This template isn’t about evaluating all potential risks for your business – it’s focused on one specific project or initiative. In the Background section at the top of the template, provide some context by explaining the project for which you’re assessing risks. Ensure you link to relevant research, websites, Confluence pages, and more. You can use a general risk assessment template to provide context for the project you’re assessing.

Not all risks are created equal, and this template uses four different ratings for your potential risks: low, medium, high, and extreme. You can familiarize yourself with them in the Risk rating section of the template. In addition to forcing you to carefully think about the severity of a risk, this color-coded system is helpful once you get to the matrix portion of the template, as it makes it easy to instantly recognize which risks just aren’t worth it.

You can use a basic risk assessment template to evaluate risks based on their likelihood and impact.

Your mind is probably swimming with some potential drawbacks of whatever project you’re planning for. In the Risks table, you’ll plot your risks based on two criteria: their likelihood and severity. Maybe it’s highly improbable that your budget for this project will dry up, but the effects of that would be undesirable. Plot that risk in that space of the matrix. Once you’re done doing that for all your risks, you’ll have a handy visual to promote productive discussions and planning sessions.

You don’t just want to identify your risks—you want to mitigate them. In this final Action items section of the template, jot down the steps you need to take to close the loop on open questions or concerns. Basically, you should list anything you need to do to reduce the probability or impact of a risk. Remember to @ mention team members to notify them of tasks they must take care of.