Unexpected and unforeseen geotechnical events cause large cost increases in geotechnical engineering projects and threaten construction workers’ health and safety all around the world. Practical tools and guidelines for how to implement structured and effective risk management methods in geotechnical engineering projects are however few and rarely applied. The Swedish Geotechnical Society has therefore published a methodology for this issue. A key activity in this methodology is to create an understanding of and to interpret the geotechnical context in which the project is to be carried out. This paper presents a guide for how practising geotechnical engineers, hydrogeologists, and other related professionals can perform this activity in a structured way. The procedure is illustrated through the foundation design for a new office building in a geotechnically challenging environment.