Five propositions on how to combine threat and opportunity management in practice to further develop the project

Risk management in project contexts is increasingly more in
focus amongst researchers and practitioners, including the debate on if
and how opportunities can be integrated into the work with threats, or if
separation is better. In this conceptual paper, integrating
several strands of literature including risk management, project
management, and organization theory in terms of sensemaking and
paradox perspectives on decision making, it is argued that a sequential
approach is a better option: An initial deliberate focus on threats to make
sense of the existing project plan, then on innovative responses often
entailing new opportunities. Five propositions on how this can be
conducted in practice by project organizations are discussed as well as
an overarching flow-chart linking the five propositions together, while
recognizing that projects are temporary organizations in which a mix of
people with a different frame of references are expected to deliver results
after short initiation. Therefore, it is important to be realistic and
implement a clear and practical process for project risk management,
which distinctly links to existing forums and processes for decision
making rather than creating new ones. Several managerial implications
are presented, but also some theoretical notions.