CRISC Risk Response and Reporting Practice Question
When integrating IT risk into the enterprise risk management (ERM) program, what is the PRIMARY benefit?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates confuse operational benefits (cost reduction, compliance, or process frequency) with the strategic benefit of business alignment, which is the core purpose of integrating IT risk into ERM.
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
✓
Better alignment of IT risk with business objectives
Integrating IT risk into ERM ensures that IT risk decisions are directly linked to business strategy and objectives, enabling leadership to prioritize risks that could impact critical business outcomes. This alignment is the primary benefit because it transforms IT risk from a technical concern into a strategic business driver, facilitating better resource allocation and governance.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Improved compliance with IT standards
Why it's wrong here
Compliance with IT standards is narrower than ERM integration, which seeks enterprise-wide risk aggregation and informed decision-making. Standards compliance is genuinely valuable in regulated environments, making this tempting, but it addresses conformance rather than the integrated risk picture ERM provides.
- ✗
Reduced IT operational costs
Why it's wrong here
Cost reduction is an operational outcome, not the aim of integrating IT risk into ERM; the benefit is consistent, comparable risk visibility across the enterprise. Cost savings can follow improved risk decisions, which is why the option attracts, but they are consequential, not primary.
- ✗
Increased frequency of risk assessments
Why it's wrong here
Raising assessment frequency adds workload without addressing integration's purpose: aligning IT risk with enterprise risk appetite and reporting. It is tempting because regular assessments do support ERM, but frequency is a scheduling choice, not the benefit integration delivers.
- ✓
Better alignment of IT risk with business objectives
Why this is correct
Embedding IT risk within ERM expresses technical exposures in business-impact terms, so decisions weigh them against strategic objectives rather than treating them as isolated technology issues. This satisfies the stem's primary-benefit requirement, giving leadership a consolidated, objective-aligned view of risk.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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