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Project risk assessment: an example with a risk matrix template

“Begin with the end in mind” (Stephen Covey) is to say, “Think first what could go wrong.”

A project is a collection of interconnected tasks that are bound to specific timelines, resources, and deliverables. Any task could carry a certain uncertainty (risk) that, if it happens, could affect the project’s success. In this regard, project risk comprises two factors: the probability of happening and the consequences if it does.

While you cannot avoid risks entirely, with the help of risk management methods, such as the project risk assessment matrix, you can evaluate the potential damages caused by those risks. And consequently—increase the likelihood of successful project completion.

Today, you are going to learn about:

What is a project risk assessment?

What is a project risk matrix.

• How to create a risk matrix template for your project.
• How to visualize project risks on a risk matrix.
• Types of risks in project management.

A project risk assessment is a process that aims to gain a deeper understanding of which project tasks, deliverables, or events could influence its success. Through the assessment process, you identify potential threats to your project and analyze consequences in case they occur.

Risk assessment takes on many forms. It could be a simple matrix or a database using sophisticated algorithms. In this article, we will focus on a risk assessment matrix.

A project risk matrix, also known as a Probability and Severity risk matrix, is a graphical risk analysis tool in the form of a table (matrix). It is typically square, but some risk matrices are rectangular or circular. A risk matrix gives you a quick view of project risks and their consequences’ severity (impact). You use it to allocate ratings for each risk based on two intersecting factors:

• The  likelihood  (or probability) of a risk to occur (x-axis).
• The  impact  (or severity) if a risk occurs (y-axis).

The higher a risk ranks for these two factors, the bigger threat it poses to your project.

The bottom-left corner of the matrix is where the likelihood and impact of a risk occurring are very low. On the opposite side, in the top-right corner, the likelihood and the impact are the highest. In short, when the likelihood increases, the risk moves to the right; if the impact increases, then the risk moves up.

To denote the threat level, many risk maps feature a red-yellow-green color-coding that indicates whether risks are significant-, moderate- or low-level concerns respectively. (Hence why risk matrices are often called risk heatmaps.) You may also come across risk heatmaps that use different shades of one color instead of red-yellow-green.

Once you assess the likelihood and impact of each risk, you will be able to prioritize and prepare for them accordingly.

Risk matrix template: create a risk matrix for your project 

A risk matrix is a useful tool for project planning that you can create in just a few steps. In this article, we will create a risk assessment form and a respective 5×5 risk matrix template for a construction project.

Step 1. Identify project risks

Start by brainstorming and analyzing potential risks and opportunities related to your project scope. Leave no risk behind. Depending on your organization and project, your list of risks might include several types of risks, such as cost, environmental, and legal risks.

(You will find a comprehensive list of risk types at the end of this article).

Hint : If you are not a huge fan of lists and prefer visual methods, you can follow a  work breakdown structure  style to identify and categorize your risks. Or, in other words, you could create a sort of “risk breakdown structure” for your project. Take a look at the example below.

Step 2: Determine the risk likelihood

In this step, you need to identify the likelihood of a given risk happening. ​​On a 5×5 matrix, you express the  likelihood scale  on 5 levels:

• 1  – (Very unlikely): A very slim chance for this risk to occur.
• 2  –  (Not likely): Low chances for this risk to occur.
• 3  – (Possible): Fifty-fifty chances for this risk to occur.
• 4  – (Probable): Good chances for this risk to occur.
• 5  – (Very likely): You can bet this risk will occur at some point.

Step 3. Define the impact scale

Next, you rank your risks based on the impact they would cause on your project if they occur. The  impact scale  also has 5 levels:

• 1  – (Negligible): This risk will hardly impact your project.
• 2  –  (Low): You can easily handle the consequences of this risk.
• 3  – (Moderate): It will take some time and effort to mitigate the consequences of this risk.
• 4  – (Significant): This risk could cause long-term consequences that will be hard to recover from.
• 5  – (Catastrophic): The impact of this risk might wreck your project.

Step 4. Calculate the risk rating

Assign each risk a corresponding risk rating based on the likelihood and impact you have already identified. For example, a project risk that is very likely to happen and will cause major safety hazards will receive a higher risk rating than a risk that is unlikely to occur and will cause very minor harm.

The formula for the risk rating is as follows:

Likelihood x impact = Risk rating

e.g., Likelihood (4) x Impact (5) = Risk rating (20)

(A risk with such a high rating could threaten your project, therefore you should monitor it closely.)

Since we work on a 5×5 matrix, the risk rating values will range from 1 to 25.

• 1 – 6  (Low): Low-rating risks most likely will not happen. If they do, they will not be a threat to your project.
• 7 – 12  (Medium): Some medium-rating risks might happen at some point. You do not need to prioritize them but you should not ignore them either.
• 13 – 25  (High): High-rating risks are serious and very likely to happen threats. They can cause your project to go off the rails, so you should keep them in mind when planning your project.

Step 5. Draw your risk matrix

To draw a risk matrix, extract the data from the risk assessment form and plug it into the matrix accordingly. In our example, we identified risks for which 5 levels of likelihood and 5 levels of impact were sufficient. Therefore, we get the 5×5 matrix that looks like this:

The risk ratings in the lower-left quadrants are the lowest, therefore they have a green color; the ratings in the upper-right quadrants are the highest—hence the red color.

Important notes on creating a risk matrix template

The 5×5 template we have created in the previous steps is only an example of how you approach creating your matrices. You can create a separate matrix for an entire organization, a specific program, or a project. In each case, it could be different. Therefore, there are a few important things about risk assessment matrices to note:

• When defining your matrix, think about the number of intervals for the likelihood and impact. How many rows and columns will it have? For example, a 3×3 or 3×4 matrix could suit your project better. When you decide on your matrix size, place labels and values on its scales accordingly.
• Likelihood and Impact scale intervals are numerical values (e.g., 1 – 5 or 0% – 100%). You place those values on your matrix but you can also use them to describe the likelihood and impact of certain risks. Depending on your project, it could be, e.g., safety, quality, cost, schedule risks, etc. (You will find several risk types at the end of this article.)

Let’s take a look at some examples.

As you can see from the above, the numerical value for the impact is the same. However, the description for each risk type is different. Therefore, you may need to define interval names for individual objectives and their respective impacts and probabilities.

• Your scale will not always be linear. You may observe it with risks that carry high impact—those will often have larger intervals than low-impact risks. Take a look at the table above, and compare the interval for the “Low” impact (0-3%) and the “Catastrophic” impact (50-100%). The discrepancy is quite significant—the impact of a fatal injury will be much greater than that of a scratched finger.
• Instead of risk rating values in your matrix, you can plug in the number of risks you identified in your project for each quadrant. For example:

(In fact, that is pretty much how the BigPicture Risk matrix report looks like. Read on to learn more about visualizing risks in the BigPicture app).

