Meet the Expert: Alicia Chen, Risk Officer at EduLaunch

Alicia Chen has been helping online K12 education companies understand and manage risk for almost a decade. She’s steered teams through major campaigns, including International Women’s Day (IWD) rollouts that reached over 120,000 students in 2023. Today, she shares her hands-on, beginner-friendly advice with new general managers eager to do risk assessment right from the start.

Q1: For someone new, what is a 'risk assessment framework' and why should they care, especially during something like an International Women’s Day campaign?

Alicia:
Think of a risk assessment framework like an organized checklist. It helps you figure out what could go wrong with your project — before it actually happens. For an online K12 company, especially during a campaign like IWD, risks aren’t just about cyberattacks or tech outages. They could be cultural misunderstandings, privacy issues with student data, or even accidental exclusion in campaign messaging. Entry-level managers might not realize how quickly a well-intended campaign can cause trouble if you skip risk checks.

For example, in 2023, one platform’s IWD video series unintentionally missed subtitles in Spanish and Mandarin, leading to a spike in parent complaints (over 100 emails in a single day). A framework could have caught that early.

You care about this because risks in K12 aren’t abstract — they’re often visible to parents, students, and schools, and reputation damage can outlast the campaign itself.

Q2: What’s the first step someone should take before they even start a risk assessment?

Alicia:
Pause and ask: "Who will be affected by this campaign?" Start by listing out your main groups. In K12, that’s usually students (and their different age brackets), parents, teachers, district admins, and sometimes regulators.
Then, jot down campaign touchpoints — emails, the LMS, webinars, downloadable content, social media.
Mapping this out takes maybe 20 minutes, but skipping it is risky. You’ll miss someone important if you go straight to frameworks.

Tip: Use a simple Google Sheet or Miro board. Don’t overthink it — this is just your draft.

Q3: What’s a simple, beginner-ready risk assessment framework that works for online K12 teams doing an IWD campaign?

Alicia:
I like the "5x5 Risk Matrix" — it’s visual, fast, and easy to teach. Here’s how it works:

You list possible risks (e.g. "unmoderated chat in IWD webinar" or "student data collection for campaign signups").
Rate the likelihood and impact (1-5 for each). Multiply them for a risk score (max 25).
Anything 15 or above deserves serious attention.

Common gotcha:
For K12, never let “Rare” risks slip off your radar if the impact is high. A data breach, even if unlikely, can be catastrophic and attract regulatory attention (FERPA fines were up 12% in 2023 per EdPolicy Report).

Q4: What are examples of risks specific to IWD campaigns in K12 online learning?

Alicia:
Great question — campaigns like IWD carry unique risks in education.

1. Content Sensitivity: Topics around gender can spark backlash if not handled inclusively. In 2022, a US district paused a STEM campaign after parents flagged "non-inclusive" language.
2. Accessibility: Forgetting alt-text on campaign images or ignoring captioning needs — especially for recorded IWD guest talks.
3. Regional/Cultural Relevance: A campaign tuned for US schools might confuse or offend students in other countries.
4. Data Privacy: Collecting stories or images from students for IWD? You need explicit consent, and you must communicate data handling clearly.

Tracking these in your framework helps you catch issues before they snowball.

Q5: Once you’ve listed and scored risks with the 5x5 matrix, what’s next?

Alicia:
Now, figure out what you’ll do about each risk:

• Avoid: Can you drop or change the activity? (Skip live chat if moderation isn’t possible.)
• Mitigate: Add controls. Hire an extra moderator, enable age-gated signups, or run content by your DEI advisor.
• Share/Transfer: Sometimes, you can share risk — like using a third-party platform with strong compliance.
• Accept: For lower-scored risks, make a note and monitor them.

Write down what you’re doing for each. Don’t trust your memory — new managers have a lot on their plates, and it’s easy to miss something when a real issue pops up.

Q6: What are some 'quick wins' for new managers doing a first risk assessment on an IWD campaign?

