Which of the following is the BEST key performance indicator (KPI) to measure how effectively risk management practices are embedded in the project management office (PMO)?

The percentage of projects with key risk accepted by the steering committee reflects risk acceptance at a governance level, but not necessarily the PMO's proactive management and mitigation efforts for specific project risks.

Reduction in risk policy noncompliance findings measures adherence to policies but doesn't directly gauge the effectiveness of proactive project-specific risk management embedded within the PMO.

Scope creep is a pervasive and high-impact risk in project management that directly jeopardizes project budget, timeline, and deliverables. Measuring the percentage of projects that proactively develop and implement controls specifically to address scope creep indicates that the PMO is effectively integrating active risk identification, planning, and mitigation into its standard project management practices.

Reduction in audits involving external risk consultants could indicate better internal control or compliance, but it doesn't specifically measure how well the PMO is managing operational project risks like scope creep.