Topic Teasers Vol. 76: Curing Repetitive Problems

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  Lessons Learned   Risk Management  

It’s always something! No matter how carefully I plan or how energetically my team works, there is always some issue that rises up to prevent us from feeling like our projects are really successful--either for us or for our organization. And the frustrating part is that the same things don’t happen each time. I don’t see any project processes that we can implement to solve this issue. Ideas?

A. You are using the incorrect project processes. If you have exhausted the ones commonly used in the United States, try PRINCE II, DSDM or DSDM Atern (agile). They have a 96.43% success rate in European countries.

B. While PMI standards try to pass along the collective wisdom of experienced, active colleagues, there are always so many unique situations that these can only be general guidelines. Sometimes you have to develop your own process to stop failures or quasi-missteps that aren’t happening in other places.

C. When projects fail, it is usually the organization’s internal processes that are at fault. If they tie your hands or don’t provide you with the lines of communication you need, you are powerless to succeed with even the most talented and dedicated team.

D. It is a misconception that any projects can achieve 100% of their goals. Average the cost, schedule and quality rates for the last …

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