Facilitated Workshops
A commonly used technique where a group of people is gathered together and a facilitator helps to ‘collect’ a set of risks. This is often done as a brain storm and can lead to many risks being identified. These is a common approach at the start of projects.
Pros
- A lot of risks can be recognised in a short period of time
- Everyone involved in the activity has the opportunity to contribute
- Different perspectives within a group can be recognised
Cons
- These sessions can be subject to Groupthink or can be dominated by a senior or vocal player. (where no one within the Group is prepared to challenge)
- The time of each individual’s contribution can be limited thus complex risks may not be well articulated or complete
- Culture can drive a desire to have lots of risks rather than the right risks
- The techniques doesn’t ensure all elements of the risk is captured and for some of the reasons above can become focused on a single area.