Governance
Risk Register Template
A risk register is where you list what could go wrong, score how bad and how likely, and decide what to do about it. Use this free template with built-in probability × impact scoring — or let Planquora watch your project and flag new risks continuously.
What it is
A risk register is a focused log of risks — potential future events that would hurt the project if they happened. Unlike a full RAID log, it's risk-only, and it adds scoring so you can rank them.
The standard scoring is probability × impact, each rated 1–5. Multiply them for a 1–25 risk score: that number tells you which risks deserve real mitigation and which you can simply accept and watch.
When to use it
- At planning, to capture and score known risks before they bite.
- On a regular cadence, to re-score existing risks and add new ones as the project evolves.
- To decide where to spend mitigation effort — high-score risks first.
- Ahead of governance reviews, to show risks are identified, owned, and being managed.
The template
ID R-01, R-02… | Risk description What might happen, in one sentence | Category Technical / Schedule / Cost / External / Resource | Prob (1–5) How likely | Impact (1–5) How damaging | Score Prob × Impact (1–25) | Response Avoid / Mitigate / Transfer / Accept | Mitigation action What you'll do | Owner One person | Status Open / Monitoring / Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R-01 | Lead developer may leave mid-project | Resource | 2 | 5 | 10 | Mitigate | Document architecture; pair a second dev on core modules | PM | Open |
| R-02 | Third-party API rate limits break at scale | Technical | 3 | 4 | 12 | Mitigate | Load-test early; negotiate a higher tier | Tech lead | Monitoring |
| R-03 | Regulatory approval could slip the launch | External | 3 | 5 | 15 | Transfer | Engage compliance early; escalate to sponsor | Compliance | Open |
| R-04 | Scope creep from stakeholder requests | Schedule | 4 | 3 | 12 | Avoid | Enforce change control; log all requests | PM | Open |
Tips
- Score honestly, then sort by score. The register's whole value is telling you where to focus.
- Match the response to the score: mitigate the high ones, accept-and-watch the low ones. You can't mitigate everything.
- Re-score on a cadence — probabilities and impacts move as the project progresses.
- A risk that materializes becomes an issue. Move it to your issue log and manage it there.
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