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Risk Assessment Questionnaire

Project Name: Project Number: Project Phase: Project Manager: Date:

Note: Although developed for a Systems Development application, all questions can be modified to suit any type of project without affecting the scoring mechanism of this tool.

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I. SIZE

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A. Budget

1. What is the estimated total budget for the project? a. Less than $50,000 b. $50,000 to $100,000 c. $100,000 to $500,000 d $500,000 to $1,000,000 e. More than $1,000,000

2. What is the level of confidence in the accuracy of the budget estimate? a. High b. Medium c. Low

3. What is the possibility of budget overrun? a. Not likely b. Moderately possible c. Highly probable

B. Duration

1. What is the estimated elapsed time to complete the project? a. Less than 6 months b. 6 months to 1 year c. 1 to 2 years d. More than 2 years

2. What is the level of confidence in the accuracy of the schedule estimate? a. High b. Medium c. Low

3. What is the degree of flexibility in the schedule and completion date? a. Moderate flexibility b. Limited flexibility

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4. What is the life expectancy for the system being developed? a. Less than 2 years b. 2 to 5 years c. 5 to 10 years d. More than 10 years

C. Data Processing Staffing Level

1. What is the expected maximum size of the data processing team? a. Under 6 people b. 6 to 10 people c. 11 to 20 people d. More than 20 people

2. Is the data processing staffing level (expected staffing level) adequate for the

project? a. Adequate level of staffing b. Slightly understaffed, anticipate minor impact on project schedule c. Severely understaffed, will lengthen project schedule

3. What percent of the data processing team can be staffed with existing personnel? a. 90-100% b. 67-89% c. 34-66% d. 0- 33%

4. Due to specialized skill requirements, budget constraints, etc., how difficult will it be

to obtain additional permanent staff or contractors? a. Not difficult b. Somewhat difficult c. Very difficult

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D. Client-User Staffing Level

1. What is the expected maximum size of the client-user project team? a. 1 to 2 people b. 3 to 5 people c. 6 to 8 people d. More than 8 people

2. Is the client-user staffing level (expected staffing level) adequate for the project? a. Adequate level of staffing b. Slightly understaffed, anticipate minor impact on project schedule c. Severely understaffed, will lengthen project schedule

3. What percent of the client-user team can be staffed with existing personnel? a. 90-100% b. 67-89% c. 34-66% d. 0-33%

4. Due to specialized skill requirements, budget constraints, etc., how difficult will it be

to obtain additional permanent staff or contractors? a. Not difficult b. Somewhat difficult c. Very difficult

E. Number of User Departments

1. How many departments could be described as primary system users in this project? a. One b. Two c. Three d. Four or more

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2. How many departments are involved as secondary users in this project (e.g.,

primarily to get information for secondary reports, etc.)? a. None or one b. Two c. Three or more

3. How many locations are involved? a. Under 5 b. Between 5 and 10 c. Between 10 and 15 d. More than 15

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II. STRUCTURE

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A. Administration and Control

1. Has a system development methodology been established for the project? a. Yes, standard approaches will be used by the project team b. Yes, first time use by project team c. No

2. Will the system be implemented in well-defined phases if the estimated elapsed time to complete the project is more than 12 months?

a. Yes, or the project has less than 12 months b. No

3. Will the development effort be continuous? a. Yes b. No, limited impact c. No, moderate impact d. No, considerable impact

4. Has the joint client-user/development team been established for the project? a. Yes, with active client-user participation from all the departments involved b. Yes, with part-time client-user participation c. No

5. Has a formal client-user review and approval cycle been established for the project? a. Yes, formal procedures b. No, informal procedures c. No procedures

6. Have the project steering procedures been established for the project? a. Yes, formal procedures b. No, informal procedures c. No procedures

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B. User Support

1. Is there a client-user analyst, (subject matter expert-SME) assigned to the project? a. Yes, active participation b. Yes, minimal participation c. No

2. How strong is the SME’s knowledge of data processing? a. Very strong b. Adequate c. Limited

3. How knowledgeable is the SME in the proposed application area? a. Substantial experience in the area b. Understands concepts but has no experience c. Limited

4. Does the client-user’s top management support the project? a. Well supported b. Somewhat supported c. Limited support

C. Development Team Qualifications

1. What is the experience of the project leader with projects of a similar type? a. Demonstrated performance within this company with similar systems b. Demonstrated performance within this company but with different types of

systems c. Prior experience with similar systems but no experience at this company d. No experience

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2. What is the experience of the project leader with projects of a similar size? a. Demonstrated performance within this company with similar systems b. Demonstrated performance within this company but with different types of

systems c. Prior experience with similar systems but no experience at this company d. No experience

