8000 Risks – Really?

In his great book “The Body” Bill Bryson explores all of the amazing things that, together, comprise our bodies – but not necessarily us. If you touch on life, death will also be a topic and he quotes a very impressive document* in telling us that there are ‘slightly more than eight thousand’ things that can kill us.

Eight thousand.  Now THAT is a risk manager’s nightmare.

Yet, in every project, we know – we know – that there will always be threats we cannot mitigate.  We also know – we know – that there are opportunities we will not be able to take advantage of.

This can make it easy to slip oh-so-gently into an attitude of reactive risk management.

You can address this concern in a leadership driven project management© approach more easily than some others –

• Model behavior and decisions that reinforce the importance of risk management – both threats and opportunities. How? Make it a part of the conversation, make it safe to bring up concerns or suggestions.
• Encourage the team members who have a reasoned approach. We can’t always do anything about 8000 risks but a reasoned approach includes prioritization – a thoughtful assessment of probability and impact and timing.  Is this a risk that will have its greatest probability now or later?  If now, support your teams in acting upon it.  If later, record and retain the information so you can address it later.

Any other suggestions folks?

If you want to learn more about how a leadership driven project management© approach can move the needle on your teams’ culture and productivity contactus@ksppartnership.com!

*The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems compiled by the World Health Organization.