• The labels in brackets on matrix scales are arbitrary. You can name your values however you want. For example, Impact (1) could have a label: “Insignificant.”
• Your risk form and matrix are not the type of task that you complete and forget. You should manage your risks throughout the life of your project. A common mistake in project management is creating a fairly standard risk register during the project planning and not returning to it until something happens. Project managers should carry out regular risk assessments to be able to react to changes in the project environment on an ongoing basis.

Visualize project risks on a risk matrix

What might have struck you is that the matrix does not offer much room for putting risks directly on it. It could work for a few, but if you have dozens of them, it will become cluttered and a pain to use. Not to mention that over the course of your project, you might need to identify new risks and revise the existing ones for their likelihood and impact. This means you will need reliable software to visualize and work with project risks efficiently.

The risk software we would like to introduce is  BigPicture which seamlessly integrates with Jira. It offers many key features that will help you assess and monitor your project risks.

Not a BigPicture user yet? Start your free 30-day trial today. Or visit our demo page  to play with the app straight in your browser — no registration or installation needed.

View your risks on the risk matrix

The BigPicture  Risk module  enables you to generate a risk assessment matrix with a default size of 5×5. The matrix features two scales: the risk consequence and risk probability.

The risk consequence scale has the following values: Trivial, Low, Medium, High, and Severe. Whereas with the risk probability scale, you can assign the following values to a risk: Almost none, Low, Medium, High, and Very high. If you enable the heatmap mode, the app will color the risk cards based on their risk rate with four default colors: green, yellow, orange, and red.

Visualizing risks from the risk assessment example

Let’s return to our construction risk assessment form and see what the risks will look like on the BigPicture risk heatmap.

The electrical leakage has the highest probability (likelihood) and consequence (impact). That is why you will find it in the top right corner (the app colored a risk card of such a high-priority risk with red color). The app  automatically calculates the risk rating,  so you do not have to worry about manually updating the heat map.

If you want to  move any risk to a different quadrant  (because its impact or likelihood has changed) you can edit the risk or use a drag-and-drop feature. Of course, you can place several risk cards in a given quadrant. Our simple project has only 5 risks but yours might carry many more and BigPicture will visualize all of them for you. If you notice your risk map getting really busy, you can display risks in a  compact mode .

Populate your risk matrix with risks and issues

You can add  any issue type  to the risk heat map as long as you select the Consequence and Probability fields and assign them respective values. (You will need your Jira admin to preconfigure the fields you will be able to add to your tasks.)

So when you create a new task or edit the existing one, just add those two fields to make it pop up on your risk matrix.

In our risk assessment form, we did not add any issues, epics, or milestones—only risks. So how come those risks are on the heatmap? By clicking on any quadrant, you can  add new and existing tasks  and  tasks as risks  directly on the risk matrix.

Click “Create new Jira issue” and provide details for your risk (remember about the Probability and Consequence fields).

Since you can add project tasks as risks, and risks directly to the matrix, you can use the BigPicture’s Risk board in  two ways .

Risks as tasks approach

The first approach is about directly adding the  tasks as risks  to the risk matrix. Those tasks will not result from the project plan (unlike typical project tasks that must be completed) and will serve as risks alone.

Let’s come back to the “Water leakage” risk as an example. Previously, we added it directly to the matrix as a typical risk that carries some probability and impact. Such a model will not readily show you which task(s) a given risk relates to. However, you could connect this risk to the actual tasks it has an impact on using Jira Issue Links. Also, by adding a task as a risk to the matrix, you can immediately read what this risk is about (e.g., the risk of “Water leakage”).

Project tasks at risk approach

(This approach is more popular among BigPicture users.) You can also add individual  project   tasks  to the risk matrix. Unlike in the previous model, you will not see details about the risk just by looking at the matrix. Because, in fact, you would be looking at the task, not a risk as such. But you will know the probability and the impact of the risk that this task is related to.

For example, let’s say you want to add a “Road building task” to the risk matrix. You situate this task on the matrix according to the risk’s probability and impact. You do not know that this task is at risk due to the potential “Water leakage” but you know the likelihood and impact of it. If you want to have a more detailed overview of a given task at risk, you can add the info about the risk to the issue (e.g., as a comment or a relevant attachment).

Customize your risk matrix

If the default look of the BigPicture risk matrix is not optimal for your project, you can  customize it .

• Transpose the whole matrix and/or invert individual scales (one or both simultaneously).
• Change the scale names (e.g., from “Consequence” to “Impact”).
• Add and delete Probability and Consequence individual values. For example, let’s say you want to see only the risks with the highest ratings on your map. In such a case, you delete low and medium values.

• Configure the risk matrix to have  SAFe® ROAM-based quadrants .
• Use the  card view creator  to see more details on your risk cards.

Risk matrix report

The  Risk matrix report  gives you a quick overview of your existing risks in each matrix quadrant. You can use this report for risks present in your program, project, or iterations on a lower hierarchy level (on the ART level, the report will also display risks from the PI iterations and the PI sprints).

When you hover over a given quadrant, you will see a list of risks with their corresponding statuses.

You can rename the report, invert the risk scales, or transpose the whole risk report matrix.

9 Types of risks in project management

Arguably, the biggest indicator of the risk likely occurring is whenever your project has something “new” in it. For example, a “new supplier” for safety goggles; “new processes” according to which employees will carry out their work; “new technologies” that the higher-ups want to introduce; a “new software developer” the company wants to hire for the current project.

Of course, there are many types of risks to consider when assessing your project. These could be:

Schedule risks

Performance risks, operational risks, market risks, governance risks, strategic risks, legal risks, environmental risks.

They indicate there is a possibility that the project’s cost will exceed the budget. Cost risk might occur due to poor budget planning, inaccurate cost estimating, and scope creep. This type of project risk can cause other risks to emerge, such as schedule risk and performance risk.

Example : “The cost of steel might increase over the next quarter.”

This risk occurs when activities take longer than expected, typically due to poor planning. Schedule risk can impact cost risk because any delay in a schedule could increase the costs of a project.

Example : “Hiring a new foreman might take longer than anticipated.”

Performance risk is the risk of a project failing to produce the expected results. It is a complex risk that can result from the activities of several parties, so it can be hard to pinpoint the exact reason behind it.

Example : “The level of noise might increase after the office redesign.”

This type of risk results from poor implementation and process problems such as distribution, procurement, and production. And since any of these could cause the project to produce results differing from project specifications, operational risk is a type of performance risk.

Example : “Insufficient funds to pay for the next batch of goods.”y

Market risk could be, among others, competition, commodity markets, and foreign exchange. Because these types of risks are highly unpredictable, planning for them is difficult without sound expertise.

