Guidance:
The risk communication and consultation must be very inclusive process.
1. What is the purpose of risk communication and consultation?
The purpose is twofold. First, it is important to ensure that when thinking of risk and risk management you have all your relevant stakeholders around the table. The range of stakeholders might vary from project to project, from programme to programme and might include a variety of internal stakholders (finance, HR, Secruity, etc.) as well as external partners from UN system, national partners, experts, donors, , etc. Second, the purpose of this process is to highlight the criticality of risk communication to inform your stakeholders about the risks identified, how they are managed, and therefore, to manage expectations on how to share responsibilities and accountabilities around various risks and their management.
2. Who to include in a risk consultation?
The main principle of risk management is inclusiveness. The question is how to decide who to include in risk discussion and at what stage of the project or programme implementation. The decision about who to include in risk consultation and communication must be guided by fit-for-purpose logic and will depend largely on your understanding of those directly affected by the risk (Donors, Boardmembers, government,etc.). It is critical to include all relevant stakeholders into risk identification, assessment, treatment, monitoring, reporting and review. Success of this process guarantees the completeness of your risk profile, the buy-in of risk response measures across your key stakeholders, and success of your risk management efforts at large.
For instance, you should ensure that your project or programme team members are all included during risk identification and analysis. Hence, your risk consultation might become an internal discussion within your team. You might also want to solicit the perspective on risk of some of your stakeholders that you'd consider directly relevant because they either contribute to the causes or bear the impact of the risk. For instance, when discussing how the changes in the national fiscal system might potentially affect the funding modality of your country programme, you might want to consult experts from the ministry of finance or other international partners who might have similar issue. From this consultation process you might get better understanding of the specifics of fiscal reforms and sharpen your understanding of risks for your organization and, therefore, how to best address them to achieve the objectives of your project or programme.
When the risks are identified, analyzed, and measures defined how to address them it is important to inform your internal and external stakeholders about your risk profile and assure them that your project, programme, or organization takes all necessary measures to address those risks with due responsibility.
3. How to organize risk consultations?
There are variety of techniques how to engage the different stakeholders: workshops, SWOT analysis, interviews, individual and group discussions, focus groups, etc. These techniques could be used when deemed relevant and most appropriate, however, it is highly recommended to ensure that risk discussions are happening when important decisions are about to be taken within the organization.
