Do I need a Project Risk Management Plan?
Continuing our journey in project risk management
This will be the last newsletter on project risk management. We’ll move on to another theme in the following newsletter.
Let me know if there is a particular theme that you would like me to cover.
If you want copies of the previous newsletters on risk management, drop me a message.
For my existing subscribers, this is the first newsletter on Substack. Let me know what you think. Do you like it or prefer the old newsletter?
What is a Project Risk Management Plan?
A Project Risk Management Plan (PRMP) is a document that describes how risks are managed in the project. It is an artefact within PMBOK and the Project Risk Management Knowledge Area.
It is done early in the project cycle and is reviewed and updated throughout the lifecycle of the project.
The project risk management plan includes:
Overview of the risk management plan including the objectives and stakeholders
Scope of the risks being managed in the project
The approach to risk management; tools, techniques, process, risk management and monitoring and controlling
Risk framework being used; appetite for risk by the organisation and Steering Committee or Sponsor. How the risks will be measured (likelihood and impact).
Process of risk being identified.
Roles and responsibilities of the project and stakeholders in managing risks in the project.
The budget allocated to manage risks.
What documentation and reporting will be available
How risk management will integrate with the rest of the project’s plans and processes.
Do I need a Project Risk Management Plan?
Some organizations mandate a PRMP as part of their project management framework whilst others leave it to the discretion of the project manager.
I know that some project managers go through the motions and put together a PRMP because they need to tick it off their list. I used to do that too. With everything else that is going on when you’re kicking off a project, it can be challenging to give enough time to another document.
I think that a PRMP is one of the most important documents or plans that a project manager can create.
What derails a project - risks, amongst other things. Risks that we haven’t planned for or didn’t see coming. In the middle of delivery, there is so much going on that you need a framework that you already have in place that you can rely on to help you and the team manage risks.
Whether you’re a new or experienced project manager, I recommend having a PRMP.
Now, I know what you’re feeling - another plan!
But it doesn’t need to be 40 pages long. It’s not the document that will help you. It’s the planning process, thinking and alignment with your project team, your stakeholders and your Sponsor that is important.
You won’t be creating the plan in isolation. You’ll need to engage your team, stakeholders and Sponsor. This is where the power of the plan sits. Everyone will be on the same page and everyone will know what is expected.
One more thing, the plan isn’t set and forget. It will need to be reviewed and updated as you progress through the delivery lifecycle. This will keep it relevant and continue to be valuable in helping you and your team manage risks.
How does this fit into an Agile delivery team?
Most Agile teams are persistent teams, where they are either part of an Agile Release Train or working together on a platform or product. These teams are working in a known domain and context.
Agile doesn’t specify a risk artefact or process. The whole framework is designed around managing risk.
I think for these teams, having a PRMP is still a good idea for the overall delivery that can be reused with each release. It should be reviewed at the beginning of each release to see whether it needs adjustment to fit the requirements of the release.
Again, it’s not about the document but about the process of planning and getting alignment with the team on how risks need to be managed at each release. This allows the delivery manager or project manager or Release Train Manager to have a framework to manage risks across Agile teams. Everyone knows how risks are identified, assessed and managed.
Practice - Aligning your current process to the ideal
One of the challenges with running a project is that there is an ideal process and how you and the team actually manage that process. For this practice, what we want to do is to make the ideal and the actual as close as possible. This means how you document it is how you run it. It does not mean that you do things that don’t make sense.
It also helps you to instil discipline in how you and the team manage risks.
Create a project management risk plan even if you are in the middle of a project or review the one that you have.
Review your current practice, does it match the project management risk plan?
Is it effective? What doesn’t align? What works but isn’t reflected in the plan? What needs to be changed or removed or added?
Review this after you have done it for a while. Has your practice of risk management improved? if it doesn’t, have a retrospective on it with the team to identify why and how you all can improve it.
Quote
“The obstacle in the path becomes the path. Never forget, within every obstacle is an opportunity to improve our condition.”
― Ryan Holiday, The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph
Taking this quote, journal how you can take the current obstacles you have in your project to improve your, team’s and the project’s performance.
It doesn't have to be a big change, it can be a small tweak.
If you’re comfortable sharing, drop me a note on it.
Interesting Articles, Podcasts and Resources
Brendon Burchard is a high-performance coach and has written many books on personal development. High-Performance Habits is a book that distils the research he has done on high performers around the world.
There are 6 habits that form high performance:
Clarity
Energy
Necessity
Productivity
Influence
Courage
Within each of these habits, he outlines practices that can be put in place to help lift up your own performance within your professional and personal life.
It’s a book that I keep reviewing and practices that I try to instil on a daily basis.
I highly recommend it.