The mission of the Risk Management Program of the Council of American Structural Engineers (CASE) is to improve the practice of structural engineering by reducing the frequency and severity of claims. CASE members have access to tools that make achievement of this goal more manageable. These tools have been developed with the 10 Foundations of Risk Management as a guideline. The 10 Foundations form the basis around which a risk management program can be built.

Previous Risk Management columns published in Structural Engineer have introduced the 10 tools, each one based on one of the 10 Foundations. The Toolkit committee of CASE is now working on additional tools that will further enhance a structural engineer’s ability to manage risk.

The tools below are related to Foundation 4: Communication, which includes the motto, “Communicate to match expectations with perceptions.”

Tool 4-2: Project kick-off meeting agenda
Poor communication is frequently listed among the top reasons for lawsuits and claims. We typically place considerable emphasis on communication with our clients, owners, and external stakeholders. But, it is easy to take for granted communication with our internal stakeholders — the structural design team.

If a project is not started correctly, there is a good chance that it will not be executed correctly. Tool 4-2: Project Kick Off Meeting Agenda is designed to help structural engineers communicate the information that is vital to the success of the project to their own design team.

Tool 4-2 is a template of a “Right Foot Meeting” agenda that can be tailored to fit your firm’s specific needs. The template guides you toward leading a successful and productive kick off meeting with your design team. At the end of the meeting, each individual design team member should understand the following:

• his or her role and responsibilities, as well as the roles and responsibilities of the other members of the design team;
• the level of commitment expected for successful project completion; and
• where to find and how to use the tools and information required to execute the project effectively.

Tool 4-3: Sample correspondence guidelines
It is important to create an atmosphere of open communication when trying to avoid claims caused by miscommunication. The intent of Tool 4-3: Sample Correspondence Guidelines is to make it faster and easier to access correspondence with appropriate verbiage addressing some commonly encountered situations that can increase your risk.

The sample correspondence contained within this tool is intended to be sent to the client, owner, subconsultant, building official, employee, or others to keep them informed about a certain facet of a project. The correspondence templates are designed to be edited as needed based on the requirements of each unique situation and each individual firm. Firm logos, letterhead, headers, and footers can easily be added to the sample correspondence to suit your firm’s needs.

Examples of some of the situations addressed in this tool include GMP contingencies, design-build and condominium projects, oral discussions, and human resources issues.

Conclusion
Tools 4-2 and 4-3 address another area — communication — that can always be improved and aid in mitigating risk to structural engineers. Access to Tools 4-2 and 4-3 (and all previously released and future tools) is provided to CASE members free of charge. Non-members may purchase the tools on the CASE website and have the opportunity to test one of the tools at no cost. Visit www.acec.org/rmp to see a description of the tools. E-mail Corey Matsuoka, chairman of the Toolkit Committee at cmatsuoka@ssfm.com for more information.

The Risk Management Program (RMP) is organized as a program of the American Council of Engineering Companies’ (ACEC) Coalition of American Structural Engineers (CASE). The group’s mission is to enhance risk management, loss prevention, and claims management techniques of the structural engineering profession. To learn more, visit www.acec.org/rmp

Nils V. Ericson III, P.E., LEED AP is project manager for The Di Salvo Ericson Group in Ridgefield, Conn. He can be reached at nils@tdeg.com.