Example : “Foreign exchange fluctuations due to…”

This risk concerns the company’s top management and other important stakeholders with regard to their ethics and company reputation. This risk can be fairly easy to mitigate because it largely depends on the stakeholder’s behavior.

Those risks are another type of performance risk. Strategic risks stem from erroneous strategic decisions concerning the selection of people for the job, the tools, as well as the technology that does not help with the work as expected.

Example : “The application might not be compatible with systems already in use.”

Legal risk is the consequence of legal obligations, such as law of the land, local laws, and statutory requirements. This type of project risk is also about the contractual obligations, as well as avoiding and handling any lawsuits against the company.

Example : “Export license might not be granted.”

Those risks pertain to external hazards that one cannot fully avoid or even foresee. For example, storms, floods, earthquakes, force majeure, pandemics, terrorism, labor strikes, etc.

Example : “Severe weather conditions might delay the maintenance works.”

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Project Risk Assessment in 2024: Guide With Templates & Examples

You are organizing a product rollout, the premier milestone of your company this year. You have invited a thousand guests, expecting to witness a big gala event. Everything seems to be perfect before the event begins until you get two phone calls.

Your keynote speaker didn’t make it to her flight, and your caterer won’t be arriving due to some kitchen situation.

What do you do?

Just like life, your projects often throw some unexpected crises at you. These are what we call risks. And you should never allow yourself to ask what to do when risks happen because, by then, it’s too late and the damage will be significant. What you can and should do is to conduct a project risk assessment to anticipate such scenarios. 

Don’t worry, even if you lack formal training in project management, risk assessment is quite straightforward. In this article, we’ll show you how with a few project risk assessment templates to help you follow the process.

Project Risk Assessment Guide Table of Contents

• Identify Risks
• Analyze Risks
• Determine Risk Response
• Document Risks
• Factors to consider when creating project risk assessment

As the Project Management Institute (PMI) defines it, risk is an unexpected event that can have an effect on your project, including its stakeholders, processes, and resources. Risk can affect your project positively or negatively. Take note that risk assessment is just one aspect of your life as the project leader. But it is a critical part of your strategy whatever project management methodology you’re using.

As a manager, you have your fair share of exposure to risks at varying levels. 

Sometimes, risks are mistaken as issues, but there is a significant difference. Issues are events or problems that are already currently happening. Examples of issues include lack of manpower to work on a project, insufficient funding, and an immensely tight timeline.

Meanwhile, risks are problems that may happen in the future. The last-minute no-show of the performers and the caterer in the scenario above is an example of risk. We can also consider the immediate mass resignation of significant staff members a risk. Here are more examples of risks vs. issues in project management .

The purpose of preparing for project risk assessment is to acquire an awareness of the kinds of risks your project may encounter and the degree of damage they may bring. The following tips below will walk you through the important parts of this endeavor, including properly framing the project risk assessment definition.

To help you make a more accurate risk assessment and streamline its tedious process, you can turn to project management software with risk management; for example, what you’ll find in monday.com features .

Try out monday.com with their free trial

Project Risk Assesment Guide

1. identify risks.

Identifying of risk should be done as early as possible in the project and carried out throughout the project timeline, as risks affect significant project milestones. Throughout the years, you or your predecessors might have created a catalog of risks in the company server that the business have encountered in completed projects.

However, risks can also be identified during brainstorming with seasoned project members and other stakeholders. You can use the Crawford Slip method, where during a meeting, an attendee writes one suggestion per each piece of paper. This is a very simple yet effective way of gathering and collating suggestions and ideas. Just a note, you’ll need the cooperation of teams from other departments to get the best ideas. If you’re getting less-than-ideal attention from them, a shrug of the shoulder here and there, that’s one of the signs you need project management software or upgrade to a better one to optimize collaboration across the board.

In identifying risks, a risk category document is very useful in determining areas that are prone to risks. Risks may fall under the following categories:

• Organizational
• Project management.

Your project risk assessment checklist should include the relevant stakeholder accountable to action for each.

Here’s a sample risk category checklist:

Credits: northam.wa.gov.au

2. Analyze risks

This step entails examining the probability of a risk, how a risk event may impact project objectives and outcomes, and the appropriate steps that can be taken to mitigate the negative effects of risk. Here are the two things to consider at this stage:

• Likelihood. How probable will a certain risk occur in your project? PMI identifies the likelihood of risk occurrence as high, medium-high, medium-low, and low.  Knowing the likelihood a certain risk will occur will help your team to prepare for it. For example, it is more probable for the bank to reject your loan application for funding than for that same bank to be set on fire by a lightning.
• Impact. An effective project planning will have a project risk assessment matrix of the various levels of impacts of a risk (categorized as catastrophic, critical, and marginal) on cost, schedule, scope, and quality of outcome. This will allow your team to identify which area of the project will bear the brunt of the risk with the biggest impact. This, in turn, will enable you to allocate manpower, budget, or technology for prevention or solution. An example of a catastrophic risk is the last-minute cancellation of a venue, which will greatly affect the whole event.

A project risk assessment matrix helps you analyze each risk based on the two factors above. You can vary the model, but essentially here’s how this template looks like (pay most attention to the red boxes):

Credits: The Program Manager

3. Determine risk response

Project risk assessment planning tools offered by some project management sites, such as monday.com, target to achieve the following results:  eliminate the risk, reduce the probability of the occurrence of risk, and weaken the impact of the risk on the project. However, while it is best to develop a workflow to avoid the risk, it is still a rational move to set up a risk response guide for every project. This may mean factoring the risk in the project plan and schedule, increasing the funding or budget, and adding manpower and resources to the project, among other things.

It is simply not possible to completely eliminate all of the risk in a project. Some risks will persist at lower levels with weaker effects. These are called residual risks. Despite the diminished impact, residual risks need to be identified and assessed as you do the big-impact risks.

Here’s a project risk assessment example with an action plan, illustrating clearly what to do per risk occurrence:

4. Document risks

It is not enough, that you as project manager are able to identify, plan for, and solve risks events. A project folder or file needs to be created at the end of each project to provide transparency and awareness of the project’s timeline, workflow, and risks. This document sums up the reports above, plus adds insights on and citation of best practices on how the risks were handled. It will help other managers get a glimpse of the ins and outs of a project similar to yours. Having a cloud-based project management software like monday.com helps you to collate these details in one place for future reference.

Factors to consider when creating a project risk assessment

Being a project manager is not all about fighting and putting out fires. Here are more tips to get your project moving despite the hiccups.

