Risk and knowledge-informed framework for residual risk decisions

This thought paper addresses how relationships between risk management (RM), knowledge management (KM), and decision-making processes interact to achieve successful outcomes in making residual risk decisions. RM and KM may be performed independently in support of programmatic, technical, or safety-related decisions or integrated to perform a “risk and knowledge-informed decision-making framework. ” Two well-known National Aeronautics and Space Administration Space Shuttle program failure scenarios (Challenger and Columbia) are utilized to examine the interaction of these processes, and how uncoupling one or more elements can lead to disjointed, fractured, and less than adequate residual risk decisions. From these data, a set of heuristics will be formulated to improve and sustain a complex decision-making framework within an organization, with the hope that this paper is provided to organizations beyond NASA as they undertake high-risk projects.