Letters

Uncalculated Risk

I was looking forward to the "Risk and Rewards" (Oct. 15) article by Denise Kersten, but was totally disappointed. It is basically a random collection of observations from various interviewees.

It's noted: "If risk management is a science, it's an imperfect one." If you call it "management," then it is not a science, and it is not. It is a process. It starts with identification of risk factors, followed by risk assessment (likelihood of happening and magnitude of impact), then you draw up risk response strategies, and end with implementation of a risk response plan. Nobody said it is a science. What the author was referring to about being a "science" is the risk assessment phase, which often involves the use of methodologies you find in science.

The article also stated, "At its core is the effort to make the unknown known." Absolutely wrong. If it is "unknown," then how do you make it "known?" Nobody can do that, maybe except the Almighty. What is actually done in risk management is that, given we have uncertainty about something (that's why we have risk), we try to find some kind of pattern so we can estimate the probability of occurrence and the range of potential numerical values.

Apparently, the author did not have a good understanding of what risk management is. Not knowing how to structure specific questions, she probably posed a fairly general one. Some respondents talked about risk factor identification, some talked about risk assessment, some talked about response strategies. The author simply put all these together. The result is a random collection of responses talking about different phases of risk management.

Another Bright Spot

I enjoyed reading "Weathering the Storm" (Nov. 1) as a colleague of mine works for the Coast Guard and has shared his pride in his organization.

He is now deployed at Lake Charles, La., assisting with the hazardous waste cleanup.

Both of us work for the Veterans Affairs Department. The Veterans Health Administration was able to evacuate and care for its patients throughout Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath.

I am extremely proud of the actions dedicated staff members took to stay with patients and ensure their transition to other locations.

Please consider adding VA to your list of agencies that burn the brightest dealing with Katrina.

Corrections

In "Risk and Rewards," (Oct. 15), Army Corps of Engineers commander Lt. Gen. Carl Strock's name was misspelled.

In "Assessing Acquisition" (Nov. 1), Gordon England's title in the caption should have read acting deputy secretary of Defense.

In "Turnaround Artist" (Nov. 1), the Hewlett Packard 12c business calculator uses Reverse Polish Notation, not reverse Boolean logic.

The Nov. 15 cover illustration is by Dan Page.