Managing Risk – Alan Stewart

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As a leader for Scouts, Alan Stewart goes over how risk management can change a dangerous trip to a walk in the park. He explains the process that Scouts use to manage risks and why these risks should be taken at all.

In this article a magic formula is introduced for risk, it is Risk=Probability x Consequences. This formula does not only help grade your risks but also shows the two components of a risk. In this article they use the example of a ten day ten camper canoe trip and go over how they would manage the risks of something going wrong. He describes how they will have two meetings to go over the risks, one to get a list of all the possible risks, their probabilities, and consequences, then the second meeting is after precautions have been put in place and they see where they are at now. This technique is then followed by a follow up meeting after the trip to debrief and make changes for the next trip.

Seeing just how much work is put into making sure they they keep their campers safe on trips has really opened my eyes to how unsafe I really am and makes me realize how many more precautions I should be taking before going out on trips. In the end I have learnt a lot from this article and suggest it to anyone preparing for a trip where risks are involved.

Stewart, Alan. "Managing Risks." (n.d.): n. pag. Scouts. Scouts Canada, May-June 2009. Web. 1 June 2014. <http://www.scouts.ca/sites/default/files/sl-Managing-Risk.pdf>.