Practical Project Management

Risk Control

Once all risk events are graded, the project team agrees how to manage the risks to minimise the effects if the risk event happened.

Each identified risk event should be owned by an individual project team member and the amount of effort and resources allocated should be proportional to the risk exposure.

Three methods of risk control should be considered, avoidance, mitigation and acceptance.

Avoidance

Eliminating the root cause of the risk event. The most preferable course of action.

Mitigation

Reducing the exposure to the risk by passing on the risk to another party (insurance cover, or contractually) or by assigning a project team member to actively reduce the characteristics of the risk event so that it can be down graded.

Acceptance

Accepting the consequences of the risk event. This should only be considered for category 4 risk events. Furthermore it may be expedient to develop a contingency plan for instances where the risk event does occur.

Monitoring

Each identified potential risk event should be monitored by the project manager throughout the project life cycle. Actions should be taken to eliminate the risk or to down grade the risk. Downgrading should only occur at project planning meetings, by consensus.

Recording of risk events

An example of a suitable form is included in the Project Risk Register, available from the download section.

The Risk Register is a record of each identified risk. It is in two sections. The complete register should be contained within one ring binder.

Section one is a list of the risks showing the current status of each risk.

Section two is a collection of risk monitoring forms. The risk monitoring forms are 'living documents' and are updated at each risk management session (an agenda item at each project planning meeting).

One form is used for each risk event. It shows the outcome of the risk analysis, the agreed control method, agreed ways to control the risk, the owner of that risk event and a diary section describing actions taken to control the risk.

It is not necessary to update the revision status of the parent document every time an individual monitoring sheet is updated. And it may be more effective/efficient to update the monitoring sheets by hand as each risk event is discussed.

Risk Management plan

A risk management plan is an integral part of the project plan. Physically, it will probably be a seperate document and in its simpliest form no more than descriptive text defining the methods and processes to use in managing the project risk along with a register of the identified risk events.

Next month we discus the Project Risk Management Plan in more detail, and include an easy to use template available for free download.

Jeb Riordan (c) 2000

About the Author

Jeb Riordan

Is a working project manager with over twenty years experience in the construction of telecommunication networks and is currently on assignment in the Philippines.
He was a member of the Project Management Institute and his PMP certification is in good standing.

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