• Make risk assessment the mainstay of your projects. It is ignorance to assume that projects will never encounter risks.  An effective project risk assessment and management is essential in the success of any project. Although this will incur an additional step on your part, the benefit you will reap from embedding risk assessment and management can never be underestimated.
• Inform stakeholders about risks. In the “Attack by Stratagem” chapter of the Art of War, one of the best books for project managers , Sun Tzu declared that the source of an army’s strength is in unity, not size.  Risk managers can learn a nugget of wisdom here. Sometimes, upper management is unaware of the details of failed projects. And there are instances where the instrument to solve the problem is already available but wasn’t used because the team has not been informed of its availability nor existence. Remember to include communicating risks and mitigation plans to other stakeholders in your project. You can do this during project update meetings as a default part of the agenda. This way, you clearly communicate that risks are vital parts of the project and should be given sufficient attention.
• Clarify ownership. Most projects involve different departments and stakeholders. It is important that stakeholders are clear with their ownership of the project or phase of the project. And this should be done at the beginning of the project or before a risk occurs. This way, each stakeholder will carry out tasks to decrease occurrences of risks on their part and will not be surprised by any additional expenses incurred.

Get the right tool for project risk assessment

While some managers have a wealth of experiences under their belt that help them to instinctively carry out steps and processes in analyzing and managing risks in their projects, it does not hurt for new managers to do some research as well as to adopt and utilize project risk assessment tools, checklists, and templates from websites. An example is monday.com.

monday.com is an online project management software that empowers managers to drive projects and teams effectively. It offers project risk assessment tools and templates that will save you time on the paperwork and give you more time to keep your team focused on achieving project success.

By Stephanie Seymour

Stephanie Seymour is a senior business analyst and one of the crucial members of the FinancesOnline research team. She is a leading expert in the field of business intelligence and data science. She specializes in visual data discovery, cloud-based BI solutions, and big data analytics. She’s fascinated by how companies dealing with big data are increasingly embracing cloud business intelligence. In her software reviews, she always focuses on the aspects that let users share analytics and enhance findings with context.

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Research and Innovation Services

Completing the risk assessment

All research applications require you to complete a mandatory risk assessment questionnaire within Worktribe. Find guidance on completing a risk assessment for your project.

The risk assessment enables approvers of the research application to make an informed decision on any potential risk.

The Risk assessment consists of 12 ‘yes’/‘no’ questions designed to flag risk and capture key information relevant to the project.

A positive response to any of the below questions will generate a Worktribe warning (red or amber) on the project summary page to alert Departmental/Divisional approvers, and subsequently Award Services of potential risk or impact.

If your answer to any of the questions below is yes, please contact your Departmental Administrator, Research Facilitator, or Award Services as early as possible in the process, so that appropriate support can be provided.

Infrastructure needs

Will the project require either the acquisition of new space, the modification of existing space, the installation of equipment, the creation of new buildings, or any other capital investment?

Institutional commitment

Will the project require UCL to fund any kind of Institutional Commitment, in addition to any standard under-recovery of the full economic cost of the project?  Examples of Institutional Commitment requirements include the UCL providing matched funding for equipment or funding studentships.

Research computing and data storage

Will the project require the use of any High Performance or High Throughput Computing facilities, and/or is it likely to generate data in excess of 1TB in volume at any stage?

Conflict of interest

Could the project involve people who could be perceived as having a conflict of interest? An example of this would be an Investigator who is in receipt of an associated consultancy. Refer to the UCL  Declaration of Interest Policy  for comprehensive guidance.

Risk to environment or reputation

Is there any aspect of the project that might be perceived to breach social or cultural expectations of university research, or be considered otherwise environmentally or reputationally sensitive (including third party or funding relationships)?

• Could the project involve or generate materials, methods or knowledge that have the potential to cause significant harm to the environment, animals or humans?
• Could the project involve the use or generation of Dual-Use technology i.e. materials, software and /or technology that can be applied for civilian and military applications, and/or could contribute to the proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction?
• Is there any intention or requirement for the export of sensitive technology or strategic goods (encompassing physical export, software and technical knowledge) which have or may have a military application?
• Is there any risk that third parties involved in this project (including Funders, Collaborators, Suppliers etc.) could potentially be perceived to conflict with the aims, objectives and activities of UCL or risk reputational damage by association?

Overseas activity

Will any UCL-led research activity take place outside of the UK?

Human participants, tissue or data

Does the project involve human participants, their tissue and/or their data (including data provided by third parties such as HSCIC)?

Material Transfer

Will the project require materials to be exchanged between project partners or collaborators, and/or imported from third parties?

Translational Research

If your project aims to translate discoveries into health benefits then you should contact the  UCL Translational Research Office  at the earliest opportunity for support and guidance.

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Free Project Risk Templates: Assessments, Analysis, Registers, and Dashboards

By Kate Eby | April 27, 2022

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We’ve compiled a variety of project request form templates that are customizable, printable, and easy to share.

Included on this page, you’ll find a project risk assessment template , a project risk analysis template , a construction project risk assessment template , a project risk matrix template , and more.

Project Risk Assessment & Analysis Template

Download Project Risk Assessment Template Microsoft Excel | Microsoft Word | Adobe PDF | Google Docs | Google Sheets

Identify and assess project risk with this detailed assessment template. By using the template, project managers can chart the severity, likelihood, and levels of project risks, both before and after mitigation. This template also features a color-coded Risk Rating Key to help you determine acceptable risk levels for project activity to continue. 

Learn more about best practices from experts with this comprehensive guide to project risk management .

Sample Project Risk Assessment Template

Download Sample Project Risk Assessment Template Microsoft Word | Adobe PDF

Refer to the concise and informative sample information in this project risk assessment template to guide you in assessing project risk. This template lists financial, legal, and contractual risks, as well as risks to reputation or customer relations. Each risk assessment form includes sample descriptions for risk impact and probability levels that you can use as a guide when assessing your own project risks.

Project Risk Log Template

Download Project Risk Log Template Microsoft Excel | Google Sheets  

Document project risk quickly and accurately with this project risk log template. By using this template, project managers can record risk owners and identification dates, categorize risk types, and rate risk levels in one comprehensive document. Project managers can also add columns to create a more detailed record for mitigation planning.

Project Risk Management Plan Template

Download Project Risk Management Plan Template Microsoft Excel | Microsoft Word | Adobe PDF | Google Docs | Google Sheets

Use this detailed, intuitive, and customizable risk management plan template to categorize and propose mitigation actions, identify risk owners, and outline their responsibilities. Project managers can use this template to summarize risk analysis, mitigation, review, and reporting processes in clearly defined sections to keep a project on track.  

For help finding the risk management plan best suited for your project, see one of these free risk management plan templates .

Project Risk Audit Template

Download Project Risk Audit Template Microsoft Excel | Microsoft Word | Adobe PDF

Identify project risks and determine the severity and likelihood of each risk with this project risk audit template. Project managers can use audit data to categorize tasks as improbable, possible, or probable, and to rank severity from acceptable to intolerable. This risk audit template allows project managers to document the information needed in order to draft an effective risk mitigation plan.

