Risk Management

1
Risk Management

• Everyones Favorite Topic (not)
• What It Isnt
• The thing that the risk manager does at City Hall
• What It Is
• A planning process to develop proactive
  contingencies that dictate how to behave when
  things go wrong
• What could possibly go wrong?

2
What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

• The Standish Group surveyed hundreds of public
  and private organizations (of various sizes)
  regarding information technology initiatives
• Purpose
• Document success/failure rates
• Determine best practices
• Identify critical success factors
• Determine what usually goes wrong in technology
  initiatives

3
What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
4
How to Develop a Risk Management Plan

• Identify Risks
• Assemble a general attendance meeting
• Share war stories
• Write them down!

5
How to Develop a Risk Management Plan

• Categorize and Quantify the Risks
• Likelihood
• Remote, Possible, Likely
• Area of Impact
• Time, Quality, Budget
• Severity
• Low, Medium, High
• Determine Tolerance
• What to do? What to do?
• Avoidance, Mitigation, Acceptance

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How to Develop a Risk Management Plan
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How to Develop a Risk Management Plan

• Focus on Prevention
• Time-Related Risks
• Focus on Timelines, Contracts, Incentives
• Quality-Related Risks
• Focus on Realistic Measurable Objectives
• Budget-Related Risks
• Contingency, Contingency, Contingency
• Incorporate Monthly Reviews
• New Risk Identification
• Risk Cancellation

8
I Dont Want to Do It

• Places to Look
• Right here at the Symposium
• Monday at 445 XML War Stories
• Wednesday at 830 Lessons from the Trenches
• Handouts!
• Its just a template
• The Tech Guide

9
Process, Not a Project