CRISC IT Risk Identification Practice Question
An organization is implementing a new cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) system. Which of the following risk categories would BEST describe the risk of the CRM system failing to meet performance expectations?
⚠ Common exam trap
CRISC often tests the distinction between risk categories, and candidates frequently confuse operational risk with strategic or reputational risk when a system fails to meet expectations, overlooking that performance issues are fundamentally operational.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Operational risk
Operational risk is the correct answer because it encompasses risks arising from inadequate or failed internal processes, people, systems, or external events that disrupt business operations. A CRM system failing to meet performance expectations directly impacts day-to-day operations such as sales, customer service, and data management. This is a classic operational risk scenario, as it involves the technology and processes that support core business functions.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Compliance risk
Why it's wrong here
Compliance risk covers failure to meet laws, regulations or contractual obligations; poor performance against expectations breaches no external mandate. It is tempting because cloud CRM involves data protection duties, and would be correct when the risk is regulatory breach, such as mishandling customer personal data.
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Strategic risk
Why it's wrong here
Strategic risk concerns misalignment with business objectives or market direction, not whether a deployed system delivers expected throughput or response times. It is tempting because a failed CRM could undermine business goals, and would be correct when the risk is choosing the wrong product or market strategy.
- ✓
Operational risk
Why this is correct
Operational risk covers losses from inadequate or failed internal processes, people and systems. A CRM failing to meet performance expectations is a service delivery failure within live operations, not a credit, market or strategic risk, so operational risk is the appropriate category.
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Reputational risk
Why it's wrong here
Reputational risk is the downstream consequence of an adverse event, not the category describing a system failing to meet performance expectations. It is tempting because visible CRM failures damage customer trust, and would be correct when assessing the impact of a publicly known outage or data breach.
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official ISACA exam blueprint
This CRISC practice question is part of Courseiva's free ISACA certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the CRISC exam.