In people we should trust

I wonder how many articles and blogs we have all read by now on why projects fail? The search of the APM site alone shows the result of 262 articles.

The truth is I believe we are clear on why most projects fail, and these have been known for some time. This article from 2017 nicely captures, as much as any do, what we have known for years as the common reasons.

So, what do we do to prevent failures? We put in place more controls, governance, procedures, training and assurance. None of this is wrong, in fact having the skills, tools, structures and data in place is essential to be able to monitor, mitigate and make decisions.

However, we continue to see projects fail. So, is it the rigour for which we oversee and manage these processes the reason why, or something much simpler than that? My opinion is that it all comes down to people, and specifically, how we communicate and the culture we create in the project environment.

If we look at the common reasons for projects failing, they can be grouped under the following broad headings: funding and costs, resources, planning and scheduling, objectives, change and communication, sponsorship and leadership.

Now instead of considering the tool or process which prevents or mitigates this, instead think of the conversation that should have taken place, perhaps around those tools and processes. What were the questions that were not asked, the answers not sought, or the opinions or doubts not expressed? We should all remember the famous folktale of the ‘emperor’s new clothes’.

Could simply creating the environment which supports candour, objectivity, and transparency prevent most of these issues? If we continue to allow for over promising, overt optimism, denial, misunderstanding as well as the lack of openness are we not destined to repeat the same results?  What drives these behaviours, is it fear, or is it pride and ambition?

It starts from understanding and accepting your own incompleteness and seeking the knowledge and advice from others.

We need to create the right culture across all parties, suppliers, clients, boards and within our project teams. We need to build trust.

We should proactively welcome challenge, honesty, and diversity of thought. There is a subtle difference in asking the question of ‘is there anything else I should know’ and ‘is there anything else I need to know?’

Our project teams and leaders should themselves be formed from a wide range of backgrounds, valuing both expertise, but also welcoming the fresh perspectives of inexperience.

As we approach the technological advances of AI which will allow us to do routine tasks more quickly, and to analyse complex data to make predictive decisions, we should make the time to invest in having the right conversations and culture in place.

For now, maybe it starts with a simple question to ask your team today – ‘what is it I should be worrying about’?