The third segment of our four-part Resilience Reset series explores how resilience works with  risk management for larger more complex projects, the benefits it brings in terms of decision-making, stakeholder confidence and delivery certainty, as well as the cultural, governance and capability challenges that must be addressed. 

This session moves us from a strategic view of enterprise risk and resilience and AI, discussed in Part One and Part Two to the world of project risk management and resilience. Here, uncertainty, tight scope and deadlines, resources, supply chain and other stakeholder complexity exposes tactical vulnerabilities. 

Resilience needs to be part of project design, not just a reactive response to disruption events. Projects are where strategy meets execution and where resilience is tested in practice. Even with strong governance and project management, projects can fail.  Often, it’s not a lack of risk identification and management, it’s a lack of built-in responsiveness and adaptability to disruptions.

In this third session, we will cover:

• Why traditional siloed project risk management approaches are no longer enough for today’s larger, more complex projects
• The case for integrating resilience thinking into project, program and portfolio management
• Using technology (including analytics and AI) to support proactive, resilience-informed project risk management
• What boards need from project risk and resilience reporting to fulfil their oversight duties
• How resilient project design supports long-term organisational performance

For organisations serious about project delivery excellence, resilience must be designed in, not added on.

Speakers: 

David Turner | CEO - RiskNZ
David Turner is a senior business executive and trusted advisor with over 30 years’ experience in risk management and leadership. He began his career in the Australian Army, deploying to East Timor in 1999 as part of a specialised team. After leaving the military, he worked across private and government organisations before founding a risk management consultancy that supported major projects including BHP, Rio Tinto, Multiplex, Australian Elections, and CHOGM 2011 alongside State and Federal Police. Born in New Zealand, David returned in 2016 to support a major rail transition and now works across New Zealand and Australia advising corporates, government, Big Four firms, and mentoring senior leaders. His expertise focuses on the risks associated with human behaviour—one of the most complex and often overlooked areas in risk and leadership.

Brad Smith | Principal Solutions Consultant - Riskonnect
Brad brings over 25 years of experience in Governance, Risk, Compliance, Planning, and Performance across 375+ organisations spanning government, private, and not-for-profit sectors in Australia and internationally.  He has extensive expertise developing and reviewing GRC frameworks, policies, registers and risk appetite statements, as well as designing and implementing GRC software solutions. Brad also delivers training and thought leadership through courses, webinars, and product related consultancy. He holds qualifications in Governance, Risk and Compliance, Lean Six Sigma and Project Management and is a member of the RMIA and OCEG.

Coming Next:

Part Four: Governing Resilience

From regulatory pressure to systemic organisational strain, resilience is moving into governance.

This final conversation delves into what happens when boards start treating resilience as a measurable leadership outcome.