Can your people openly talk about risk? Find inspiration here.

‘Failure is not an option' said the C-suite pharma project sponsor. ‘This drug launch has been talked about at the board – so it absolutely has to succeed', he continued.

While aimed at rallying the troops, the leaders’ remarks had unexpected consequences. They silenced open debate regarding the project plan, timeline and resources.

Given the tight and unforgiving regulatory deadlines involved, such debate was overdue. However, this isn’t just another story of how some senior executives struggle to engage with risk.

In the next project briefing, the sponsor surprised everybody by actually talking about project risk. This u-turn was brought about by data gathered from project stakeholders that raised questions about:

1. The level of project rigor rated at 61%
2. The Level of clarity on the business fundamentals rated at 71%

The data provided the impetus for change. Levels of project confidence were optimized by 11% over six-weeks.

Given the complexity involved, some questions remained, however the process of pit-stopping:

(a,) Changed the project dialog, making it safe to talk about risks, dependencies & resources.

(b.) Enabled more effective cross-functional collaboration between scientific and commercial.

(c.) Reduced the level of noise and interference surrounding the project, thereby making it easier for people to better focus on getting the work done.

‘Previously we did not talk about risk. The fear was that it would be seen as being negative or demonstrating a lack of commitment. Today, we do talk about risk. Sometimes it's not easy, but unless we do, neither our conversations nor our plans will not be grounded in reality.’

Can your organization dialog project risk? Talk to us.