Milestones and risks

Milestones identify checkpoints the project must meet, with a due date, owner and outcome. Risks describe uncertainty that could affect delivery, including its category, probability, impact and mitigation. Project Manager reads them together when deciding which schedule concern needs action before the next working cycle.

A pending milestone approaching its date and an open resource risk can point to the same underlying concern. Keep each record’s purpose clear. The milestone records the checkpoint outcome, while the risk tracks uncertainty and the mitigation owner. Delivery Lead uses that context when deciding whether a planned commitment remains acceptable.

• Dated checkpoints. Project Manager records the milestone and responsible owner. Pending, Met and Missed describe the outcome, with notes explaining the supporting evidence or unresolved work.
• Risk ownership. Record the category, probability and impact along with the person responsible for mitigation. Keep the explanation specific enough that the owner can identify the next action and review its effect.
• Exception review. Exception Triage brings overdue milestones and tasks together with leading open risks and fixed-but-unverified issues. Use that queue to reach the underlying record and assign the next step.

Agree what evidence is needed to mark each milestone Met and who supplies it. Define how a missed checkpoint affects the work package and project review without silently moving the original due date. Choose a practical cadence for risk owners to report mitigation progress. Project Manager records those updates, and Delivery Lead inspects material schedule exposure.

Decide how probability and impact labels relate to their recorded scores and ratings. Use consistent meanings across projects, especially when the same delivery review compares resource, technical and vendor concerns. Have the team verify the score and rating behavior before treating a displayed label as the basis for prioritizing mitigation.

Use a design approval milestone due before implementation begins. Its owner reports that a vendor input has not arrived, and the project carries an open vendor risk describing that dependency. Project Manager examines the task dates and asks the risk owner to update the mitigation plan. Keep the pending checkpoint visible while the team works the issue.

If the due date passes without the required outcome, record the actual milestone result and notes. Delivery Lead reviews the effect on the commitment and records any work-package decision through the appropriate subject. When mitigation reduces the uncertainty, Project Manager updates the risk from Open to Monitoring and then to Mitigated only when the evidence supports that progression. The project review should still be able to explain the original missed checkpoint.

• Milestones At Risk — Pending or missed checkpoints due for attention, with their project, owner and notes.
• Open Risks — Open and monitored risks with probability, impact and the current mitigation owner.

Use Review delivery exceptions to structure the review and Plan and authorize a schedule when the commitment needs a new decision.