Project Risk Dashboard Template

Download Project Risk Dashboard Template Microsoft Excel | Google Sheets

Project managers can use this project risk dashboard template to understand risk level assessments for project tasks at a glance. This dashboard template features text that is color-coded for risk levels and a matching pie chart that displays project risk status. This comprehensive dashboard template allows project managers to understand risk status and act quickly to prioritize mitigation for high-risk tasks.

Project Risk Assessment Matrix Template

Download Project Risk Assessment Matrix Template Microsoft Excel | Microsoft Word | Adobe PDF

Use this risk assessment matrix template with color-coded risk ratings to distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable risks. Project managers can categorize risks as either improbable, possible, or probable and to rank their severity from low to extreme. Once project managers have calculated the severity and likelihood of a risk, they can place it on the risk assessment matrix. Use this template as a tool for sharing risk data quickly and keeping mitigation planning on schedule.

Project Risk Register Template

Download Project Risk Register Template Microsoft Excel | Microsoft Word | Adobe PDF | Google Sheets

This project risk register template is a spreadsheet tool that project managers can use to plan mitigation efforts in real time. The spreadsheet features shaded columns for highlighting essential details such as registration creation and closure dates, risk identification dates, and risk ratings. Fill out the template and add rows for more risks to keep risk data and mitigation efforts up to date. 

To learn more about risk registers and find the template that meets your project’s specific needs, download one of these free risk register templates .

Project Risk Matrix Template

Download Project Risk Matrix Template Microsoft Excel | Microsoft Word | Adobe PDF  

This project risk matrix template includes space to record the severity, likelihood, and level of each project risk, both before and after mitigation. By using this one-page, easy-to-use template, project managers can quickly gain a high-level understanding of project risk levels. A Mitigations , Warnings , and Remedies section provides project managers and risk owners with ample space to record important information and communicate priorities quickly. This template's reference ID column also organizes tasks for better tracking and efficiency.

Construction Project Risk Assessment Template

Download Construction Project Risk Assessment Template Microsoft Excel | Adobe PDF

Contractors and project managers can use this risk assessment template when analyzing and calculating risk levels for a construction project. This template includes numbered probability and impact keys, as well as a color-coded legend for six risk levels that help managers conduct precise risk assessments. With this template, project managers and risk owners can easily oversee current control actions that will inform their risk mitigation planning.

Project Risk Assessment Questionnaire Template

Download Project Risk Assessment Questionnaire Template Microsoft Word | Adobe PDF

Begin assessing project risk with simple yes-or-no questions in this risk assessment questionnaire template. Project managers can refer to sample questions in categories such as policies, processes, and data security to help as they write their own project risk assessment questions. A spacious Notes column provides an area for additional elaboration when a simple yes-or-no answer is not enough.

Project Risk Response Matrix Plan Template

Download Project Risk Response Matrix Plan Template Microsoft Excel | Microsoft Word | Adobe PDF  

The risk response matrix plan template provides space for project managers and risk owners to list the response objective and to identify the potential impact and likelihood of each project risk. By using this form, project managers can ensure that they have the necessary information to guide risk response planning. Describing contingencies and triggers in this fillable matrix is an efficient way to craft a detailed and nuanced risk response plan.

What Is a Project Risk Template?

A project risk template is a tool that helps project managers identify and evaluate risks associated with project tasks. Project managers use these templates to assess risks,  inform mitigation planning, and ensure that projects are on time and within budget. 

Project risk templates use severity and likelihood data to determine risk levels that range from low and acceptable to extreme and intolerable. Depending on the level of risk that is acceptable for a given project, high severity or likelihood might require project managers to stop a task or to introduce mitigation efforts. Project managers use these templates to inform project risk management planning.

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Risk Assessment Form for clinical research projects

Instructions.

This Risk Assessment Form is a step-by-step guide for sponsor-investigators that helps them ensure that the potential risks of a clinical research project are addressed according to current good clinical practice (GCP) requirements. It therefore supports setting up a risk-based quality management system (QMS) as well. Plenty of examples help you to identify quality risks specific to your clinical research project, evaluate these risks, and develop strategies to overcome them.

The user-friendly Risk Assessment Form can be used to make a step-by-step assessment of a clinical research project's potential risks; it is in line with current GCP requirements.

This form helps you to identify potential quality risks of your clinical research project, evaluate these risks, and develop strategies to overcome them. As risks differ widely with different trials, the form’s instructions provide many examples for additional guidance. This form covers risks at both the system level and the clinical trial level.

This form is suitable for both clinical trials initiated in an academic setting and for project leaders running research projects according to the Human Research Ordinance (HRO). Part A applies to the system level and can be reused for different research projects running at the same site.

This form was developed by the SCTO’s Auditing Platform and first published in December 2019.

According to the Good Clinical Practice Guideline from the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH), referred to as ICH GCP E6(R2), it is the sponsor’s responsibility to ensure that an adequate QMS is in place to manage a clinical trial and address potential risks. Using this form helps you bring your risk assessment in line with the current requirements of ICH GCP E6(R2).

According to the Declaration of Helsinki and data privacy guidelines, it is the project leader’s responsibility to ensure that an adequate QMS is in place that can be used to oversee the project and address potential risks to the research project.

Watch this video for a quick introduction on how to manage your study risks with the Risk Assessment Form.

The complementary user instructions provide many practical examples and contain a step-by-step guide on how to complete the form.

• User Instructions for the Risk Assessment Form (pdf, 319.6 KB)

Our templates and tools are free. As a publicly funded organisation, we strive to inform the public about the impact of our work and to continually improve our services. We therefore kindly ask you to leave us your email address so we can contact you with a short one-time survey. You may download the document without providing your personal data.

This form is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0. Its content can be shared and adapted as long as you follow the terms of the license. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ .

• Risk Assessment Form (docx, 6.56 MB)

Related tools and resources

Guidance for electronic health record (ehr) system requirements in switzerland.

This guidance provides an overview of the requirements an EHR system should meet to ensure that the data recorded in it are valid and reliable for use in clinical research projects.

Guidelines for Risk-Based Monitoring

These guidelines describe the risk­-based monitoring procedures for clinical trials and help determine the recommended risk category for a clinical trial.

Risk-Based Monitoring (RBM) Score Calculator

The Risk-Based Monitoring (RBM) Score Calculator is a web-based questionnaire that helps you identify the best monitoring strategy for your clinical trial.

EHR Systems Study Site Assessment Template

The EHR Systems Study Site Assessment Template can be used to assess the regulatory conformity of electronic health record systems that host the source data for clinical research projects.

Safety reporting forms for clinical research projects

This set of comprehensive safety reporting forms addresses all aspects of safety reporting for clinical research projects.

