Risk Mitigation: Threats and Opportunities

Name: Risk Mitigation: Threats and Opportunities
Author: Andrew Kovacks

Discover the consequences of risk.

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Course: On-Demand

(gentle music) Welcome to risk mitigation, threats, and opportunities. In these lessons, you will learn how to reduce threats to your business as well as take advantage of opportunities that can be presented in certain risk situations. Threat reduction through risk mitigation encompasses a wide variety of situations. The basis behind threat reduction falls into risk identification and analysis. Once you have determined the threats that can occur you can prepare for them with alternative plans. For example, with weather threats, it's best to plan alternate tasks that are not subject to weather conditions. You can also allocate a certain number of days that work may be impacted by weather and factor them into your timeline and budget. So let's investigate other types of threats. One area of the mitigation process to look at is proximity threats. Proximity threat are simply situations that can occur in the proximity or geographic location of a business, project, or job site. For instance, if you are building a portion of a chemical plant, the possibility of an accident involving a chemical release is a real possibility. Chemical leaks do occur and can shut down a job site for an extended period until the area can be cleared and work can begin again. This by itself is highly dependent on the severity of the release. Since many plants use subcontractors, this can impact staffing if severe enough and could cause injuries or fatalities. In many cases, the release may only affect a single day in minor events, but occasionally a plant accident can shut down the entire operation for years. Impacts can include, but are not limited to loss of staffing, materials, equipment, and mainly income if severe enough to totally shut the plant down for an extended period. Transportation presents another proximity threat that can be short term in most cases but not all. In recent years, fires have become a major risk in many areas. In one instance, a well fire 50 feet from interstate 10 in Louisiana, shut down the interstate for a period of three weeks until the incident was brought under control. Even though there were alternate routes, the amount of traffic coupled with road work going on at the same time created three to four hour delays on this highly traveled interstate. Material interruptions are another example of physical threats. This can include a short supply of materials necessary for a job, or delays in production of raw materials. Planning and preparing for these types of physical threats are an integral part of the mitigation process. Many of these cannot be mitigated due to their nature, but at least identifying them can allow for planning in the event they occur. Technical threats also come in many forms. From software malfunctions, testing procedure and equipment breakdowns. When considering technical threats on computer systems, cyber security threats come to mind first. But having the right systems is the first part of the mitigation process. Other preventive measures can encompass strict policies and procedures on surfing the web. Downloading suspected attachments, using outside flash drives, as well as securing firewalls. Compliance threats fall into local, state and federal guidelines for respective work. These can include but are not limited to environment, safety, permits and certifications. Mitigation of these threats really is just doing your homework and ensuring your company and work comply with all regulations. Economic threats are next to impossible to mitigate when considering global economic downturns or complete shutdowns caused by the recent pandemic. But overall, your CFO should be tracking economic factors that can impact your ability to perform your work. Regardless of the scope of an economic threat, alternate plans should be put into place such as funding sources, material vendors and a survival strategy.

Advanced Provider : Andrew Kovacks 5 Lessons · 12m in Arabic, German, English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Urdu, Chinese

Course Description

All companies, large and small are subject to threats and risks. Risk mitigation encompasses a wide variety of situations such as weather conditions, technical, compliance, and economic. Each comes with its own set of consequences as well as methods to reduce those risks and escape disastrous outcomes. The primary steps of threat reduction are risk identification and analysis. Once you have determined the threats that can occur, you can prepare for them with alternative plans. In the course, Risk Mitigation: Threats and Opportunities, you will learn how to reduce threats to your business as well as take advantage of opportunities that can be presented in certain risk situations. You’ll discover the definition of threat reduction and explore various threats a business can incur as well as ways to reduce those threats. You’ll also learn how to prioritize threats as well as prevent and prepare for them. You’ll also know how to identify opportunities in risk mitigation.

What You'll Learn

Define risk-taking behaviors and learn to correct them
Analyze the various types of threats a business can incur
Assess threat-reduction methods to reduce and prepare for risks
Prioritize threats and prepare alternative plans for them
Identify and discover opportunities within risk mitigation
Apply joint ventures and risk transfer as methods of mitigation

Key Takeaways

All companies, large and small, are subject to threats and risks, including weather conditions, technical, compliance, and economic situations.
The primary steps of threat reduction are risk identification and analysis.
Once threats are identified, a business can prepare for them with alternative plans.
Certain risk situations can present opportunities that a business can take advantage of.
Transferring risk, including through joint ventures, is one method of mitigating threats.

Frequently Asked Questions

What will I learn in this course?

You will learn how to reduce threats to your business and take advantage of opportunities presented in certain risk situations. The course covers the definition of threat reduction, various threats a business can incur, ways to reduce them, how to prioritize threats, how to prevent and prepare for them, and how to identify opportunities in risk mitigation.

What topics do the lessons cover?

The lessons cover Reducing Threats, Prioritizing Threats, Joint Ventures and Transferring Risk, and Correcting Risk-Taking Behavior, followed by a Test Your Knowledge assessment.

What types of risks does the course address?

Risk mitigation in this course encompasses a wide variety of situations including weather conditions, technical, compliance, and economic risks, each with its own consequences and methods to reduce them.

What are the main steps of threat reduction taught here?

The course teaches that the primary steps of threat reduction are risk identification and analysis, after which you can prepare for identified threats with alternative plans.