3. What is the project team’s demonstrated performance in implementing projects of

this type? a. Excellent b. Adequate c. Limited

4. What is the project team’s demonstrated performance in implementing projects of

this size? a. Excellent b. Adequate c. Limited

5. What is the project team’s functional knowledge of the client-user’s business in the

area to be automated? a. Excellent b. Good c. Fair d. Poor

D. Functional Requirements

1. The system may be described as: a. Replacement of an existing automated system b. Replacement of an existing manual system c. Totally new system

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2. What percentage of new system functions are one-for-one replacements of the

existing system’s functions? a. 67-100% b. 34-66% c. 0-33%

3. To what degree can the user requirements definition be based on existing system documentation?

a. To a large degree b. To a moderate degree c. To a minimal degree or no existing documentation

4. How well defined is the project scope? a. Well defined and documented b. General understanding but not documented c. Not well defined

5. To what degree will the client-user depend on the technical staff to define system requirements (system inputs, outputs, processing requirements, data base content, etc.)?

a. Minimal dependence b. Moderate dependence c. High dependence

6. How likely to change are the project scope and/or requirements? a. To a large degree b. To a moderate degree c. To a minimal degree (or no existing documentation)

7. How diverse are the requirements of the different client-user work groups? a. Identical requirements or only one user b. Similar requirements c. Somewhat diverse requirements

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8. How important are data integrity controls to the new system? a. Limited importance b. Moderate importance c. Extreme importance

E. Impact on User Operations

1. To what degree will the client-user depend on the system for normal operation? a. Not required for normal operation b. Moderately dependent c. Extremely dependent

2. Will change in client-user organization or policy be required as a result of this system?

a. No b. Minimal change c. Moderate change d. Major change

3. To what degree will the new system impact client-user operations and procedures? a. Minimal change b. Moderate change c. Major change

4. What is the general attitude of the operational client-users to the proposed system a. Positive b. Neutral c. Somewhat skeptical or unknown d. Negative

5. How familiar is the client-user with the technology being used? a. Very familiar b. Somewhat familiar c. Unfamiliar but easy to adapt d. Unfamiliar, requires extensive user education

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III. TECHNOLOGY

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A. Impact on User Operations

1. How experienced is the project team with the hardware being used? a. Very experienced b. Moderately experienced c. Slightly or not experienced

2. How experienced is the project team with the software being used? a. Very experienced b. Moderately experienced c. Slightly or not experienced

3. How experienced is the project team with the development tools and techniques being used??

a. Very experienced b. Moderately experienced c. Slightly or not experienced

4. To what extent will the success of the new system depend on technology with which the project team has limited experience (including hardware, software, development tools and techniques)?

a. Not at all or not enough to cause a problem b. To a moderate extent c. To a great extent

5. Are backup personnel available with similar experience and skills? a. Yes b. No

B. Technical Approach

1. The system would be described as: a. Primarily batch b. Interactive, inquiry with primarily batch update c. Interactive, inquiry and real- time update

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2. Is the system a network application? a. No b. Networked to a central system c. Networked to multiple types of systems

3. The development effort on this system would be described as: a. Primarily a package implementation, with only minor modifications to the

package anticipated b. Software packages will be skeleton for new development c. Primarily new development

4. Is the success of the system dependent on hardware new to the data processing organization?

a. Not dependent b. Somewhat dependent c. Heavily dependent

5. Is the success of the system dependent on software new to the data processing organization?

a. Not dependent b. Somewhat dependent c. Heavily dependent

6. To what degree will the success of the system depend on technology with which the vendors have limited experience?

a. Not applicable b. Limited degree c. Moderate degree d. Significant degree

7. What is the expected vendor support of the technology? a. Not applicable b. Good c. Limited problem d. Serious problem or unknown

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C. Development Environment

1. Will the project team have difficulty obtaining adequate computer resources and

development tools? a. No problem anticipated b. Limited problem c. Serious problem

2. To what extent are changes in development hardware or software expected to impede progress on the subject?

a. Limited impact b. Moderate impact c. Considerable impact

D. Technical Requirements

1. What is the anticipated complexity of the data conversion effort? a. No data conversion effort b. Straightforward c. Average d. Complex

2. Will the new system be required to meet stringent performance requirements (e.g., response time, availability)?

a. Reasonable expectations b. Stringent requirements

3. How important are the security/privacy considerations to the new system? a. Limited importance b. Moderate importance c. Extreme importance

4. With how many different existing data processing applications must this system interface?

a. None b. 1 to 3 c. 4 to 6 d. More than 6

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INSTRUCTIONS

Use the worksheets on the next few pages to do the following: 1. To calculate the weighted question values, multiply individual question values by the weight

factor shown in the “Question Value Worksheet.” 2. Summarize the weighted question values for each sub category (e.g., I. A1-Budget, I. A.2-

Duration, etc.). 3. Complete the Percentile Value Worksheets. 4. Classify the subcategory, category and composite scores as high, medium or low risk levels,

such that:

Percentile Risk Value Risk Level 40 or less Low 40 to 60 Medium 60 or more High

Determining the degree of risk that is possible in the project will help you plan for appropriate contingencies and establish tighter project controls relative to status and jeopardy reporting.

