11.7 Monitor Risks

Description: the process of monitoring the implementation of agreed-upon risk response plans, tracking identified risks, identifying and analyzing new risks, and evaluating risk process effectiveness throughout the project. The process uses performance information generated during project execution to determine if:

• Implemented risk responses are effective,
• Level of overall project risk has changed,
• Status of identified individual project risks has changed,
• New individual project risks have arisen,
• Risk management approach is still appropriate,
• Project assumptions are still valid,
• Risk management policies and procedures are being followed,
• Contingency reserves for cost or schedule require modification, and
• Project strategy is still valid.

Key benefit: it enables project decisions to be based on current information about overall project risk exposure and individual project risks.

Frequency: throughout the project.

Process / Asset Group	Input	The Process	Output	Process / Asset Group
Project Management Plan	Risk management plan	11.7 Monitor Risks	Work performance information	4.5 Monitor and Control Project Work
Project Documents	Issue log		Change requests	4.6 Perform Integrated Change Control
	Lesson learned register		Components	Project Management Plan
	Risk register		Assumption log	Project Documents
	Risk report		Issue log
4.3 Direct and Manage Project Work	Work performance data		Lesson learned register
4.5 Monitor and Control Project Work	Work performance reports		Risk register
			Risk report
			Organizational process assets update	Enterprise / Organization

11.7.1 Inputs

11.7.1.1 Project Management Plan

The risk management plan - guidance on how and when risks should be reviewed, which policies and procedures should be followed, the roles and responsibilities in the monitoring process, and reporting formats.

11.7.1.2 Project Documents

• Issue log.
• Lesson learned register.
• Risk register.
• Risk report.

11.7.1.3 Work Performance Data

Data on project status such as

• Risk responses that have been implemented,
• Risks that have occurred,
• Risks that are active and those that have been closed out.

11.7.1.4 Work Performance Reports

The information is relevant when monitoring performance-related risks:

• Variance analysis
• Earned value data
• Forecasting data

11.7.2 Tools and Techniques

11.7.2.1 Data Analysis

• Technical performance analysis. Technical performance analysis compares technical accomplishments during project execution to the schedule of technical achievement. It requires the definition of objective, quantifiable measures of technical performance, which can be used to compare actual results against targets. Such technical performance measures may include weight, transaction times, number of delivered defects, storage capacity, etc. Deviation can indicate the potential impact of threats or opportunities.
• Reserve analysis. Reserve analysis compares the amount of the contingency reserves remaining to the amount of risk remaining at any time in the project in order to determine if the remaining reserve is adequate. This may be communicated using various graphical representations, including a burndown chart.

11.7.2.2 Audits

A type of audit that may be used to consider the effectiveness of the risk management process. The project manager is responsible for ensuring that risk audits are performed at an appropriate frequency, as defined in the project's risk management plan. Risk audits may be included during routine project review meetings or may form part of a risk review meeting, or the team may choose to hold separate risk audit meetings. The format for the risk audit and its objectives should be clearly defined before the audit is conducted.

11.7.2.3 Meetings

Risk reviews are scheduled regularly and should examine and document the effectiveness of risk responses in dealing with overall project risk and with identified individual project risks. Risk reviews may also result in

• Identification of new individual project risks, (including secondary risks that arise from agreed-upon risk responses),
• Reassessment of current risks,
• The closing of risks that are outdated,
• Issues that have arisen as the result of risks that have occurred, and
• Identification of lessons to be learned for implementation in ongoing phases in the current project or in similar projects in the future.

The risk review may be conducted as part of a periodic project status meeting or a dedicated risk review meeting may be held, as specified in the risk management plan.

11.7.3 Outputs

11.7.3.1 Work Performance Information

How project risk management is performing by comparing the individual risks that have occurred with the expectation of how they would occur.

11.7.3.2 Change Requests

11.7.3.3 Project Management Plan Updates

11.7.3.4 Project Document Updates

• Assumption log.
• Issue log.
• Lesson learned register.
• Risk register.
• Risk report.
  • Reflect the current status of major individual project risks
  • The current level of overall project risk.
  • Details of the top individual project risks,
  • Agreed-upon responses and owners,
  • Conclusions and
  • Recommendations.
  • Conclusions from risk audits on the effectiveness of the risk management process.

11.7.3.5 Organizational Process Asset Updates

• Templates for the risk management plan, risk register, and risk report; and
• Risk breakdown structure.

Ling to the original post