Alicia:
Three that I always suggest:

1. Quick Survey: Before launch, send a short poll to 10-20 teachers or parents asking if they see any potential concerns. Zigpoll works well, or Google Forms/Typeform if you already use those.
2. Accessibility Checklist: Use an accessibility scanner (like WAVE or Accessibility Insights) to catch image and video issues. In 2021, one company reduced accessibility complaints by 85% after making quick fixes here.
3. Consent Templates: Never collect student stories or photos without a clear, parent-friendly consent form. Templates speed this up.

You won’t catch every risk, but these steps handle the big ones fast.

Q7: What are the most common mistakes new general managers make with risk assessment frameworks?

Alicia:
A few stand out:

• Overcomplicating the Start: People think they need a 30-page policy. You really just need a few columns in a spreadsheet to begin.
• Ignoring Feedback: Not asking students, parents, or teachers what worries them.
• Focusing Only on Tech: In education, reputational and cultural risks matter a lot, too.
• No Follow-Up: Risk frameworks aren’t set-and-forget. After launch, check if your mitigations worked. For a recent campaign, we saw a 40% drop in parent complaints after adding weekly check-ins.

Q8: How do you track and review risks once a campaign goes live?

Alicia:
Set up a weekly 15-minute "risk check" meeting. It doesn’t have to be formal. Go down your sheet:

• Did something happen? (e.g. flagged an offensive comment — what did we do?)
• Are new risks emerging?
• Are mitigations working?

If using survey tools like Zigpoll or Google Forms, watch for spikes in complaints or confusion. One team went from 2% to 11% conversion on their parent engagement form by acting quickly on negative feedback.

Not every risk will show up in the first week — sometimes it’s week three, when the campaign reaches a different region or age group.

Q9: Are there limitations to using the 5x5 matrix? When should you switch frameworks?

Alicia:
The 5x5 is great for starting out, but it has blind spots:

• It’s subjective — two people might score the same risk differently.
• It doesn’t force you to think long-term (some issues, like reputation, unfold weeks later).
• If you have 30+ risks, it gets crowded.

When your team gets bigger or campaigns grow, consider a RACI chart (Responsible/Accountable/Consulted/Informed) to clarify who owns what, or even a basic Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA). But don’t jump too soon — it's better to actually use a simple tool than to get paralyzed picking the 'perfect' one.

Q10: What data or studies back up the value of risk assessments in K12 online campaigns?

Alicia:
A 2024 Forrester report found that K12 online companies with documented risk frameworks reduced campaign incidents by 27% compared to those without any formal process. In real terms, that meant fewer parent complaints, less unplanned downtime, and smoother launches.

Anecdotally, I worked with a team in 2022 whose IWD campaign reached 15,000 students. Before they used a risk matrix, they had three content errors that took days to fix. After adopting the framework, only one minor issue slipped through, and they were able to resolve it in under two hours.

Q11: Is there a simple template or checklist you recommend for getting started?

Alicia:
Absolutely. Here’s a starter template you can copy into Google Sheets:

Start with 3-5 risks. Update weekly.

Q12: Any final second-step tips for someone who’s done their first risk assessment and wants to get better?

Alicia:
Reflect with your team: What did we miss? Ask for feedback on the process, not just the campaign. Did someone spot a risk you didn’t? What was confusing about the framework?
Keep your sheet — even the mistakes! When you plan next year’s IWD or another campaign, you’ll have a ready-made list of risks to check.

And remember: risk assessment isn’t about avoiding every problem. It’s about handling them faster and showing your stakeholders you’re on top of things.

What Managers Can Do Next

• Pick a simple risk matrix.
• List 3-5 risks for your campaign.
• Check with stakeholders using a quick survey (Zigpoll, Google Forms, or Typeform).
• Set a 15-minute weekly check-in.
• Use your learnings to improve the next campaign.

There’s no need to be perfect, especially at the start. Action beats overthinking, and your future self will thank you for every avoided fire drill.