Which of the following is a risk management principle?

• A. Anticipate and manage risk by planning
• B. Avoid all risk at all costs
• C. Ignore risk until a crisis
• D. Delegate risk decisions to the adversary

Answer: (A)

Anticipating and managing risk through planning is central because planning embeds risk thinking into every step of an operation. By looking ahead, you identify potential hazards, estimate how likely they are and how severe their impact could be, and then decide on concrete controls, contingencies, and resource needs before things go wrong. This proactive approach lets you design safeguards into the mission, coordinate training and rehearsals, assign responsibilities, and set decision thresholds so you can adapt quickly if conditions change. In practice, it means risk is addressed as part of the plan, not as an afterthought or only when a problem appears.

Choosing to avoid all risk at all costs isn’t realistic because some risk is inherent in any operation, and attempting to eliminate it entirely can paralyze decision-making. Waiting until a crisis to act is reactive and often too late to prevent harm. Delegating risk decisions to the adversary bypasses your control and responsibility to protect your unit.