Using Risk and Safety Analysis as Part of the Requirements Process

Guest Post by Paul Kostek (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

Frequently in my work as a systems engineer I’m faced with producing several artifacts for a project, typically a system architecture, model(s), requirements, safety analysis and risk analysis (management plan).

The challenge is many of these are treated as serial activities, items to be completed but not necessarily tied together. To produce an architecture and requirements that reflect all of the known/identified issues we should be working on all of these activities concurrently or at the least have a first cut at the safety and risk analysis before starting the requirements. From a project planning stand-point how these are shown on a schedule are driven by the size of the team and the project schedule. “What do we need to complete a phase/gate review” is how the schedule ends up being built versus what do we need to proceed with the systems design and architecture. [Read more…]

by Greg Hutchins 2 Comments

Requirements Development and Risk Management

Guest Post by Paul Kostek (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

One of the keys to a successful project is having a set of requirements that are well defined and stable. We’ve all worked on projects where a lack of defined and controlled requirements has led to scope creep which result in schedule delays.

The requirements development process must also include mitigations for the risks identified in the Risk Management Plan. To accomplish this the initial risk assessment must be completed before the requirements development process begins. [Read more…]

by Greg Hutchins Leave a Comment

How to Make Smarter Decisions

Guest Post by Greg Hutchins (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

Did we get it all wrong? Wow! This could break our business model. Let me explain:

We developed Certified Enterprise Risk Manager® and all of our risk IP based on a simple fact. We live in VUCA time (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity). We based our business business model on providing:

Risk-based, problem-solving.
Risk-based, decision-making.™

So, what’s the problem? [Read more…]

by Greg Hutchins Leave a Comment

Making Decisions That Work For You!

Guest Post by Ed Perkins (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

There is a lot of literature written on decision making, ‘how to’, best practices, process, factors and so to follow to make ‘good’ decisions. We have been exploring ‘risk based’ decision making in these blogs. We have looked at factors, process, frameworks, psychology and bias.

But we have not discussed perhaps the most important aspect of any decision – implementation or that double edged word ‘execution.’ (Of course this assumes that the decision maker wants something to actually happen as a result of the decision, but that is a topic for another day).

Let’s use the nicer word – Implementation – which implies there is a course of ACTION, with a timeframe for results to be produced or to occur. [Read more…]

by Greg Hutchins 2 Comments

Basics: Project Risk Management

Guest Post by Rod Farrar (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

The project management body of knowledge generally focuses on scope management, time management, and cost management. Risk management generally comes in at about 8th place out of the ten.

However, risk management is potentially the biggest part of the project management planning process.

Often organizations assign resources, dollars and time to project objectives to know exactly when the project is going to finish, how much it is going to cost and what resources are needed.

The problem with doing this is they have not identified risks. [Read more…]

by Fred Schenkelberg 2 Comments

Definition of Risk Related to Reliability

Creating a reliable product that meets customer expectations is risky.

What is risk and how does one go about managing risk? The recent set of ISO standard updates elevates risk management.

A starting place is a definition. [Read more…]

by Fred Schenkelberg 2 Comments

When Management Doesn’t Listen

A Bloomberg articles details the Takata airbag recall series of events. The line that caught my attention is:

…company documents suggesting that Takata executives discounted concerns from their own employees and hid the potential danger…

“Sixty Million Car Bombs: Inside Takata’s Airbag Crisis”, Susan Berfield, et.al. Bloomberg Business Week, posted June 2^nd, 2016, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2016-06-02/sixty-million-car-bombs-inside-takata-s-air-bag-crisis

There are other examples where management doesn’t seem to listen when engineers raise concerns. Have we cried wolf too often? Has management gotten used to taken risks as a good business practice?

At times reliability risks are real and need to be clearly communicated. Let’s talk about how you can effectively get the message across. [Read more…]

by James Kovacevic Leave a Comment

Is Your Operation at Risk?

There are many internal & external pressures on our operations. Many we don’t even think about, or are even aware of. These pressures greatly influence our ability to be profitable, and therefore sustainable. Being aware of these pressures & barriers will allow us to head them off and ensure our profitability.

I remember when I was unexpectedly asked to cut my maintenance staff by 30%. What I wasn’t aware of was one of the largest external pressures, the shareholders. They were not impressed by the returns and demanded immediate action. [Read more…]

by Greg Hutchins Leave a Comment

Cover Your Assets and Plausible Deniability

Guest Post by Ed Perkins (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

In an earlier post [1] we looked whether ‘plausible deniability’ was now a dead strategy in the face of enterprise risk management (ERM) and the likely impact of the US SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) guidance [2] regarding disclosure obligations relating to operational and cybersecurity risks and cyber incidents. The SEC noted that “a number of disclosure requirements may impose an obligation on registrants to disclose such risks and incidents. [Read more…]

by Greg Hutchins Leave a Comment

Requirements Development and Risk Management

Guest Post by Paul Kostek (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

by Greg Hutchins Leave a Comment

Human Factors and Risk

Guest Post by Paul Kostek (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

There is an aviation old joke that in the future the airplane will have a crew of two, a pilot and a dog. The pilot to feed the dog and the dog to bite the pilot if he tries to touch anything.

I started this article after reading about United Airlines plan to bring in all 12,000 of its pilots for additional training outside of their normal training schedule. This was being done as a result of several incidents that raised concerns about pilot response to failures. [Read more…]

by Greg Hutchins Leave a Comment

Unintended Consequences of Risk Reporting

Guest Post by Geary Sikich and Joop Remme (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

Introduction

In this article we posit three questions. The first question is: “Is it a social responsibility of companies that they undertake a comprehensive risk assessment?” The second question: “Does the notion of conscience and its application to the generation and use of risk information and information in general, create an obligation for the organization to disclose the results of the comprehensive risk assessment?” The third question “How do the people in the organization communicate the information from the comprehensive risk assessment to stakeholders and yet preserve security and protect the organization?” [Read more…]

by Greg Hutchins Leave a Comment

Minimizing Career Path Risk

Guest Post by John Ayers (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

Some people say take what you love in college. Problem is, not too many high school seniors know what they love. Others say college should be an intellectual journey. Problem is many degrees will not prepare you for the real world in terms of making a good living. I believe college is to prepare you for a career which can support you and a family down the road. If important, intellectual studies can take place outside of work using the internet. [Read more…]

by Greg Hutchins Leave a Comment

US Government ERM Requirement Finalized

Guest Post by Greg Hutchins (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

We’ve been discussing how ISO 9001:2015 has adopted Risk Based Thinking that will impact 1.2 million companies. ISO 14001:2015 will impact 400,000 companies. Now, government agencies are adopting and putting into statute risk management.

We’ve been talking up the fact the US government is requiring Enterprise Risk Management (ERM), specifically Office of Management and Budget Circular OMB A 123, of all US departments. This is a game changer for federal agencies. In this article, we’ll look at some of the significant changes in ERM for Federal agencies. [Read more…]

by Greg Hutchins Leave a Comment

The Nine Circles of Planning Hell

Guest Post by Geary Sikich (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

The Nine Circles of Planning Hell (Adapted from Dante’s Inferno)

Introduction

Inferno, the first part of Dante’s Divine Comedy that inspired the latest Dan Brown’s bestseller of the same title describes the poet’s vision of Hell. The story begins with the narrator (who is the poet himself) being lost in a dark wood where he is attacked by three beasts which he cannot escape. He is rescued by the Roman poet Virgil who is sent by Beatrice (Dante’s ideal woman). Together, they begin the journey into the underworld or the Nine Circles of Hell. [Read more…]