Risk-Based Decision Making: The Power of Quality Risk Assessment

Risk assessment is a powerful technique which allows engineering and operational teams to identify and assess the risks associated with their operations and make informed risk-based decisions on whether the work is safe to execute. Conducting a quality risk assessment will enable teams to have a complete understanding of the potential risks and build effective controls – preventions and mitigations – to execute the work safely. It will also assist with the identification of additional controls which can be put in place to further reduce the risk. This paper will discuss the initiatives undertaken by the bp wells organization to enhance the quality of risk assessments and risk-based decision-making. The plan included the implementation of deep and sustainable measures, such as the development of quality standards defining what constitutes a good risk assessment, reinforcement of leadership expectations, and the establishment of self-verification activities to evaluate the quality of risk assessments and address identified gaps. It also included the delivery of mandatory and refresher training on quality risk assessments. Since the initiatives were implemented, there has been evidence of enhancement in the quality of risk-based decision making across the organization. This paper will provide a detailed overview of the good practices adopted throughout implementation of the initiatives and describe the key attributes of a good quality risk assessment. The paper will specifically discuss the importance of: assembling the right team and key roles when conducting a risk assessment (e.g. role of a designated challenger, and leader approving the risk assessment), common biases and pitfalls to avoid, guidance on how to write a quality risk event description which will help identify effective prevention and mitigation measures, the role of hierarchy of controls, operationalization and communication of risk assessment and other good practices. The paper will include case studies with examples of how quality gaps were identified and corrected through self-verification and how good quality risk assessments helped in decision making by identifying and mitigating risk scenarios which otherwise would have been omitted or addressed ineffectively. Although other papers have been published on the subject of risk assessment, to the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper to describe an organization's initiatives to sustainably enhance the quality of risk assessments and risk-based decision making, while also presenting case studies and best practices adopted throughout the process. The paper may be used as a reference document by other organizations who are endeavoring to enhance the quality of their risks assessments and risk-based decision making.