Risk management is one of the core processes in project management. One can’t be sure about the success of the project unless an effective risk management approach is adopted for the project.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Risks are classified as the potential possibilities of events that may hurt the project deliverable in any means.A risk may directly or indirectly affect the completion of the project. Moreover, the budget and performance of the project are vulnerable.
Risk Register Excel Template
Basically, it is referred to as a documentation log that is part of the primary database of any project. This log contains analysis base data i.e; risk factors, SWOT analysis report, qualitative & quantitative analysis data, emergency plan/contingency plan, and risk management plan for project.
We use this risk register to overcome the impact of risk on project outcomes or eliminate risk factors by adopting pre-plan standard risk management practices.
The risk register excel template is the type of logbook sheet used to keep a record is project potential risks. Also, it keeps traces of what risks have been addressed by the project team to minimize their impact and probability of occurrence.
The risk register template is an MS Excel-based spreadsheet formatted on the pattern to record all the required information about the risk.
Moreover, mitigation strategies are deployed, and contingency plans are made to ensure the success of the project.
Importance of Risk Register Excel Template
The use of a risk register template has several advantages over the simple risk management approach. Therefore, project management professionals recommend the use of a risk register excel template.
There are three dimensions of the risk management process. Risk assessment, mitigation strategies, and contingency plans.
The purpose of a risk register template in excel is to identify, categorize, prioritize, and mitigation of the risks. As the risk can be upfront at any phase of the project management or during the project lifecycle. Therefore, the efficient management of the project risks is considered important in project management.
Let’s suppose if risk goes un-attended during the project management phase. It will become an issue that may have a catastrophic effect on the project KPI. Therefore, no risk should be considered minor and ignored. Otherwise, the consequences of its realization will collapse the project plan.
Elements of Risk Register Template Excel
Keeping in view the importance of the risk register template excel in the risks management phase of the project. A complete understanding of all the essential terms and concepts of a risk register is important.
There are several terms involved in the effective risk register template excel development:
- Description of the Potential Risk
- Potential Impact of the Risk on the Project KPIs
- Probability of the Risk Occurrence
- Rating or Severity of the Occurrence and Impact
- Risk Score
- Person Responsible for the Risk Management
- Mitigation Plans for each Risk
- Notes / Comments
Project Risk Register Template Outlines
Generally, risk registers have similar outlines and formats for documentation, but below there are some essential outlines that full fill all kinds of risk management plan requirements;
Risk name: In this area, we define the risk by type, intensity/level, or nature. It should be brief and concise.
Probability: This area has analytical data that is based on risk assessment data. This assessment matrix also shows the level of risk from low to high in numerical figures.
Impact: This section shows the probabilities of risk impact on your project.
Significance: Here we calculate the possible risk impact rate on the project.
Risk Score: This section gives us a statistical figure for Quantitative risk assessment.
Strategy: Here we define what is our strategy to overcome or eliminate the risk factor on the lowest rate of collateral damage.
Risk Resolution Plan: This section defines the plan for implementing a risk management plan.
Personnel: Here we indicate how is responsible and working staff or team members that are running this project. For this purpose, the RACI Chart matrix template helps to identify who is responsible. Roles and liabilities.
Time Frame: Here we define a time frame to eliminate risk by implementing a Contingency plan.
Record Reference: It is recommended practice to record information that is gained from any risk register document or outcomes of risk assessment analysis. This practice helps in the future to identify a risk that saves a lot of time.
Status: This section shows either risk is resolved or in process or pending.
Note: All information is important and recommended to note down in the risk register log template.
Creating Risk Register Template in Excel
The risk register template can be created by following simple guidelines provided by the project management professionals.
The whole process uses different techniques and approaches for all the major steps. The simple steps are:
- Identification of the Project Risks
- Categorization of the Risks
- Prioritization of the Risks based on Risk Score
- Application of Mitigation Strategies
- Development of a Contingency Plan
In conclusion, the risk register templates in excel work like a logbook and tracker sheet in the project planning phase. Although, it can’t completely eliminate all the risks.
However, a forecast of all the potential risks is important for early mitigation to minimize the impact based on severity and occurrence.
how to prepare a risk register