other department); it is the connector.
If I were speaking with Alex Honnold about free climbing, I would not interrupt to show what I know about ropes. I would listen. I would ask questions to understand. That is how ERM should approach conversations with business leaders and executives.
If you want to explain a risk clearly, imagine you are explaining it to a student. Avoid acronyms, skip the jargon, and focus on what matters. If I am describing supply chain risk, I do not need to say, “It is a high likelihood, catastrophic impact, severity score of 20.” It is far more effective to say, “We are concerned about getting materials on time. We have reduced delays, but it remains something to watch to see if we should make alternative decisions.”
Clear language builds trust. Complex language creates distance.
Reflection for readers:
Is your ERM function speaking a language the business can actually act on?
The Cost: Losing Influence
When communication fails, influence fades. Leaders stop reading what they cannot quickly and easily understand. They stop asking questions. The ERM function becomes a box to check instead of a partner to trust.
Imagine preparing to dive with sharks. You do not want a technical briefing filled with equipment terminology and probability charts. You want someone you trust to tell you exactly what to do if something goes wrong. That is what executives expect from ERM: clear direction and confidence.
If the audience is intelligent and still confused, the message has failed. If they ask questions, consider that a gift. Most will not ask; they will simply stop listening.
ERM often does not realize how much credibility it loses when the message feels disconnected from the real world. The insight may be there, but it is buried under layers of technical language that prevent understanding.
Reflection for readers:
If ERM disappeared tomorrow, would executives miss the insight or just the reports, or neither?
The Fix: Translating Risk into Business and Storytelling
Risk communication should be plain, visual, and memorable. ERM’s purpose is to translate technical analysis into business terms that drive understanding and action.
Most ERM professionals were not trained as storytellers. The field grew out of compliance and control, not communication. But as ERM has matured, so has the need for clear and compelling storytelling. A good ERM story helps leaders see both the risk and the opportunity.
A memorable report is one that is used. If an executive refers to it weeks later because it shaped a decision, that is success. If they only remember the colors of the heatmap, that is noise.
Accuracy and simplicity can coexist. Each organization has its own tone and culture. Learn that tone, adapt to it, and use clear language that fits. You do not have to simplify meaning; you have to simplify communication.
Think of cooking. No one needs to know the chemical composition of salt to understand flavor. The same applies to risk. The language should help understanding, not make it harder.
Reflection for readers:
When was the last time someone told you they enjoyed reading an ERM report because it helped them see something clearly for the first time?
Bringing It Together
ERM’s biggest challenge is not just data, frameworks, or structure. It is being understood. The words we use determine whether people listen or tune out.
Speak clearly. Listen closely. Be the translator that helps leaders make sense of complexity. When that happens, ERM stops being a mandatory exercise and becomes a true driver of decision-making.
Let’s discuss how to keep your risk program moving forward without missing a beat. Click here to schedule a Discovery Session or use the Discovery Session button on my website.