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We are once again on a call with Dr David Hillson (http://www.risk-doctor.com) to discuss project risk management.

David is well-known internationally as a leading thinker and expert practitioner in risk management, and he consults, writes and speaks widely on the topic. He specializes in both strategic and tactical risk, with a particular interest in opportunities and risk psychology.

In this interview, we look at project risk responses. Or to be precise… we look at them to find out why people seem to forget about them.

The issue at hand is the fact that the typical project risk management process doesn’t include a step to "Implement Risk Responses". So it is common for people to identify and assess their risks, develop responses, record these responses in the risk register, and then… do nothing! We forget. We simply forget.

To help us get around this, David is campaigning for not just one, but two additional steps to be included into the project risk management processes. So that we don’t forget.

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This episode is sponsored by The PM PrepCast for The PMP Exam:

This week we continue our journey into risk management in project management with a second interview that I did with Dr David Hillson (http://www.risk-doctor.com). We will discuss “overall project risk”, which is different from “individual project risks”.

At the center of our discussion is the situation when your project sponsor or client asks you “How risky is this project?”

This is a question you might get about risk management in agile projects too, as clients want to know what their exposure is regardless of the methods or techniques used in the delivery.

The concept of “overall project risk” is mentioned in the PMBOK® Guide as well as the PMI Practice Standard for Project Risk Management, but it seems not too well understood and few project managers are using it. So let’s change that.

As you’ll hear in our conversation, David will be presenting on this topic at an upcoming PMI Congress shortly after we recorded this interview. He has made his paper available to us all and you can download a PDF version right here...

I also recommend that you read the following paper from David: http://risk-doctor.com/pdf-files/ADV05.pdf

And of course you can always stop by at the David Hillson Author Page on Amazon, where you will find all the books he has published.

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This episode is sponsored by The PM PrepCast for The PMP Exam:

My guest today is none other than Dr David Hillson (http://www.risk-doctor.com). You may have heard of him as the Risk Doctor and having him on the program is a great opportunity for us. In fact… project opportunity management is actually at the center of todays discussion!

Here is what David says about opportunities: "Most PMs still don’t get is the idea of upside risk or opportunity - or more accurately, they understand the theory but they don’t put it into practice." So in a moment we will not only learn what opportunities are, but more importantly we’ll hear David discuss several ways of identifying as well a properly managing them on your project.

Risk management strategies for agile projects use the same techniques so this episode is relevant to listeners working with agile techniques as well.

Since this is the first (and long overdue) appearance of David on The PM Podcast, here is a little bit about him first:

Known globally as The Risk Doctor, Dr David Hillson is an award-winning thought-leader and expert practitioner who consults and writes widely on risk management. His ground-breaking work in project risk management was recognised by honorary fellowships from both the Association for Project Management (APM) and the Project Management Institute (PMI®). He was also named “Risk Personality of the Year” in 2010-11. David is an active Fellow of the Institute of Risk Management (IRM), and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) to contribute to its Risk Commission. He is also a Chartered Fellow with the Chartered Management Institute (CMI).

I also recommend that you read the following Risk Doctor Briefings:

• How Do I Find Opportunities (PDF)
• Working Backwards to Opportunities (PDF)
• Opportunity Management Means Scope Creep? (PDF)

Each of these briefings is related to the topic of our discussion.

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In this video we answer the following questions about Agile Project Management from Alicia Aurichio, PMP:

• What is the most common or widely-used form of Agile?
• What types of industries are using Agile?
• What are the success metrics of adopting Agile in the organization?
• Some business groups are adopting "Agile" for business processes, as well. Is there an Agile business method that is different from the traditional Agile Software Development methodologies?
• How do you obtain hands-on experience in Agile PM, if you are not currently working for an organization that uses agile?

Agile is growing in popularity, and has been for some time. Whether you want to take some scrum agile project management training, move into the role of project manager in SAFe agile, or any of the other methods, approaches and frameworks in use, adding Agile to your skillset is sure to enhance your career.