What is the first step in risk management?

The first step in risk management is to identify the hazards. This step is crucial because it sets the foundation for the entire risk management process. By accurately identifying potential hazards, you lay the groundwork for assessing the risks associated with those hazards and developing strategies to mitigate them.

Identifying hazards involves recognizing any conditions or situations that could pose a threat to safety. This could include environmental factors, equipment malfunctions, or human errors. Once hazards are identified, you can then assess the risks they pose, which involves evaluating how likely it is that a given hazard will lead to an undesirable event and the severity of that event should it occur.

Without clearly identifying the hazards, it would be difficult to effectively assess risks, mitigate them, or even review historical data appropriately, as those activities rely on the understanding of what potential dangers exist. The process of risk management is systematic and builds upon each step, starting with hazard identification, so this initial stage is vital to promoting safety in any context, including aviation.