158 Managing projects Dealing with risks Use this checklist when you have identified your risks and need help in understanding the implications. It contains a summary of qualitative risk assessment. (Quantitative risk assessment is outside of the scope of this book.) 1 Do you understand what the risk is? What will this risk affect if it occurs, the project or the business? (In the worst case will the risk make the project fail, or will it have wider implications for your business or organisation?) Is it a project risk? Can you manage it, with your sponsor's and customers' support? Is it a business risk? Make sure the parts of the business affected by the risk understand and accept the risk. 2 3 4 5 Define a scale on which you will assess impact and likelihood of risk. For small projects a simple scale of high, medium and low is usually enough. What is the impact on the project of this risk occurring? What is the likelihood of the risk occurring? What is the impact on the business or organisation if this risk occurs? Overall risk = likelihood × impact. Use the following checklist to decide on the appropriate management action when you have identified and assessed the risk. 1 Start risk management as your project begins. When you start thinking about the project and developing your plan, think about risk. The best way to deal with risks is to identify them early and build any action to overcome them into your plan. Don't worry when you find risks ­ project management is largely about risk management! Put a risk management process in place (see page 151). Identify risks (see page 152). Understand and prioritise risks (see above). 2 3 4 5