Customer Reviews

Project and Program Risk Management: A Guide to Managing Project Risks and Opportunities (PMBOK Handbooks)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The book provides a good, high level general overview. For more and better detail, I like Carl Pritchard's Risk Management Concepts and Guidance. Wideman's book is good, but it is from 1992 . . . Pritchard had the benefit of 9 more years of development of the topic.

If you are new to the topic of Risk Analysis - this is an excellent beginners book. It covers the topic from several different angles, and especially for a Project Manager - it is a wonderful guide.

Personally, I found the book somewhat lacking in depth - overall. Where it tried to go deeper - the explanations were rather brief and not easy to follow.

There are several topics related to risk that could have been included or discussed in depth - such as what constitutes Failure, Accident, and why events get classified the way they do.

Lastly - in the foreword the book is referred to as a hand book. That is a stretch for sure. I would still recommend it for those engaged in managing Projects.

Max Wideman's book "Project and Program Risk Management: A Guide to Managing Project Risks and Opportunities (PMBOK Handbooks)" is a guideline for organizations who want to simplify the implementation of project risk management practices by using processes that are proven to be effective. Max's book is compatible with the PMBOK(R) Guide standard, not surprisingly so because he was the original leader of the the first PMI standard. Of all the books I have reviewed in preparation for developing a PMI-RMP certification preparation course for PMTI, this one is the best.

This is a good book, but it mostly presents common sense ideas. It's weak at explaining how you can truly measure the risk in your project. "Identify the risks, rank them in terms of likelihood, develop a contingency plan..." I think this is good advice, but I also believe that you can't manage what you can't measure. And this book doesn't provide you with an objective methodology to calculate risk. I was hoping to find a mathematical formula, or at least a model I could consistently apply across projects. Something like the equations presented in <a href="http://www.projectmangler.com/content/regular/art20051128.htm">Excessive Project Schedule</a>. Personally, if you want to buy a book on Risk Management, I'd recommend Rapid Development by Steve McConnell instead. There's a good chapter on Risk Management, and lots of valuable information about other project management related topics.

My mentor and colleague is fond of chiding me to "roll the dice". However, he is well versed in probability and risk management, so what he is really attempting to get me to do is to take *calculated* risks. I hate math, but knew that I had to overcome that if I wanted to take the next step in my ongoing professional development. I selected this book because it was short, and well written and illustrated.

This book is a bit light for experienced project managers who are well-versed in risk management, but I found it to be a perfect introduction to probability and risk management. It's structured in a logical order, with each chapter building on the other. It starts out with a general approach and definitions associated with risk management. It then covers how to identify risks, assess them using quantitative methods (no blindly rolling the dice here). Assessment is important. Risks are a part of our everyday life, and this part of the book shows you how to prioritize risks based on not only the impact, but the probability. Impact x probability is the basis for indexing and prioritizing risks. You are also shown how to either eliminate, mitigate or transfer the risk that you identify and assess.

Because I am a consultant and live in the world of statements of work and contracts I thought the brief section on dealing with risks in contracts was a highlight. I also liked the chapter on managing contingency allowances.

This is a valuable book for new project managers who need to get quickly acquainted with risk management, and for anyone who wants to learn the fundamentals of probability and how to calculate and control risks. It is straightforward and gives you an awareness of what risks are and how to effectively manage them. My mentor would say, "a risk is an opportunity in disguise." I never appreciated or fully understood that until I read this book.

This is a good book about project risk and how to manage it and transform it into opportiunities.

Good introduction for risk management. Short but cover almost all aspect. Outstanding book for PMP exam preparation.