When discussing issues and risks with your stakeholders, don’t assume they know the difference between the two. Unless they have been part of risk/issue discussions in the past (or perform a risk-related function in the organization), they may get the two concepts muddled. Instead, prepare them by prefacing your discussion with an analogy they can relate to: “Before we begin our risk and issue review, let’s be sure we are all clear on the difference between a risk and an issue…” One of my favorites is the pothole analogy: “A risk is a pothole in the road ahead; ask yourself, ‘What’s the likelihood of us hitting it; if we do hit it, what will be the impact–do we need to be concerned?’ An issue is hitting the pothole.”
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