Maturity and risks

Cultural risk attitude is the value for gauging the proclivity toward a possible event that, if it happens, can modify the single output or the whole outcome.

At the project’s definition, this value is associated to well define the threshold. It is the boundary that fixes the boundary on the Risk Matrix.

On the daily basis, this limit has to be understood and evaluated by each risk’s monitor; the person (mostly senior producer / technical leader) who is responsible to look at the actual trend. Once the proximity has been reached, a quick and clear statement shall be sent to the Project Manager, who will start the defined procedures (usually an Exception Report, where the actual scenario and the possible actions are presented to the Sponsor).

People are the most important asset

“According to HBS professor Teresa M. Amabile and doctoral candidate Colin M. Fisher, “People will be most creative when they feel motivated primarily by the interest, enjoyment, satisfaction, and challenge of the work itself—and not by external pressures.” This insight is explored in their book chapter “Stimulate Creativity by Fueling Passion” in The Blackwell Handbook of Principles of Organizational Behavior.”

In Risk Management reading viewpoint, the key word becomes “
challenge” to be intended as the ability of daring; in other words, a bias influencing the judgment.

Previous experiences (either success or failures), familiarity with the specific issue and personal attitude (and many other factors) form the pattern used for making the decision.

Understanding the pattern

To be useful, any law needs to be known and accepted by most of the community’s members. Stakeholders are a community that shares a “special” set of rules that usually are derived and adjusted from the company.

Laws (formalized into processes) are produced by the dominant culture and shaped on the existing environment. In IT this corresponds to the technology. However, laws just ideas with some force behind. These concepts need to be interpreted for becoming effective.

The process of interpretation makes the difference between success and failure.

The personal maturity and risk hazard

It does not require huge bonuses and poor understanding of math for taking risks that are not accepted by the project’s charter.

Maturity or adulthood is a state of being conscious of most of the traits forming our personalities. The mosaic of patterns that help us in the process of taking decisions and then communicate the result for coping with it.

Usually the concept of maturity is applied to the whole organization. It serves for gauging the company’s ability for performing the stated processes. More these are carried through within the given allowances, more this grade is higher. Nevertheless, companies are made by single human beings. An honest (based on the humble and continuous process) assessment of the capacity to measure the gap (if any) between the personal pattern and the project’s standard is an essential requirement.