Our risk register is long, but nobody acts on it. How do we fix that?
Risk log without ownershipReduce attention to the risks that require decisions or action, and give each a responsible owner. A register is useful only when it changes behavior before exposure becomes damage.
What to do now
- Identify the most consequential exposures
- Assign owners and response actions
- Set trigger conditions and review dates
- Review overdue responses with decision-makers
When to escalate
Escalate when
A significant risk has no owner or executable response.
Who decides
The accountable risk owner
Example
The team replaces fifty unowned entries with a focused review of the risks affecting the next milestone.
Mistake to avoid
Adding more risk descriptions instead of managing the existing ones.
Prevent a repeat
Review whether response tasks and trigger conditions remain appropriate as the project changes.
Suggested ApprovedFlow setup
- Documents
- Tasks
- Approvals
Store the risk assessment as a controlled project document and assign response tasks; do not assume a native risk engine is enabled. See the platform
Related cases
- Nobody wants to own a risk outside their department. Who should take it?Cross-boundary risk ownership
- How should we handle a risk we cannot prevent?Unavoidable exposure
- Nobody knows which assumptions the plan depends on. Where do we begin?Invisible planning assumptions
- Business data errors continue after launch. Who should fix them?Undefined operational data ownership