Updating the Risk Log

Overview
Risks change during the life of the project. New risks arise. Old risks change their status. The exposure of the project to risk should be regularly reviewed.

Context
The update of the Risk Log is a cyclic process during stage end processes throughout the project. This is the minimum number of times to review risks. Lengthy or risky projects will need to review risks more frequently.

Process Description
The objective is to re-visit and revise, where necessary, the risks in the Risk Log. These may have been affected by internal or external events.

Each risk should be examined to see if it has increased, disappeared, decreased, happened or stayed the same.

The Next Stage Plan or an Exception Plan may raise new risks or change existing risks. This process should therefore be carried out in conjunction with Planning a Stage and Producing an Exception Plan.

Updates to the Project Plan and Business Case may also contain changes that affect items in the Risk Log. The Business Case update may also have raised new Project Issues that in turn raise new risks or affect risks already recognised.

Responsibilities
The Project Manager is responsible, assisted by project support, and those with project assurance responsibilities should check out the work.

Each major risk should have an 'owner', the member of the Project Management Team best placed to observe the risk and the factors affecting it.

Information Needs

Key Criteria