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Risk Assessment

I. SIZE

A. 1 a b c d e D. 1 a b c d 0 1 2 3 4 x5= 1 2 3 4 x1=

A. 2 a b c D. 2 a b c 0 1 3 x1= 0 1 3 x1=

A. 3 a b c D. 3 a b c d 0 2 3 x1= 0 1 2 3 x1= D. 4 a b c

B. 1 a b c d 0 1 3 x1= 1 2 3 4 x3=

B. 2 a b c E. 1 a b c d 0 1 3 x1= 0 1 2 3 x3=

B. 3 a b E. 2 a b c 1 3 x1= 0 1 2 x1=

B. 4 a b c d E. 3 a b c d 0 1 2 3 x1= 0 1 2 3 x1=

C. 1 a b c d 0 1 2 3 x2=

C. 2 a b c 0 1 3 x1=

C. 3 a b c d 0 1 2 3 x1=

C. 4 a b c 0 1 3 x1=

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Risk Assessment

I. STRUCTURE

A. 1 a b c D. 1 a b c 0 1 2 X2= 1 2 3 x1=

A. 2 a b D. 2 a b c 0 3 x1= 1 2 3 x2=

A. 3 a b c d D. 3 a b c 0 1 2 3 x1= 1 2 3 x1=

A. 4 a b c D. 4 a b c 0 2 3 X1= 0 2 3 x2=

A. 5 a b c D. 5 a b c 0 2 3 x1= 0 2 3 x1=

A. 6 a b c D. 6 a b c 0 1 3 x1= 0 2 3 x2= D. 7 a b c

B. 1 a b c 0 1 3 x1= 0 2 3 X1= D. 8 a b c

B. 2 a b c 1 2 3 x1= 0 1 3 x1=

B. 3 a b c E. 1 a b c 0 1 3 x1= 0 2 3 x1=

B. 4 a b c E. 2 a b c d 0 2 3 X1= 0 1 2 3 x1= E. 3 a b c

C. 1 a b c d 1 2 3 x1= 0 2 2 3 X1= E. 4 a b c d

C. 2 a b c d 0 1 2 3 x1= 0 2 2 3 X1= E. 5 a b c d

C. 3 a b c 0 1 2 3 x1= 0 1 3 x1=

C. 4 a b c 0 1 3 X1=

C. 5 a b c d 0 1 2 3 X1=

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Risk Assessment

I. TECHNOLOGY

A. 1 a b c C. 1 a b c D 0 1 3 X1= 0 1 2 3 x1=

A. 2 a b c C. 2 a b c 0 1 3 x1= 1 2 3 x1=

A. 3 a b c 0 1 3 x1= D. 1 a b c d 0 1 2 3 x1=

A. 4 a b c 0 2 3 X3= D. 2 a b 0 3 x1=

A. 5 a b 0 2 x1= D. 3 a b c 0 1 2 x1=

B. 1 a b c D. 4 a b c d 0 2 3 x1= 0 1 2 3 x2=

B. 2 a b c 0 2 3 x1=

B. 3 a b c 1 2 3 x1=

B. 4 a b c 0 1 3 x2=

B. 5 a b c 0 1 3 x2=

B. 6 a b c d 0 1 2 3 x1=

B. 7 a b c d 0 1 2 3 x1=

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Risk Assessment

I. SIZE

Total A= Percentile A= Total A X 100= 26

Total B= Percentile B= Total B-4 X 100=

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Total C= Percentile C= Total C X 100= 15

Total D= Percentile D= Total D X 100=

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Total E= Percentile E= Total E X 100= 11

Total Size Percentile = [.30 (A) + .25 (B) + .10 (C) + .10 (D) + .25 (E)]

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Risk Assessment

II. STRUCTURE

Total A= Percentile A= Total A X 100= 21

Total B= Percentile B= Total B-4 X 100=

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Total C= Percentile C= Total C X 100= 15

Total D= Percentile D= Total D X 100=

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Total E= Percentile E= Total E X 100= 14

Total Structure Percentile = [.15 (A) + .15 (B) + .40 (C) + .15 (D) + .15 (E)]

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Risk Assessment

III. TECHNOLOGY

Total A= Percentile A= Total A X 100= 20

Total B= Percentile B= Total B-4 X 100=

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Total C= Percentile C= Total C X 100= 5

Total D= Percentile D= Total D X 100=

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Total Technology Percentile = [.40 (A) + .25 (B) + .10 (C) + .25 (D)] TOTAL PROJECT PERCENTILE= [.30 (Size) + .40 (Structure) + .30 (Technology)]