You are about to make a change to an asset that delivers value to you or your company. This change could involve improving performance, fixing issues, maintaining standards, or ensuring compliance with legislation. Any modification to the asset introduces the possibility of something going wrong, leading to potential loss. This uncertainty is known as risk and must be managed carefully. Risk is an inherent part of any change, particularly with valuable assets. It is the probability of an adverse event that could affect your project or organization. These effects might range from minor inconveniences to severe disruptions that could compromise safety, damage your reputation, cause financial losses, or waste labor. To manage these risks, it is essential to adopt a structured approach. By thoroughly assessing the risk before making any change, you can prevent unforeseen complications and preserve the asset's integrity and value. This allows you to make informed decisions and take proactive measures to ensure the change process is smooth and successful. To reduce the risk, follow these steps.
Risk Assessment
1. Assess the change
1.1
What change do you plan to make?
1.2
Is the change unfamiliar? Did it previously go wrong?
1.3
If the change goes wrong, can it compromise safety, damage our reputation, cause financial loss, or waste labor?
If one or more answers to questions
b and
c are
YES, proceed to
2. Identify potential problems because the risk level is significant or high; otherwise, proceed to
5. Execute the change because the risk level is low.
Risk Analysis
2. Identify potential problems
2.1
What could happen or go wrong? What else?
Consider immediate related components, inputs, outputs, conflicting changes, steps to make the change, etc. The questions below can help you guide your thinking.
List the potential problems.
Sort the potential problems with the most important ones at the top.
Does the component fit with the rest of the system?
Will connections remain intact after the change?
Does the component need adjustments for compatibility?
Are there any immediate points of failure introduced by this change?
What inputs or dependencies does the component rely on, and will they remain compatible?
Will upstream components need adjustments to stay compatible with the changed system?
How sensitive is the component to variations or failures in upstream systems?
What happens if an upstream component fails or behaves unexpectedly?
3.
Downstream Dependencies
What systems rely on this component’s outputs, and will they remain compatible after the change?
Will the change impact on the performance of downstream systems?
Are there any performance or security risks for downstream systems due to the change?
Do downstream systems need adjustments to remain compatible?
3. Analyze causes and options
3.1
For each potential problem:
Consider immediate related components, inputs, outputs, conflicting changes, steps to make the change, etc. The questions below can help you guide your thinking.
List the potential problems.
Sort the potential problems with the most important ones at the top.
3.2
Questions to help identify potential problems
For each potential problem:
Identify the likely causes that could cause the potential problem.
Determine preventive actions that could keep the likely causes from happening.
Determine mitigating actions that could lower the consequences.
Risk Treatment
4. Plan Risk Treatment
4.1
How do you lower the risk?
Select appropriate measures among your options – balancing the potential benefits against costs and effort - to lower the risk to an acceptable level.
Consider preventive as well as mitigating options.
Assign a deadline (when) and responsibility (who) to each action.
5. Execute the change
5.1
Are you ready to make the change?
