Have you ever completed a project only to find out it doesn’t really solve the problem the customer had to begin with? Many projects begin with these fateful words, "Pull together a team and create a new _____," or “If we just had an improved ____, it would solve our problems.” As a conscientious project manager, you go about trying to fulfill the stated objectives of the project. You carefully document the requirements the customer has for whatever they have asked for. You issue the project plan, the customer signs off, and you execute the plan without a hitch. (Don’t forget this is a fantasy so of course everything goes smoothly.) You deliver the final deliverable to the customer, according to the customer’s criteria for acceptance. The customer accepts the final deliverable and then, during close out, you find out that the customer is unhappy about the final deliverable. It met the requirements, so what can be wrong? What’s wrong is that the final deliverable didn’t solve the problem that was the instigation for the project in the first place. Why? Because you did a project based on the customer’s perceived solution to the problem. You didn’t take the time to find out if these critical questions were addressed before you started the project:
What exactly is the problem the customer is experiencing?
