A risk register: likelihood, impact and response

Name:

Date:

Class:

Quick Questions

Shade in the A or B circle for each question.

1. Which column belongs in a risk register?

A Likelihood, impact and planned response for each risk

B Only the names of team members and their favourite apps

2. A team rates a risk as High likelihood and High impact. What should they do?

A Leave it until last, because big risks are boring

B Tackle it first, because it is one of the biggest risks

3. Which describes impact in a risk register?

A How many days ago the risk was first noticed

B How much damage the risk would do if it happened

4. Which describes likelihood in a risk register?

A The chance that the risk will actually happen

B The cost of the software used in the project

5. Which is a prevention response for the risk 'We lose our project files'?

A Save automatic backups to cloud storage every day

B Wait until the files go missing, then panic

Match the Pairs

Draw a line connecting each item on the left to its match on the right.

Left column		Right column
1Likelihood: High		AResponse: If the laptop breaks, use a school computer
2Impact: Severe		BShows the risk is very probable to happen during the project
3A prevention response lowers the chance of a risk happening		CThe register has no planned response, so the team will not know how to act on the risk.
4A contingency response is a backup plan for if the risk does happen		DResponse: Save work to the cloud every day
5Risk: Lost files \| Response: (blank)		EThe register is never reviewed, so new risks are missed and old ratings go out of date.
6Written once on day 1 and never looked at again		FShows the damage to the project would be big if the risk happened

Definitions

risk register

Fill in the Blanks

Complete each line of code by filling in the missing parts.

Risk,__________,Impact,Score,Response

Data loss,3,5,=B2_C2,Keep backups

IF score __ 15 THEN priority ← "High" END IF

Prevention: save backups every week ___________: restore the last backup

Biggest risk score: =___(D2:D10)

Spot the Error

Shade in the letter of the line that contains an error.

Question 1

A Risk: Laptop is stolen

B Likelihood: Keep backups

C Impact: High

D Response: Cloud backup

Question 2

A Scale: 1 (low) to 3 (high)

B Impact = 7

C Likelihood = 3

D Score = Likelihood * Impact

Question 3

A Risk: Files get corrupted

B Prevention: Restore a backup

C Contingency: Restore backup

Question 4

A Reviewing the risk register:

B Check it every week

C Keep ratings the same forever

D Add any new risks

Question 5

A A: Likelihood 3, Impact 3

B B: Likelihood 1, Impact 1

C A score 9, B score 1

D Act first on risk B

Answer Key

A risk register: likelihood, impact and response

Section A: Quick Questions

A — Likelihood, impact and planned response for each risk

B — Tackle it first, because it is one of the biggest risks

B — How much damage the risk would do if it happened

A — The chance that the risk will actually happen

A — Save automatic backups to cloud storage every day

Section B: Match the Pairs

Likelihood: High → Shows the risk is very probable to happen during the project

Impact: Severe → Shows the damage to the project would be big if the risk happened

A prevention response lowers the chance of a risk happening → Response: Save work to the cloud every day

A contingency response is a backup plan for if the risk does happen → Response: If the laptop breaks, use a school computer

Risk: Lost files | Response: (blank) → The register has no planned response, so the team will not know how to act on the risk.

Written once on day 1 and never looked at again → The register is never reviewed, so new risks are missed and old ratings go out of date.

Section C: Definitions

risk register — A table listing each project risk with its likelihood, impact and planned response (like backups), so the team can tackle the biggest risks first and review them often.

Section D: Fill in the Blanks

Risk,Likelihood,Impact,Score,Response

Data loss,3,5,=B2*C2,Keep backups

IF score >= 15 THEN
  priority ← "High"
END IF

Prevention: save backups every week
Contingency: restore the last backup

Biggest risk score:
=MAX(D2:D10)

Section E: Spot the Error

B — Likelihood is a rating of how probable the risk is, such as Low, Medium or High. Keeping backups is a response. The line should be 'Likelihood: Low'.

B — The scale only goes from 1 to 3, so an impact rating of 7 is not valid. It should be a number from 1 to 3, such as 'Impact = 2'.

B — Prevention stops the risk from happening, for example saving work often. Restoring a backup happens after the files are lost, so it is a contingency. The line should be 'Prevention: Save work often'.

C — A risk register should be reviewed regularly. Likelihood and impact change as the project moves on, so the ratings need updating. The line should be 'Update ratings for each risk'.

D — The team should tackle the biggest risk first. Risk A has the higher score (9 compared with 1), so it should be dealt with first. The line should be 'Act first on risk A'.