Projects are Risky Business - Tip #4, by George Bridges PMP

Tip #4: When you review your risk management plan, make it a habit to include discussions of positive risk (opportunities)

Risk can be thought of as positive and negative. Positive risks are called opportunities and they are just as important as the traditional negative risk.

Executive decision makers must be educated on the benefits of managing the positive risk (opportunities). Positive risk should be included in the risk register with risk triggers, risk response, contingency plans, risk owner and risk impacts. Treat them with the same vigor as negative risk. The positive risk can produce project deliverables that will bring improved visibility to your project.

George Bridges (MS, PMP) is a trainer and senior consultant for the Business Analysis and the Project Management certification programs for International Institute for Learning (IIL). He has an extensive background in systems development and operations research. He has over 30 years of experience analyzing and developing business systems for major global corporations and gathering and producing requirements analysis and solution assessment and validation for manufacturing, telecommunication, Web-based, and financial systems in industry and the nonprofit arena.