Risk Breakdown Structure (RBS)

When doing Risk Management Planning, one input you need is a Risk Breakdown Structure. The model is similar to the Work Breakdown Structure. It may change during the Risk Management Planning Process. Here is an example Risk Management breakdown:

 

• Technical
  • Requirements
  • Technology
  • Complexity
  • Quality
  • Performance
• Management
  • Resources
  • Company Vision
  • Capital
• Organizational
  • Dependencies
  • Budget
  • Prioritization
• External
  • Contractors
  • Vendors
  • Customer
• Project Management
  • Estimating
  • Planning
  • Controlling
  • Communication

 

Risk Breakdown Structures will vary between projects. One benefit of doing one is to remind those people engaged in the Risk Identification process of areas to think about. It will also be an input to Qualitative Risk Analysis where probabilities and impacts are assigned.  The impacts can be numerical or High, Medium, Low.

 

Risks are then prioritized according to their potential implications for affecting the Project’s success. Other things to take into account are stakeholder’s risk tolerance levels, reporting formats and how you will track the risks. The next step in the process will be Risk Identification.