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Risk Management Plan

Most important risk factors in this specific project are:

  1. Difficulties in implementation
  2. Overoptimistic scheduling
  3. Wrong direction of emphasis
  4. Personal issues (due to the small team)
  5. Inexperienced project management

Factor 1 is the most likely risk to realize. In order to keep this from happening, there are a few guidelines for the project members to keep in mind:

If the first risk realizes at any point, the resolution is to take advantage of any person who has knowledge in the problematic area. This includes the use of Usenet newsgroups or other bulletin board systems found on the Internet. If, and only if the problem is a real show-stopper and development of the software depends on its solution, means of project's management level resolution plans will take place.

Overoptimistic scheduling (2) and inexperienced management (5) together form the second most dangerous risk cluster. Avoiding risk realization will be much easier if management completes the tasks "by the book" and does not cut to own conclusions at every turn.

Two risk factors (3,4), that are left, are the most difficult to minimize, because the direction of emphasis will show up only at the end of the project and personal issues are almost never predictable.

If any of the most likely risks, namely overoptimistic scheduling, seem to realize at a fast pace, there are at least three options to choose from:

  1. end the project at that stage,

  2. leave the project at hold until all the members of project team are available, or

  3. continue under-staffed until the project is finished

of which the last one is most preferred resolution plan both from the client's and the project staff's point of view.


next up previous contents
Next: Technical Process Plans Up: Managerial Process Plans Previous: Metrics Collection Plan   Contents
2002-03-19