Risk Assessment & Mitigation Flashcards
7 cards from real ICF practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Risk Assessment & Mitigation flashcards as text
A coach is hired by a corporation to coach multiple employees. Which risk is MOST unique to this organizational coaching context?
Answer: Managing competing loyalties between coachee confidentiality and sponsor expectations
Organizational coaching creates a three-way relationship where the coach must balance coachee confidentiality against sponsor reporting needs, a risk not present in individual coaching.
Which action BEST mitigates the risk of a client misunderstanding what coaching can deliver?
Answer: Establishing a clear coaching agreement that defines coaching's scope and limitations
A thorough coaching agreement that clarifies what coaching is, what it is not, and what outcomes are realistic is the primary tool for managing client expectations.
A client who is also a close personal friend asks a coach to begin formal coaching. The GREATEST risk in this scenario is:
Answer: Dual relationship dynamics compromising coaching objectivity and boundaries
Dual relationships create risks to objectivity, boundary clarity, and both the coaching and personal relationship, which ICF ethics require coaches to carefully evaluate.
In risk assessment, what does 'due diligence' require a coach to do before accepting a new organizational client?
Answer: Assess whether their competencies match the client's needs and organizational context
ICF-aligned due diligence requires coaches to honestly assess their competency fit for a client's specific context before entering an agreement.
A coach discovers mid-engagement that a coachee is being coerced by their employer into the coaching program. What is the best risk mitigation response?
Answer: Address the coercive dynamic openly and consider whether voluntary coaching is possible
Voluntary participation is a prerequisite for effective coaching; ICF ethics require coaches to address coercive contexts that undermine client autonomy.
Which scenario represents the HIGHEST reputational risk for an ICF-credentialed coach?
Answer: Publicly claiming coaching outcomes that go beyond what coaching can substantiate
Making unsubstantiated or exaggerated claims about coaching outcomes violates ICF ethics and creates significant reputational and credibility risk.
When a coach suspects a client may be experiencing suicidal ideation, the appropriate risk response is to:
Answer: Ask directly about suicidal thoughts and provide crisis resource information
Direct, compassionate inquiry and provision of crisis resources is the evidence-based and ICF-aligned response when suicidal ideation is suspected.