Questions or suggestions?

Feel free to contact us with any questions or feedback related to this resource!

Before continuing on our website: We use cookies on our website to ensure that it functions smoothly and to analyse website use. Please read our data privacy statement and accept the use of cookies.

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• Risk matrix template: How to assess ris ...

Risk matrix template: How to assess risk for project success (with examples)

A risk matrix analyzes project risks based on likelihood and severity. Once you map your risks, you can calculate overall impact and prioritize risks accordingly. In this piece, you’ll learn how to create a risk matrix template and how to use the information from this analysis tool to develop a comprehensive risk management plan.

Risks are a part of any project, and there’s no surefire way to know which ones will occur and when. Sometimes, you'll get through an entire project without experiencing a single hiccup. Other times, you’ll feel like all the odds are against you. Without the help of a crystal ball, the only way to prevent project risks is to proactively prepare for them. 

A risk matrix helps you analyze risk by assigning each event as high, medium, or low impact on a scale of one through 25. Once you assess the severity and likelihood of each risk, you’ll prioritize your risks and prepare for them accordingly. In this article, we’ll explain how to create a risk matrix template and offer helpful tools for turning your results into action.

What is a risk matrix in project management?

Types of risks.

As part of the process, you’ll need to brainstorm a list of risks to chart in your risk matrix. The risks you may face will likely fall into these categories:

Strategic risk : Strategic risks involve performance or decision errors, such as choosing the wrong vendor or software for a project.

Operational risk : Operational risks are process errors or procedural mistakes, like poor planning or a lack of communication among teams.

Financial risk : Financial risk can involve various events that cause a loss of company profit, including market changes, lawsuits, or competitors.

Technical risk: Technical risk may include anything related to company technology, such as a security breach, power outage, loss of internet, or damage to property.

External risk: External risks are out of your control, like floods, fires, natural disasters, or pandemics. 

There are other risk categories to consider depending on your work industry. For example, if you have government clients, then you also want to brainstorm legal risks. If your company sells a physical product, you may have to think about manufacturing risks.

How to create a risk matrix template

When creating your risk matrix template, you’ll first identify your scale of severity, which you’ll place in the columns of your matrix. ​​The scale of severity measures how severe the consequences will be for each risk. In a five-by-five matrix, there are five levels in your scale of severity. 

Negligible (1): The risk will have little consequences if it occurs.

Minor (2): The consequences of the risk will be easy to manage.

Moderate (3): The consequences of the risk will take time to mitigate.

Major (4): The consequences of this risk will be significant and may cause long-term damage.

Catastrophic (5): The consequences of this risk will be detrimental and may be hard to recover from.

You’ll then identify your scale of likelihood, which you’ll place in the rows of your risk matrix template. The scale of likelihood identifies the probability of each risk occurring.  

Very likely (5): You can be pretty sure this risk will occur at some point in time.

Probable (4): There’s a good chance this risk will occur.

Possible (3): This risk could happen, but it might not. This risk has split odds.

Not likely (2): There’s a good chance this risk won’t occur.

Very unlikely (1): It’s a long shot that this risk will occur.

When you place a risk in your matrix based on its likelihood and severity, you’ll find the level of risk impact. The risk impact is both color-coded from green to red and rated on a one through 25 scale. 

Low (1-6): Low-risk events likely won’t happen, and if they do, they won’t cause significant consequences for your project or company. You can label these as low priority in your risk management plan .

Medium (7-12): Medium-risk events are a nuisance and can cause project hiccups, but if you take action during project planning to prevent and mitigate these risks, you’ll set yourself up for project success. You shouldn’t ignore these risks, but they also don’t need to be a top priority.

High (13-25): High-risk events can derail your project if you don’t keep them top of mind during project planning. Because these risks are likely to happen and have serious consequences, these are most important in your risk management plan.

 You don’t have to stick to the labels above for your risk matrix template if they don’t feel right for your company or project. You can customize the size and terminology of your matrix to your needs.

How to use a risk matrix

Once you’ve created a risk matrix, you can use it as a comprehensive analysis tool. The best part about a risk matrix template is that you don’t need to change it for every project. Once you have one, you can reuse it and share it with others. 

1. Identify project risks

You’ll need a list of potential risks to make use of your risk matrix. In this step, you’ll determine what risks may affect the specific project you’re working on. 

To come up with relevant risks for your project, you’ll need to understand your project scope and objectives. This includes the project’s:

Constraints

Using your project scope as a guide, think of risky situations that might affect your project. If you’re not sure where to start, try brainstorming techniques like mind mapping or starbursting to list as many risks as you can under each risk type. 

2. Determine severity of risks

When you created your risk matrix, you defined the criteria for your risk severity and likelihood. Now that you have a list of project risks, categorize them using the matrix criteria. Start with the scale of severity and go through each risk you’ve listed. Consider the following questions:

What is the most negative outcome that could come from this risk?

What are the worst damages that could occur from this risk?

How hard will it be to recover from this risk?

Which of the five severity levels most closely matches this risk?

You may not always have the perspective you need to know how severe the consequences of a risk are. In that case, work with other project stakeholders to determine the potential risk impact.

3. Identify likelihood of risks

Once you’ve defined the severity of each risk, you’ve completed half of the risk analysis equation. Next, identify the likelihood of each risk. To do this, consider the following questions:

Has this risk occurred before and, if so, how often?

Are there risks similar to this one that have occurred?

Can this risk occur, and if so, how likely is it to occur?

Team collaboration is also crucial in this step because you may not have a good idea of similar risks that have occurred in past projects. Make sure to reference past projects and analyze the probability of each risk with your team in order to create a more accurate mitigation plan.

4. Calculate risk impact

The last part of your risk analysis equation is to calculate risk impact. The equation you’ll use is:

Likelihood x severity = risk impact  

Place each risk in your matrix based on its likelihood and severity, then multiply the numbers in the row and column where it lands to find the level of risk impact. For example, if you think the risk of a data breach is of major severity (4) and probable likelihood (4), you’d multiply four by four to get a risk impact of 16. This is considered a high-risk impact. 

5. Prioritize risks and take action

You should now have a risk impact level on a scale of 1–25 for each risk you’ve identified. With these number values, it’s easier to determine which risks are of top priority. When you have risks with the same risk impact score, it will be up to you and your team to determine which risk to prioritize. Risks with equal risk impact may require equal attention as you create your action plan. 

Your risk response plan should include steps to prevent risk and ways to mitigate risk if unfortunate events occur. Because so much goes into project planning, the best strategy when tackling risks may be to divide and conquer.

Risk assessment matrix template

The size of your risk matrix template determines how closely you can analyze your project risks. A larger risk matrix template offers more room on the risk impact spectrum, while a smaller risk matrix template keeps your risk impact rating simpler and less subjective. 

