Which of the following risk categories would normally represent the greatest severity?

• A. Critical
• B. High
• C. Moderate
• D. Low

Answer: (A)

Risk severity describes how serious the impact of a risk event would be on project objectives. The categories are arranged so that Critical denotes the most serious consequences—events that could endanger life or safety, cause catastrophic project disruption, or lead to extreme cost or schedule overruns and require immediate, urgent mitigation. High indicates a very serious impact, but not as extreme as Critical; Moderate and Low reflect progressively lesser effects. Remember that severity focuses on the consequences if the risk occurs (regardless of how likely it is), whereas probability is a separate consideration. So the category that represents the greatest severity is Critical.