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About this lesson
Positive Risk Response is determining what actions the project will take to address risk opportunities.
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Quick reference
Positive Risk Response
Positive Risk Response is determining what actions the project will take to address risk opportunities.
When to use
Once the risk analysis is complete (both qualitative and quantitative) risk response is prepared for appropriate risks. Early in the project, there are often risk opportunities available to the project team. As the project progresses, many times the negative cost and schedule impact of making the change is greater than the positive benefit. Therefore, positive risk opportunities must be sought early in the project.
Whenever a risk changes priority, the risk response should be reassessed.
If a risk response has been implemented in the project plan, but it is later determined to be insufficient to accommodate the risk, additional risk response should be created.
Instructions
Definition
Risk Response: “The process of developing options and actions to enhance opportunities and reduce threats to project objectives.” PMBOK® Guide
There are five approaches to Positive Risk Response. The characteristics of the organization and unique features of the project will determine which approach to use.
Escalate
This approach is used when the opportunity would cause the project to operate outside the original charter boundaries or objectives. This approach should be used if the other approaches are not able to take full advantage of the opportunity. The stakeholders must approve the boundary change and then the team will need to replan the project.
Exploit
Change the project plan so that the risk will happen. In this case the focus is on the likelihood aspect of the opportunity. By changing the project plan the opportunity is no longer uncertain but becomes certain. Some opportunities will always remain uncertain, but many can be built into the project.
Enhance
This approach to an opportunity is to increase the likelihood of the impact or both. This is often done by changing the resources or timing of an activity.
Share
This is often structured as a joint venture or some other type of risk-sharing partnership. The organization that you are “sharing” with will enhance or enable the opportunity.
Accept
If you do not select one of the other approaches, you are selecting accept. This approach is appropriate for very small or unlikely risks.
This definition is taken from the Glossary of the Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Sixth Edition, Project Management Institute, Inc., 2017.
Hints & tips
- The responses can be combined in order to get a more effective response.
- Before escalation, the project team should have attempted all of the other responses that they are able to implement.
- When the risk rating changes, the response may need to change also.
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