Quiz Entry - updated: 2026.07.14
In a qualitative risk analysis, what does a typical 5-level Schadensausmass (damage/impact) scale look like?
From "Vernachlässigbar" (no extra cost, business as usual) up to "Katastrophal" (existential threat to the business).
The recommended 3- to 5-level scale, with the standard English equivalents:
| Level | German | English | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vernachlässigbar | insignificant | Handled in normal operations, no extra cost |
| 2 | Marginal | minor | Some disruption to normal functions; manageable with minimum cost |
| 3 | Mittel | moderate | Requires immediate time/resource reallocation; moderate cost |
| 4 | Kritisch | major | Operations severely disrupted; failure of part of the business possible |
| 5 | Katastrophal | critical | Going concern (entire business) is at risk |
Why standardisation matters: without these definitions, "high impact" means different things to engineering and to finance. Writing them down forces everyone to use the same language at the risk-review meeting.
Tip: Some orgs anchor each level to a CHF range (e.g. "Kritisch = CHF 1–10 M loss") so the scale is still semi-quantitative even when used qualitatively.