Risk · tool 4 of 7
Pre-mortem
Pre-mortem: finds risks that people are too polite or too optimistic to raise.
Best for: Before a big commitment · Time: 45 min
Domain: Risk · Focus area: Planning
How it works
Imagine it’s a year from now and the project has failed. Each person writes down why. Making failure a given frees people to voice doubts.
- Have people write alone first.
- Include quiet voices.
- Turn the top causes into actions.
How to apply it
- State that the project has failed.
- Give ten minutes to write reasons.
- Share and group them.
- Add the top items to the risk register.
In practice
A launch team expects tech problems, but the pre-mortem shows that the top worry is nobody owning support.
Pro tip
Have the most senior person speak last.
Quick check
What makes a pre-mortem work?
Sources
- G. Klein, “Performing a Project Premortem”, Harvard Business Review (2007)
Last reviewed 2026-11-02 against the PMBOK® Guide, 8th edition · Practitioner review pending · How this guide is made