By Sarah Gell
for the 2025 Risky Women Writing Competition, presented in partnership with Ocorian
In a landscape cluttered with risk registers and doom-filled discussions, it’s interesting to think that reframing risk could be the next big trend, much like avocado toast. As more women step into leadership roles, perhaps they’ll finally ask the important question: “What if we focused on achieving outcomes instead of just avoiding disasters?”
Beyond the Risk Register: A Female Perspective on Reclaiming Risk for Results
For years, governance, risk and compliance (GRC) has revolved around what might go wrong. Risk registers have filled board packs with pitfalls, mitigation plans and heat maps. It’s a language we’ve all had to learn. But after years working in and around risk functions, I believe it’s time to ask a different question:
What if this model, valuable as it once was, is no longer fit for purpose?
Across the profession, more women are stepping into senior roles, bringing different energy, tone and questions. Many of us aren’t calling for less risk awareness, but a reframe — away from managing risk for its own sake, towards managing outcomes that matter. Because ultimately, isn’t that what we’re here to do?
A Fresh Voice in a Familiar Space
I’ve often sat in meetings where the mindset is, “How do we stop this going wrong?” A fair question — but one that becomes paralysing over time. In traditionally structured organisations, risk conversations tend to lean towards caution. The tone is conservative. The ambition constrained. The innovation stifled.
By contrast, the most energising GRC conversations I’ve had — often shaped by more diverse voices — begin with, “What are we trying to achieve?” It’s a mindset that prioritises clarity, accountability and ambition. When different lived experiences are in the room, the conversation shifts. Risk stops being a limitation and becomes a catalyst for strategic growth.
This is where the Outcome Management Framework comes in. It offers a structured way to shift GRC from passive oversight to purposeful enablement, focusing not on “What could go wrong?” but on “What might get in the way of our goals?”
What Is Outcome Management and Why Does It Matter?
Outcome management begins with clearly defined objectives: compliance, growth, client retention, transformation. Risks are re-cast not as abstract threats but as obstacles to delivery. A GDPR breach isn’t just an “amber regulatory risk”; it’s a barrier to responsible data stewardship.
The Outcome Management Framework follows five steps:
- Define clear, value-led outcomes
- Identify what might obstruct them
- Assign real accountability
- Track performance with tangible metrics
- Make decisions based on outcomes, not obstacles
It moves risk away from the “stuff no one wants to do” and turns it into something that drives value, alignment and delivery.
Why Women Are Driving This Shift
It would be simplistic to suggest all women think the same. But many of us navigate systems not built with our experiences in mind — where tradition trumps inclusion, and credibility must be earned twice to be accepted once. As Forbes notes, women often feel pressure to adapt their leadership style to fit inherited norms, navigating a double standard where authenticity can still be seen as a risk rather than a strength (https://www.forbes.com/sites/soulaimagourani/2024/01/25/the-challenge-of-authenticity-for-women-leaders). Even the Barbie film captured this with striking clarity: “You have to be extraordinary, but somehow you’re always doing it wrong.”
That tension is familiar in GRC, where the burden of proof often falls heavier and expectations are narrower. But it also gives us insight. We ask questions that challenge orthodoxy. Many women bring a perspective shaped by complexity — seeing how strategy plays out in practice, not just on paper. It’s not about ambition or discipline — it’s about knowing how to use both when it matters. And we often favour inclusive frameworks, like outcome management, that enable dialogue, ownership and accountability.
This isn’t about suggesting women are better at risk. It’s about recognising that diverse voices — across gender, background and lived experience — enrich how risk is understood, communicated and led.
“Female leaders are well positioned to continue shaping the direction of risk management and compliance by emphasising ethical decision making, inclusivity and long term sustainability.”
Risky Women® (https://www.riskywomen.org/2024/11/evolution-of-female-leadership-in-risk-management-and-compliance/)
From Box-Ticking to Value Creation
One of the most persistent frustrations in our field is that risk is still seen as a compliance chore — a back-end task completed after the strategy is set. It’s treated as a tick-box exercise: necessary, but disconnected from delivery. This mindset dulls engagement and limits the strategic value of risk.
Outcome management dissolves that boundary. It embeds risk into planning and transformation. Rather than being reactive, risk becomes anticipatory — informing decisions as strategy develops. It aligns effort with purpose and ensures governance drives progress, not just protection.
It also changes how we measure success. In a traditional model, success means: “Nothing went wrong.” In an outcome model, it means: “We delivered what we said we would — with integrity, resilience and impact.” That’s a powerful shift, especially in moments of change or scrutiny.
What Comes Next
We’re at a crossroads, with more women helping shape how organisations think, govern and grow. Now is the time to move beyond legacy models that treat risk purely as control, and instead build frameworks that balance ambition with resilience and accountability with inclusion.
Good governance isn’t about ticking boxes. It’s about delivering outcomes that reflect who we are, what we stand for, and what we can achieve — together.