5 Overlooked Project Risks
From the Voices on Project Management Blog
by Cameron McGaughy,
Lynda Bourne, Kevin Korterud, Conrado Morlan, Peter Tarhanidis, Mario Trentim, Jen Skrabak, David Wakeman, Wanda Curlee, Christian Bisson, Ramiro Rodrigues, Soma Bhattacharya, Emily Luijbregts, Sree Rao, Yasmina Khelifi, Marat Oyvetsky, Lenka Pincot, Jorge Martin Valdes Garciatorres, cyndee miller
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Date
Experienced project managers frequently encounter common project risks, such as lack of available resources or slipped deliverable dates.
But what about those risks that people don't often think of? While often overlooked, these risks might be more real than you think and can often reveal other project challenges.
Here are five unusual, but real, risks that I've heard from project teams. If yours ever brings one up, don't be so quick to dismiss it.
1. Weather The first phase of a software solution deployment targeted several cities with a generally temperate climate. The project team reported a risk of weather delays and asked for a two-week schedule contingency, which was greeted with laughter and objection by the steering committee. Sure enough, the deployment cities experienced their first snowstorm in decades, which resulted in delayed deployment--as predicted. Future deployment planning included a contingency for weather-related changes.
2. Video conferencing capacity A project team presented a report showing it was behind schedule. Team members blamed a lack of robust video conferencing capability, which the steering committee responded to with shocked silence. After the meeting, the project manager discovered that the original project plan did not consider the risk of requiring frequent communications to coordinate development at multiple sites. Identifying it as problem not only fixed the issue, but it led to resolving additional communications issues.
3. Lack of project experience One project team declared that its own project manager was a risk because he didn't have any experience leading projects. As a short-term solution, a senior team member was asked to assist the project manager. Examining this risk further revealed that there were several staffing challenges, including replacing the senior team member assisting the project manager. Had the project manager not been identified as a risk in the first place, they never would have recognized resourcing issues.
4. Vacations and holidays A project team with limited global deployment experience scheduled a European deployment milestone during the month of August. It later reported a risk of difficulties finding local resources to help with deployment due to vacations. After realizing that August is typically a vacation month for Europe, the steering committee not only approved a schedule change, but it also examined the vacations and holidays of the other countries on the deployment schedule. Based on this input, the project team adjusted the schedule and successfully achieved the remaining milestones.
5. Termites One project team declared termites as a project schedule risk. After the steering committee brushed off the need for insecticide, the team shared that termites had chewed through the supports of a mobile office trailer. The damage caused the trailer to be declared unsafe and prompted an unscheduled office move. Moreover, the team members also revealed that they were working in separate mobile trailers, which hampered productivity. Thanks to the initial schedule impact, the project team was relocated to contiguous indoor office space and increased productivity.
Have you ever overlooked any risks? What were they?
Posted
by
Kevin Korterud
on: November 08, 2012 12:53 PM |
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