Part I
Risk Management Discovery

I am used to thinking three or four months in advance about what I must do, and I calculate on the worst. If I take so many precautions it is because it is my custom to leave nothing to chance.

—Napoleon I, in a conversation with Marshall Murat, March 14, 1808

Part I establishes the context for understanding risk as an important part of how we think and how you can develop the ability to manage software systems risk.

Chapter 1, “Software Risk Management,” defines software risk management and describes the need for it in the software community. It then presents a six-discipline model that integrates risk into the way we think. Read Chapter 1 to understand the essence of software risk management.

Chapter 2, “P²I² Success Formula,” discusses what it takes to manage risk in the context of a project and an organization. Read Chapter 2 to understand the major factors that affect risk management capability and to glean a success formula for managing software risk.

Chapter 3, “Risk Management Map,” outlines a risk management road map designed to improve your ability to manage risk. Read Chapter 3 to understand how to increase your ability to manage risk through progress in four synergistic dimensions of risk management.

With the knowledge of software risk management and the road map provided in Part I, you will be ready to assess and develop your ability to manage risk.