Deliberate Risk Assessment Worksheet (DD Form 2977): Convoy Example

A completed DD Form 2977, the Deliberate Risk Assessment Worksheet, walks a mission or training event through five columns in a single table: sub-task, hazard, initial risk, controls, and residual risk. Each row handles one hazard. The highest residual risk across all rows becomes the mission’s overall risk level, and that number decides which commander signs. A blank fillable copy lives on the DoD Executive Services Directorate website.1Department of Defense. DD 2977 – Deliberate Risk Assessment Worksheet The form replaced DA Form 7566 and follows the five-step risk management process in Army Techniques Publication 5-19.2Department of the Army. ATP 5-19 Risk Management

A Worked Convoy Example

The clearest way to see how the blocks connect is to look at a real entry. The rows below come from an assessment for a multi-day road movement between two installations.3B Co Safety. Deliberate Risk Assessment Worksheet – Convoy

Sub-task (Block 4): Conduct a military vehicle convoy, 305 miles one way, three serials of nine vehicles with two scheduled stops.

Hazard (Block 5): Inexperienced drivers due to low frequency of interstate convoys, leading to forgotten lessons learned.

Initial risk (Block 6): Medium. The event is occasional and consequences could be critical.

Controls (Block 7): Thorough route planning, driver selection based on experience, review of past convoy after-action reports, and safety briefs at every formation before departure.

Implementation (Block 8): Convoy commander and company commanders conduct all briefs and planning; the assessment itself is referenced as a planning document.

Residual risk (Block 9): Low. With trained drivers selected and multiple briefings completed, probability drops significantly.

The same assessment used separate rows for other hazards on the same convoy. Failure to follow duty-day driving limits was controlled by enforcing a 10-hour driving cap with 8 hours of consecutive rest. Cell phone use by drivers was controlled by a blanket prohibition, with emergency exceptions only for truck commanders. Each hazard started at a higher initial risk and dropped to Low through specific, enforceable controls.

Filling In Each Block

The instructions are printed on the worksheet itself, but the numbering trips people up because several fields are columns inside one table rather than separate boxes on the page.4Army MWR. DD Form 2977 – Deliberate Risk Assessment Worksheet

  • Block 1, Mission/Task Description: A brief summary of the overall operation or training event. “Company-level convoy from Fort Cavazos to Fort Sill, 305 miles one way, three serials of nine vehicles” is the right level of detail.
  • Block 2, Date: The date the assessment is prepared.
  • Block 3, Prepared By: Name, rank, and contact information for the person conducting the assessment.
  • Block 4, Sub-Task/Sub-Step: Break the mission into its component parts. Each row of the hazard table starts with a sub-task, such as “road movement during hours of darkness” or “weapons cleaning with solvent.”
  • Block 5, Hazard: Identify a specific hazard tied to that sub-task. Under a daytime convoy sub-task, the hazard might be “driver fatigue from exceeding duty-day limits.”
  • Block 6, Initial Risk Level: Using the probability-severity matrix, assign a risk level before any controls are applied. Enter the combination and the resulting level, for example “Likely / Critical = High.”
  • Block 7, Controls: List the specific measures that will reduce or eliminate the hazard, such as “enforce 10-hour driving limit with mandatory 8-hour rest” or “position medics and ice station at the training site.”
  • Block 8, How to Implement / Who Will Implement: State the delivery method (safety brief, operations order, rehearsal) and name the person or unit responsible. “Convoy commander briefs all drivers during pre-combat checks” is a good example.
  • Block 9, Residual Risk Level: Reassess probability and severity with the controls in place. If your initial risk was High but proper rest enforcement and driver screening reduce the likelihood, residual risk might drop to Low.

Blocks 10 through 15 handle roll-up, approval, supervision, and follow-up.4Army MWR. DD Form 2977 – Deliberate Risk Assessment Worksheet

  • Block 10, Overall Risk After Controls: The single highest residual risk from all rows in Block 9 becomes the mission’s overall residual risk level.
  • Block 11, Supervision Plan: Describe who will monitor each control during execution and recommend a course of action for the approval authority.
  • Block 12, Approval/Disapproval: The appropriate commander signs to approve or disapprove the mission based on the overall risk assessment.
  • Block 13, Risk Assessment Review: For ongoing operations, reviewers periodically check whether conditions have changed and whether controls are still working. If residual risk rises above the approved level, operations stop until a higher authority approves continuation.
  • Block 14, Feedback and Lessons Learned: After the event, document what worked, what did not, and any recommendations for new or revised controls.
  • Block 15, Additional Comments: Space for anything else the preparer or approval authority wants on the record.

