

Barriers to Project Risk Management
Why is it that most people don't bother with project risk management?
Reasons for overlooking Project Risk Management
·
It is probably true that the majority of
projects do not have a formal risk management plan
·
There are many reasons for this:
· It is not a well established practice in most areas of project management application
· It is not part of the organization's culture
· As soon as you start to think about all the potential risks
· The number and variety appear to be overwhelming!
Some Classic Excuses
Outmoded thinking also provides some classic barriers:
· Risks are inevitable
· "Itíll cost what it costs!"
· Management impatience
· "Weíll cross that bridge when we get there!"
· Risk Management requires too much effort
· "We always add contingency anyway!"
More Excuses
· The effects of probability not understood
· "That could never happen to us!"
· Lack of data or innovation
· "We donít have enough information to do a thorough job!"
· Vested interest
· "Iím determined to see my project through - regardless!"
· Over-confident control
· "Weíll fix that later!"
Still More Excuses
· Lack of vision
· "Weíve always done it this way!"
· Secrecy
· "We donít need their interference!"
· The messenger syndrome
· "Bearers of bad news get punished!"
Bottom Line
·
You could characterize project risk
management as "avoiding surprises"
· Since projects always have surprises
· It is always worth doing project risk management!
·
A little bit of risk management does not
have to be
· Complicated
· Time consuming
· Out of this world
·
As the old saying goes:
· "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!"