Reasons why projects fails and just how to avoid that happening and being able to add value to your clients by Jessica Torres

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2. Reasons Why Your Projects Fail
And how to avoid them
Jessica Torres
July 19, 2019

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Project Management
The most important aspect of project management is
“delivering business value to the customer.” As a
means to realize this aspect, a project manager must
foster a project environment that focuses on
delivering the identified business value.
However, most organizations have experienced
projects that did not end on time, were over budget,
or changed in scope over time. There are many
pitfalls that can sink projects. Here we will focus on
six basic reasons why projects fail.

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Project Management
● A survey published in HBR found that the average IT project overran its budget by 27%. Moreover, at
least one in six IT projects turns into a "black swan" with a cost overrun of 200% and a schedule
overrun of 70%.
● A PwC study of over 10,640 projects found that a tiny, tiny portion of companies - 2.5% - completed
100% of their projects successfully.
● PM software adoption remains low. As per Wellingtone's survey, only 22% of organizations use a PM
software. Coincidentally, 55% of organizations don't have access to real-time KPIs. As a result, 50% of
respondents said that they spend one or more days to manually collate project reports.
● Rework is a big cause of project failure and a significant source of delays. 80% of respondents in a
Geneca survey said that they spend half their time on rework.
Some Statistics

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Reasons Why Your Projects Fail
1. Lack of Visibility
● Increased risk of failure due to not being able to
see what possible issues may arise or are currently
happening
● Leadership / management cannot get a clear
picture of the current status of a project
● New team members have a hard time
understanding the project
● Some times, resources are shared between
different projects which can cause the PM to not
know what exactly the resource is working on that
day.
● PMs manage several projects at the same time and
sometimes it is hard to keep all tools up to date
● Lack of visibility into resource allocations may
cause overworked team members that cannot
focus completely on all projects
Solutions
● Have a centralized location to publish all the
project information
● Projects should be well documented
● Creating a process for adding and creating tasks
and documentation
● Fostering a collaborative environment in which
everyone can help with any tasks
● All stakeholders should be kept up to date (weekly
reports)
● Jira board should always be up to date
● Resource management tool should always be up to
date
● Good communication is key

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Reasons Why Your Projects Fail
2. Unclear Objectives
● Did not ask the right questions to the customer
● Not enough time spent discussing the
requirements and main goals of the client
● If leadership/management is not clear about the
priorities then the rest of the organization will not
be clear either
● Lack of prioritization may cause overworked team
members
Solutions
● Have a meeting with previously written questions
to clearly understand the goal of the client
● Rank project priorities
● Remind the team of the project objectives
frequently and set dates to review you are on track
to achieve them
● Set up metrics that help you evaluate if the
objectives were achieved
Only 55% of people involved in projects -
team leaders and project managers - feel that
the project's business objectives are clear to
them.
Source: Geneca

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Reasons Why Your Projects Fail
3. Poor Communication
● We receive a lot of emails every day. Sometimes it
is hard to keep up with all of them or some
important details are missed
● Language barrier
● Assumptions are made sometimes
● Not using the appropriate method
● Not listening to your team
● Being close minded
● Fear of saying ‘No’
Solutions
● Create a communications plan
● Status reports
● Label emails as ‘IMPORTANT’ when something
needs action to be taken immediately so that team
members can quickly go to that email and read in
detail
● Double check to make sure you understand
questions/answers
● Centralized location for all important
communication
● Stay open to your teams suggestions and opinions
● Be clear when something cannot be done
59% of U.S. workers say communication is
their team’s biggest obstacle to success,
followed by accountability (29%).
Source: Atlassian

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Reasons Why Your Projects Fail
4. Scope Creep
● Not having a scoping document
● Not getting approval on scoping document
● Saying ‘Yes’ to everything the client requests
● Not clearly documenting scope changes
● No risk management
● Project complexity
● Lack of clarity
Solutions
● Clearly defined project scope from the planning
stage and get approval from client
● Establish change requirements process with the
client from the beginning
● Do not be afraid to say no if something cannot be
done or will cost extra to do
● Clearly document any change requests and keep
track of them
● Establish risk management process from the
planning phase

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Reasons Why Your Projects Fail
5. Unrealistic Deadlines
● Setting tight deadlines causes unnecessary stress
on your team
● Team rushes to get the work done and quality may
be lost in the process
● A lot of bugs and errors come up
● Not enough wiggle room built into the estimates
● Not all team members are consulted on the
deadline before sharing with the client
● No historical data
● Optimism
Solutions
● Identify all possible factors that could play a role in
delaying your project from the beginning
● Build enough buffer into the deadline
● Get all team members opinion on the deadlines
before sharing with the clients
● Start tracking internal data to be able to make
better decisions based on this
● Be realistic

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Reasons Why Your Projects Fail
6. Lack of Trust
● Sometimes, this can happen if a team member did
not deliver on a previous project or projects
● Micromanaging makes the team feel they are not
trusted
● Not open to listening or trying other solutions
● Leader does not like to delegate
● More pressure does not mean better results
● Only focusing on the negatives reduces the
confidence of the team
Solutions
● Reassure your team member that even though he
did not deliver previously, you can work together to
make sure that does not happen again
● Leaders need to create a safe place where people
feel comfortable sharing and trying new ideas
● Let the team be independant and just ask for a
status. Trust they will ask for help if needed
● Give people opportunities to prove themselves
● Recognize the good work, not just the bad work
● Listen to your team
● Communicate
● Delegate if you have too much work. This will show
trust and also make sure things get done
78% of U.S. workers don’t fully trust their
teammates.
Source: Atlassian

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Conclusion
● Provide visibility of the project to everyone
● Define clear objectives & focus on the customer needs
● Create a communication plan
● Handle risk management
● Set realistic deadlines
● Trust your teammates
● Project managers can easily reduce the risk of failure by
identifying common reasons that pave the way for project
failure and taking steps to prevent this
● Invest in project management training

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