Essentially, risk management is a fundamental aspect of every project. At work, we experience handling risks to mitigate negative consequences. Risk management is crucial to investigating the current situation and making essential predictions concerning the future. Risk management is a practice used not only to ensure project success but also to create additional value for both customers and employees (Willumsen et al., 2019).
Nevertheless, “every project manager understands risks are inherent in projects, deliveries are delayed, accidents happen, people get sick” (Larson & Gray, 2017, p. 207). For instance, recently, I was responsible for an important project at work, leading a team. The task was complex, and the deadline was given shorter than our team expected. My vital goal as a project manager was to identify and manage risks and reduce the possibility of undesirable events to ensure a successful project’s completion.
Therefore, I have applied the Risk Management Process for handling risk events, which includes four significant steps. According to Larson and Gray (2017), the first step is to analyze the project to identify sources of risks, followed by the risk assessment step in terms of severity of impact, the likelihood of occurring, and controllability. Consequently, the third step is risk response development consisting of strategy creation and contingency plans. Finally, the fourth step refers to risk response control, namely risk strategy implementation, plan monitoring for new risks, and change management.
Essentially, I have carefully checked the project goals and requirements and compared them to my team’s resources. The risk impact scales identified the significant risks with the highest possibility, such as possible lateness of project completion and schedule slippage. Thus, I conducted a team meeting to assign team responsibilities and divide tasks according to the project. Moreover, we decided on a fifteen-minute daily session during the project duration to follow the process and avoid anticipated consequences. According to the strategy, if a problem arises and a team member would not be able to complete the daily task due to some valid reasons, someone from the colleagues could help.
In addition, a risk profile was created and tailored to the current projects, including technical and management risks. Larson and Gray (2017) state that a risk portfolio is a powerful tool to “address traditional areas of uncertainty on a project” (p. 211). I ensured that the team regained confidence in themselves and the project’s success and accomplished team objectives. Team activities involved completion of daily assigned tasks, participating in daily meetings and follow-ups and showing project progress. Moreover, I have developed a contingency plan, which is also called an alternative plan (Larson & Gray, 2017).
Based on it, if a member of my team would not be able to perform efficiently, I will urge another team member to join our project temporarily and adjust the schedule in order to avoid delay. To conclude, the project outcome was positive due to significant team outputs, initial risk assessments, and strategy implementation. Thus, risk management should be characterized as an integral part of any plan, strategy, or project.
References
Larson, E., & Gray, C. (2017). Project management: The managerial process (7th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.
Willumsen, P., Oehmen, J., Stingl, V., & Geraldi, J. (2019). Value creation through project risk management. International Journal of Project Management, 37(5), 731-749. Web.