Scoring Initial and Residual Risk

The rating in Blocks 6 and 9 comes from the risk assessment matrix, which cross-references two factors. Probability is how often the harmful event is expected given the exposure involved. Severity is the worst realistic outcome if the hazard materializes. Where the two intersect gives you Low, Medium, High, or Extremely High.2Department of the Army. ATP 5-19 Risk Management

ATP 5-19 defines five probability levels:

  • Frequent: The event happens continuously or inevitably, such as heat injury during a battalion run in a Category 5 heat index with unacclimated soldiers.
  • Likely: The event commonly happens and is expected to occur several times. Improvised explosive device detonations and unintentional weapons discharges fall here.
  • Occasional: Neither common nor uncommon. A unit may or may not complete a deployment without it.
  • Seldom: Remotely possible and usually requires several things to go wrong at once.
  • Unlikely: Possible but improbable. Planners assume it will not happen, though it is not impossible.

Severity has four levels:

  • Catastrophic: Death, unacceptable loss or damage to equipment, mission failure, or hazardous substance release.
  • Critical: Severe injury, permanent partial disability, or major equipment damage.
  • Moderate: Minor injury, illness, or property damage.
  • Negligible: First-aid-level treatment with minimal or no equipment damage.

A catastrophic hazard rated as frequent or likely produces an Extremely High risk level. The same catastrophic hazard rated as seldom drops to High. A negligible hazard rated as frequent comes out only Medium. The full matrix has 20 intersections, and the rule is consistent: the more likely and severe the hazard, the higher the risk level, and the higher up the chain of command the approval must go.2Department of the Army. ATP 5-19 Risk Management

Choosing Controls That Actually Lower the Risk

Block 7 is where a worksheet earns its keep. ATP 5-19 groups controls into three categories, and a strong assessment uses a mix rather than leaning on one.2Department of the Army. ATP 5-19 Risk Management

  • Educational controls: Training, briefings, signs, and standard operating procedures. A convoy safety brief covering cell phone restrictions and fatigue management is an educational control.
  • Physical controls: Barriers, guards, protective equipment, and warning signs. Placing medics and an ice station at a summer training site is a physical control.
  • Hazard elimination controls: Changing the method of execution so the hazard disappears entirely. Rescheduling a road march from midnight to daylight hours eliminates the reduced-visibility hazard rather than merely reducing it.

Elimination controls are the most effective but often the hardest to implement, because they may change the training conditions the unit actually needs. When elimination is not practical, layering educational and physical controls provides the next best protection. Whatever mix you choose, each control needs an owner and a delivery method in Block 8, or it will not survive contact with the mission.

Who Signs Based on Residual Risk

The overall residual risk in Block 10 decides who signs Block 12. ATP 5-19 does not publish a single fixed table matching risk levels to specific ranks, because approval authority varies by unit and command policy. The principle is straightforward: if the residual risk exceeds what a commander is authorized to accept, that commander sends the assessment to the next higher commander.2Department of the Army. ATP 5-19 Risk Management

Most units publish standing policies that delegate Low and Medium risk decisions to company-level commanders while reserving High and Extremely High decisions for battalion commanders or higher. Check your unit’s standard operating procedures for the exact thresholds. The approval authority signs based on the controls, residual risk, and supervision plan laid out in the worksheet.

Using the Form During Execution and Closing It Out

A signed worksheet is a working document, not a filing exhibit. Keep it at the activity site so leaders can reference it during safety briefings and spot-checks, and use Block 11 to name specific people responsible for monitoring each control in real time.4Army MWR. DD Form 2977 – Deliberate Risk Assessment Worksheet

Conditions change. Weather shifts, equipment breaks, personnel get injured. When residual risk rises above the level the signing commander approved, operations stop until a higher authority is contacted and authorizes continuation.4Army MWR. DD Form 2977 – Deliberate Risk Assessment Worksheet That is the point where the deliberate assessment hands off to real-time judgment: the worksheet is the baseline, and leaders adjust from there.

Block 14 closes the loop. After the event, the preparer documents which controls worked, which ones fell short, and what should change next time. Specific entries earn their place: “Ice station reduced heat casualties to zero despite a Category 4 heat index” tells the next planner something useful. “Controls were effective” tells them nothing.5Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. Deliberate Risk Assessment Worksheet The convoy assessment above specifically called out reviewing past after-action reports as one of its controls, which only works if someone actually filled in Block 14 last time.