Each square in your matrix represents a risk level of likelihood and severity, so you shouldn’t make your risk matrix smaller than three squares in length and width.

A five-by-five risk matrix is ideal so you can further analyze each risk. Once you chart your risks along your finished risk matrix template, this matrix creates a larger color spectrum to see the impact of each risk as high, medium, or low. 

The example below shows a five by five risk matrix template.

You can download a free risk matrix template using the link below. Use this template to chart your project risks and determine their overall level of risk impact.

Pair your risk matrix template with a work management tool

You can use the same risk matrix template when measuring risk across multiple projects. However, it’s important to remember that the risks you face will evolve. The environment changes, technology becomes smarter, and the workplace grows. Every project faces unique risks, and you must reevaluate these risks year after year.

When you pair your risk matrix template with work management software , you can use past data to inform current processes. Asana helps you share the results of your risk matrix with stakeholders so you can collaborate on a risk management plan. Once you have a solid plan in place, you can monitor your team in real-time as they take action.

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What is Community Risk Assessment?

Learn more about community risk assessment and identifying, prioritizing, and mitigating potential hazards, ensuring proactive safety measures for all residents.

Published:April 2, 2024 Edited: April 1, 2024

Although anticipating a natural disaster is never a desire, it remains vital to prepare for one, especially in disaster-prone areas . The first step towards building a safer community is through risk assessment. By integrating risk assessment findings into emergency planning processes, communities can enhance their preparedness and resilience, thereby safeguarding lives and property in the face of adversity.

Community Risk Assessment Defined

A community risk assessment, or CRA, is the process of identifying and categorizing potential risks and hazards that could impact a community. These hazards may include natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, and wildfires, as well as human-made hazards like industrial accidents, transportation incidents, and public health emergencies. A state or local entity, such as a local fire agency conducts these assessments. 1 To evaluate the area, these officials begin by analyzing dangers, weaknesses, potential harm, community resilience, and devising response strategies. Finally, a community risk reduction (CRR) program is implemented within the local community. 2

Elements of an Effective Community Risk Assessment

During a community risk assessment, experts analyze the weaknesses present in the community. They consider factors such as population density, infrastructure resilience, any economic gaps among residents, and what plans are already in place for emergencies. Understanding these vulnerabilities is crucial for developing targeted action plans and resilience in the community. Once risks and vulnerabilities are identified and assessed, communities can prioritize them based on their likelihood and potential impact. This prioritization helps leaders decide where to allocate resources strategically. The findings from a community risk assessment guide the development of Community Risk Reduction (CRR) programs, which are aimed at making the community more resilient and ready to face challenges.

Community Risk Reduction Examples

While a CRA focuses on identifying risks, a CRR is the next step of the process by implementing strategies and measures to reduce the identified risks. Here are CRR examples from fire departments across the United States that are actively implementing CRR programs to enhance public safety and reduce risk:

• Houston Fire Department, Texas : Implemented a comprehensive smoke alarm installation program targeting high-risk neighborhoods, significantly reducing fire-related injuries and fatalities. 5
• New York City Fire Department (FDNY), New York: Established a community CPR training initiative, training thousands of residents in life-saving CPR techniques and significantly improving survival rates for cardiac arrest victims. 6
• Austin Fire Department, Texas : Launched a public outreach campaign to promote home fire sprinkler systems, providing educational materials and incentives to encourage homeowners to install these vital devices. 7
• Los Angeles County Fire Department, California : Implemented a proactive vegetation management program in high-fire-risk areas, including controlled burns, vegetation clearance, and community outreach, resulting in reduced wildfire threats and improved community safety. 8

What is Community Risk Reduction

Community risk reduction is best described by the five E’s of CRR: education, engineering, enforcement, emergency preparedness, and engagement. This framework involves educating the community about risks, implementing engineering solutions to reduce vulnerabilities, and enforcing regulations to enhance safety. Additionally, CRR focuses on preparing for emergencies and fostering community engagement to ensure collective participation in risk reduction efforts. For a deeper understanding, here is a breakdown of the five E’s of CRR: 4

• Emergency Response: First responders must optimize their department’s response and ensure it is fully functioning. In addition, each department has all the equipment needed and the staff is in compliance and trained. 4
• Education: Education plays a vital role in community risk reduction by equipping individuals and communities with the knowledge, skills, and awareness necessary to mitigate the impact of potential hazards and disasters. Through targeted education programs, community members can learn to identify high-risk situations or behaviors in their own homes and pass the knowledge on. 2
•  Engineering: This is an opportunity to work with other local organizations to integrate new safety technologies. Structural engineering interventions, such as retrofitting buildings to withstand earthquakes or designing flood-resistant infrastructure, help minimize the physical damage caused by disasters. 3 By utilizing engineering practices, communities can enhance the resilience of critical infrastructure, buildings, and public spaces, reducing vulnerability and ensuring the safety of residents. 2
• Enforcement: Enforcing building codes, land use regulations, and safety standards are a great way to identify potential risks. 4  
• Economic Incentives: Encourage communities to make choices that reduce risk by offering a benefit for risk reduction efforts. Fewer barriers can also be an incentive. For example, a fire department gives out free smoke alarms with free installation. 2
• UNDP Climate Change Adaptation, “ Community Risk Assessment: Facilitators’ Guidebook .” Accessed March 22, 2024.
• ESO, “ Components of CRR: The 5 E’s of Community Risk Reduction .” Accessed March 22, 2024.
• LinkedIn, “ Building Resilience: Designing Structures to Withstand Natural Disasters .” Accessed March 24, 2024.
• USFA FEMA, “ Community Risk Reduction .” Accessed March 25, 2024.
• Houston Fire Department, “ Get Alarmed Houston! Smoke Alarm Program .” Accessed March 25, 2024.
• NYCFD, “ CPR .” Accessed March 25, 2024.
• ATX, “ #LetsGetRealATX .” Accessed March 25, 2023.
• Fire LA County, “ Fire Hazard Reduction Programs .” Accessed March 25, 2024.

Innovative Fire Technology: Smart Firefighter Helmet

How could smart firefighter helmets impact the future of firefighting and safety? Explore this emerging technology and its potential with expert guidance from the WFCA.

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Research risk assessment

It's the responsibility of the principal investigators (PI) and researchers to identify reasonably foreseeable risks associated with their research and control the risks so far as is reasonably practicable.

All participants and research assistants have the right to expect protection from physical, psychological, social, legal and economic harm at all times during an investigation. Certain research may also present reputational, legal and / or economic risks to the University.

As part of the ethical approval process for research involving human participants you are required to identify potential risks associated with your research and the action you will take to mitigate risk. You may be asked to submit your risk assessment.

The risk assessment process is a careful examination of what could cause harm, who/what could be harmed and how. It will help you to determine what risk control measures are needed and whether you are doing enough. 

