Project Management that Works: Real-World Advice on Communicating, Problem Solving, and Everything Else You Need to Know to Get the Job Done

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isk is one of the most discussed topics in project management.

There are a great number of books, seminars, and products that

promote how to identify, qualify, and quantify risks. Risk assess-

ment is a tool to help a project manager (PM) identify potential risks on

a project and help create an overall ranking of risk on the project. Most

risk assessment tools end with an arbitrary number or a subjective

ranking. For example, the end result of a risk assessment can be a score

of 4.533 or “high.” These types of scores probably mean as much to the

PM filling out the risk assessment as they mean to you as you read

this—next to nothing.

■ Why Risk Is Important ...