Risk management and systems engineering discipline

An effective risk management model for complex programs requires: (1) integrated treatment of the potential technical, schedule, and cost impacts of risks; (2) full participation of the program manager, system engineer, and program control manager in the identification, assessment, mitigation and tracking of risks; (3) early identification of risks by the engineering staff, with checks by program control, the program manager, and outside experts; and (4) consideration of program options in terms of how they support the client´s overall program. The model has been introduced on space and defense programs, and has been found to represent an extension of good systems engineering, modified by additional input from program management and program control. For small programs, the model has been found implicitly in use by small teams driven by systems engineering principles. For large programs, risk management is more difficult to effectively implement unless those programs are structured around smaller teams, such as integrated product teams. When dealing with integrated product teams, the model must be applied at two levels: (1) within each team, and (2) at the program level to deal with the interaction of those teams. Guidelines are presented for the implementation of risk management within teams and at the program level of large programs. The model applies to both hardware and software programs