Project Management is simply Risk Management

 

When you think about the project management, is it simply comes to you as risk management ? Why risk is so important to any project ?  To project manager, in my view, RISK MANAGEMENT is simply PROJECT MANAGEMENT.

 

Question you have to ask,

 

If project management is robust in the organisation ? There is big chance of failing project, you can call as intrinsic risk but really can bother much in day today project execution.

If people managing it as adhoc processes ? You need to have a specialist here to manage complex project.

If stakeholder buy your reporting ? If reporting is understood by stakeholders e.g. your sponsors, users, board and management.

If project manager foresee the future ? If project manager can see the end as soon as he has analysed project with team and baselined the project first time ? What I mean by "Seeing the future" is project manager always know what it takes to complete the project (since first baseline), as if he is having divine power to predict the end of the project. There could be many changes d1`own the line e.g. scope changes, resignations, cost issues, quality etc. etc. but project manager should always be in control to capture these details from team and provide "What it takes to complete the project". Various technique can be used example EVM - Earned value management, Critical path Analysis, etc. to drive the new baseline or to attain current plan in spite of myriad of changes.

Is enough is done to see the end of project ?   When we start the project there should be proper analysis WBS/PBS ( Work Breakdown Structure and Product Breakdown structure), analysis, sequencing and architecting to come to solution as broader level.  

As soon as we are assigned a project we as team see what are factor which will stop us to realise the business goal of the project. They become part of risk log. Risk could be simply "proper project planning is not done" i.e. Many areas were not uncovered or not understood.

So in a way if project is very simple you can manage it as activity with little planning as risk is low, but when it comes to big project you need to manage each  knowledge areas carefully (namely cost, scope, schedule, quality, human, procurement, stakeholder, communication and integration) otherwise they will create risk to your project success. Risk is like envolve which hold these knowledge areas and you have to keep opening your skills of these based on your risks.