Risk assessment responsibility

The PI and researchers need to take responsibility for all assessments associated with their projects. Occasionally you may need research workers or students to risk assess an aspect of the work and you will need to check the assessments are adequate and sign them off.

Risk assessors need to be competent and you’ll need to ensure they have adequate training and resource to do the assessments. There is risk assessment training available and help and advice help and advice help and advice from your Health and Safety Advisory Service link advisor and safety specialists (for health and safety risks), or the REO Research Governance team for other risks. In some cases, the hazards are so unique to the research that the PI and their team might be the only people who know the work well enough to make valid judgements about the risk and justify their conclusions.

Risk assessment process

The risk assessment process is a careful examination of what could cause harm, who/what could be harmed and how. It will help you to determine what risk control measures are needed and whether you are doing enough.

To simplify the process you can use the health and safety risk assessment templates, risk estimation tool and guidance for all risks associated with your research project. Please refer to the research risk estimation guidance under how to carry out a risk assessment below to assist you. 

Research risks

Typical risks that need to be considered as part of research ethics are:

• Social risks: disclosures that could affect participants standing in the community, in their family, and their job.
• Legal risks: activities that could result in the participant, researchers and / or University committing an offence; activities that might lead to a participant disclosing criminal activity to a researcher which would necessitate reporting to enforcement authorities; activities that could result in a civil claim for compensation.
• Economic harm: financial harm to participant, researcher and / or University through disclosure or other event.
• Reputational risk: damage to public perception of University or the University/researchers’ reputation in the eyes of funders, the research community and / or the general public. 
• Safeguarding risks:   Risk to young people, vulnerable adults and / or researcher from improper behaviour, abuse or exploitation. Risk to researcher of being in a comprising situation, in which there might be accusations of improper behaviour.
• Health and safety risks: risks of harm to health, physical injury or psychological harm to participants or the researcher. Further information on health and safety risks is given below.

Health and safety risks

The potential hazards and risks in research can be many and varied. You will need to be competent and familiar with the work or know where to obtain expert advice to ensure you have identified reasonably foreseeable risks. Here are some common research hazards and risks:

• Location hazards Location hazards Location hazards and risks are associated with where the research is carried out. For example: fire; visiting or working in participant’s homes; working in remote locations and in high crime areas; overseas travel; hot, cold or extreme weather conditions; working on or by water. Also hazardous work locations, such as construction sites, confined spaces, roofs or laboratories. For overseas travel, you will need to check country / city specific information, travel health requirements and consider emergency arrangements as part of your research planning, by following the University’s overseas travel  health and safety standard .  
• Activity hazards Activity hazards Activity hazards and risks associated with the tasks carried out. For example: potentially mentally harmful activities; distressing and stressful work and content; driving; tripping, or slipping; falling from height; physically demanding work; lifting, carrying, pushing and pulling loads; night time and weekend working.
• Machinery and equipment Machinery and equipment Machinery and equipment . For example: ergonomic hazards, including computer workstations and equipment; contact with electricity; contact with moving, rotating, ejecting or cutting parts in machinery and instruments; accidental release of energy from machines and instruments.
• Chemicals and other hazardous substances . The use, production, storage, waste, transportation and accidental release of chemicals and hazardous substances; flammable, dangerous and explosive substances; asphyxiating gases; allergens; biological agents, blood and blood products. You’ll need to gather information about the amount, frequency and duration of exposure and carry out a COSHH or DSEAR assessment which will inform whether you may need health surveillance for yourself and / or your research participants.
• Physical agents Physical agents Physical agents . For example: excessive noise exposure, hand-arm vibration and whole body vibration; ionising radiation; lasers; artificial optical radiation and electromagnetic fields. You’ll need to gather information about the amount, frequency and duration of exposure inform whether you may need health surveillance for yourself and / or your research participants.

When to carry out a risk assessment

Carrying out initial risk assessments as part of the planning process will help you identify whether existing resources and facilities are adequate to ensure risk control, or if the project needs to be altered accordingly. It will also help you to identify potential costs that need to be considered as part of the funding bid.

Once the project is approved, research specific risk assessments need to be carried out before work starts.

The research may need ethical approval if there is significant risk to participants, researchers or the University.

How to carry out a risk assessment

The University standard on risk assessments provides guidance, tips on getting it right, as well as resources and the forms to help you produce suitable and sufficient risk assessments and must be used.

• Risk assessment template (.dotx)
• Flow chart to research risk assessment (.pdf)
• Research risk assessment: Risk estimation tool (.pdf)
• Example of a Social Science research risk assessment (.pdf)

Refer to carrying out a risk assessment carrying out a risk assessment carrying out a risk assessment for step by step guidance.

Risk assessments must relate to the actual work and must be monitored by the PI. If there are significant changes to the activities, locations, equipment or substances used, the risk assessment will need to reviewed, updated and the old version archived. Risk assessments should also consider the end of projects, arrangements for waste disposal, equipment, controlled area decommission and emergencies. 

Things to consider:

• The risks may be specialist in nature or general. Information can found from legislation, sector guidance, safety data sheets, manufacturers equipment information, research documents, forums and health and safety professionals.
• Practical research might involve less well-known hazards. Do you or your team have the expertise to assess the risk adequately? Do you know who to go to for expert advice?
• The capabilities, training, knowledge, skills and experience of the project team members. Are they competent or are there gaps?
• In fast changing research environments, is there a need to carry out dynamic risk assessments? Are they understood and recorded?
• The right personal protective equipment for the hazards identified and training in how to use it.
• Specific Occupational Health vaccinations, health surveillance and screening requirements identified and undertaken. With physical agents and substances you’ll need to make an informed decision about the amount, frequency and duration of exposure. If you need help with this contact HSAS.
• Associated activities: storage, transport/travel, cleaning, maintenance, foreseeable emergencies (eg spillages), decommissioning and disposal.
• The safe design, testing and maintenance of the facilities and equipment.
• Planned and preventative maintenance of general plant and specialist equipment.

These risk assessments relate to the actual work and must be monitored by the PI. If there are significant changes to the activities, locations, equipment or substances used, the risk assessment will need to reviewed, updated and the old version archived. Risk assessments should also consider the end of projects, arrangements for waste disposal, equipment and controlled area decommission and emergencies.

Training 

If you would like training on risk assessment, please book onto one of our courses:

• Research Risk Assessment (for research staff and students in Humanities and Social Sciences)
• Research Risk Assessment (for research staff and students in Faculty of Science of Health only)
• Carrying out a risk assessment Carrying out a risk assessment Carrying out a risk assessment
• People especially at risk People especially at risk People especially at risk
• IOSH/USHA/UCEA guidance on managing health and safety in research (.pdf) 
• Research governance: Ethical approval

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