Analogy Comparisons

The analogy comparison and lessons-learned techniques for risk identification, qualification, and quantification are based on the supposition that no project—no matter how advanced or unique—represents a totally new system. Most projects originated or evolved from existing projects or simply represent a new combination of existing components or subsystems. A logical extension of this premise is that the project manager can gain valuable insights concerning various aspects of a current project’s risk by examining the successes, failures, problems, and solutions of similar existing or past projects. The experience and knowledge gained, or lessons learned, can be applied to the task of identifying potential risk in a project and developing a strategy to handle that risk.