Risk register

Established

Also: Risk log

A living log of identified project risks, recording for each its cause and effect, likelihood and impact, owner, response and current status.

Explanation

Typical fields: risk ID, description (cause → event → effect), category, probability and impact ratings (often on a 1–5 scale producing a score), risk owner, response strategy (avoid, transfer, mitigate, accept for threats; exploit, share, enhance, accept for opportunities), trigger, contingency allowance and status. Contracts allocate many construction risks (unknown site conditions, design errors, price escalation); the register should note which party carries each. Quantified registers feed contingency setting and Monte Carlo schedule or cost risk analysis.

Practical example

A hospital renovation register lists "unknown asbestos above ceilings" (likelihood 4, impact 4, owner: construction manager, response: pre-construction hazardous-materials survey and a provisional sum) and "infection-control shutdown" (likelihood 3, impact 5, owner: owner's project manager, response: phasing plan agreed with infection control).

Why it matters

Risks that are written down, owned and reviewed are far more likely to be managed before they become claims, delays or safety incidents.

Standards and references

  1. A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide), Eighth Edition. Project Management Institute (PMI), 2025.Widely accepted professional interpretation
    Supports: Risk as one of the seven performance domains in the PMBOK Guide, 8th edition · Status: Published November 2025; six principles and seven performance domains (governance, scope, schedule, finance, stakeholders, resources, risk).

VDC Stack.io writes its own explanations and does not reproduce copyrighted standards text. Consult the cited standard for normative wording.

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VDC Stack.io. (2026). Risk register. In VDC Stack.io Knowledge Dictionary. Retrieved from https://vdcstack.io/dictionary/risk-register/