10 Laws of CHAOS

 

I came across an interesting article “CHAOS Summary 2009” published by The Standish Group in year 2009. The 10 laws of CHAOS mentioned in the article are both quintessential and thought provoking. They highlight the key factors that constitute to the success of a project. I have included a snapshot of the 10 laws below.

1. The Law of the Two Faces supports the first CHAOS Success Factor of User Involvement, and states that users are both your best friend and worst enemy. Successful projects include business-knowledgeable users with good communication skills that can explain business process in detail. A weak user is a liability to the project and will create a communication void between the business and the project team.
2. The Cheetah’s Law supports the second CHAOS Success Factor of Executive Support, and states that swift decisions are typically better than long, drawn-out analysis. Projects that have an active and responsive executive sponsor fare better than those left to hang alone without a champion. Project success depends a lot on swift and decisive decisions. Try to avoid analysis paralysis.
3. The Law of the Roads supports the third CHAOS Success Factor of Clear Business Objectives, and states that it does not matter which road everyone comes from as long as they end up in the same place. Clarity and focus are essential to a successful project. Ambiguity leads to confusions and conflicts that may jeopardize the project.
4. The Law of the Five Deadly Sins supports the fourth CHAOS Success Factor of Emotional Maturity, and states you will encounter the Five Deadly Sins in all projects. The Five Deadly Sins are part of all project ecosystems, healthy and unhealthy. It is how you deal with each of these sins that will determine the success or failure of a project.
5. The Law of the Long-Tailed Monster supports the fifth CHAOS Success Factor of Optimization, and states you will always build too much of what you don’t need and not enough of what you do need. Over- and under-building applications represent the biggest form of software development waste. It is essential to prioritize your requirements through tools like Kano Analysis and Quality Function Deployment.
6. The Law of the Edible Elephant supports the sixth CHAOS Success Factor of Agile Process, and states that software should be built in small, iterative steps with small, focused teams (or, the only way to eat the elephant is one bite at a time). When a big chunk is hard to swallow, try to break it down into smaller bites. Go with agile or iterative processes that allow for rapid feedback, creation of feature velocity, and accelerated user training and acceptance.
7. The Law of the Mad Hatter supports the seventh CHAOS Success Factor of Project Management Expertise, and states that complexity causes confusion and cost. Projects by their very nature are complex; it takes an empathetic organizational environment to understand the project management process in order for the team to simplify the project management practice. Try to make your process so simple that even the lavatory cleaner is able to understand.
8. The Law of the Empty Chair supports the eighth CHAOS Success Factor of Skilled Resources, and states that your best person will leave at the worst possible time. The best method to combat such an event is to keep the project cycles short with continuous deliverables. Foster a good work environment to fight talent retention problems.
9. The Panda’s Law supports the ninth CHAOS Success Factor of Execution, and states that inaction is the purest form of failure. Risk is part of every project, but unnecessary risk should be avoided. Being too risk averse is not helpful and might counterproductive where everyone is spending too much time managing risks unnecessarily.
10. The Law of the Fools supports the tenth CHAOS Success Factor of Tools and Infrastructure, and states that a fool with a tool is still a fool. It is not just having the right tools, but the skill to use them that makes all the difference in success and failure. Focus on trainings, both users and team, is key to success.