Course Overview

Project Risk Management

The course is designed for project managers, team leaders and others who need a good understanding of the purpose, principles and practice of risk management. The course uses a case study drawn from the area of information and communications technology but is equally accessible to people working in other disciplines.

The course has been developed in collaboration with MM Associates Ltd, a management consultancy specialising in the provision of risk management services to a wide range of clients. The course is highly participative and the lecture/discussion sessions are supported by a realistic and detailed case study based on an IT development project.

SFIA Mapping

This course supports skills BURM level 5 and PRMG level 4.

Course Content

1. Introduction
   • Course programme
   • Course objectives
   • Introductions to participants and lecturers
   • Review of participants’ experiences of risk management in projects
2. Background to risk management
   • Definitions of risk management
   • Risk management as part of project management
   • The business case for risk management
3. Risk management and decision making
   • Application to the project lifecycle
   • Risk management in the decision-making process
   • Exercise - identification of project ‘decision gates’
   • Stakeholders
   • Risk management roles and responsibilities
4. Applying risk management
   • Risk management lifecycle
   • Schedule of risk management activities
   • Assessing the appropriate level of risk management
   • Defining the procedures
5. Case study briefing
6. Risk management methods (1)
   • Identifying risks
   • The risk register/risk log introduced
7. Risk identification in practice
   • Exercise – identifying risks
8. Risk management methods (2)
   • Understanding risk impacts (on time/cost/quality)
   • Impact assessment
   • Probability assessment
   • Urgency assessment
9. Risk assessment in practice
   • Exercise – assessing risks
10. Risk management methods (3)
    • Risk management actions
    • Risk acceptance, avoidance, mitigation and transference
    • Risk ownership
11. Risk actions in practice
    • Exercise – identifying risk actions and owners
12. Risk management methods (4)
    • Reviewing the pattern of risk over time
    • Adjusting the process
    • Re-evaluating risks
13. Risk review in practice
    • Exercise – review of risks over time
14. Other risk concepts
    • Introduction to quantitative risk assessment