Professional and Career Topics

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

I think understanding and learning from project failures  is an important topic for all engineers and fundamental for professional growth. However, I don't think this is topic that can put in a simple box.

By way of grounding, I see project failure as not being able to deliver on or meet promises. These could be cost, schedule, or functionality or some combination. I'm using functionality here as a catch all for solving the right problem and providing a solution that meets the requisite level of serviceability, reliability, longevity and public acceptance.  

From my own experience and  as a student of  this topic I can muster up a list of frequently occurring themes of causality leading to project failure. But,  I also see a dependency between these themes and their relative importance on project characteristics and setting. For me, these factors include project type and scope, technical complexity and novelty, commercial setting, non-technical issues,  and actors (catch all for owner, stakeholders including general public, designers, contractors, etc.). Therefore my earlier comment about being careful to over simplify.

The professional, academic and grey literature is replete with information on project failures and causality. I think this is where engineering professionals need to go to learn. Sadly, from my own experience, there's a reluctance to learn and or the desire to get something done takes precedent over the fundamentals of seeking out experience and learning from others.

I also think the connection can be made between themes of causality behind project failures and cognitive biases and heuristics. Examples of cognitive biases and heuristics that I think are common in the engineering world  include over confidence, confirmation and anchoring. The Dunning–Kruger effect is also important in explaining behaviors and outcomes. I think awareness of the role cognitive biases and heuristics play in determining outcomes is equally important as learning from experience.

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

                                                              100%

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

This BSI document provides some options to consider for improving project outcomes.

• Introducing BS 6079:2019ii

What's the aim of BSI's newly revised standard? Well, BS 6079:2019 Project management - Principles and guidance for the management of projects exists to help project managers achieve the desired outcome of a project efficiently and effectively. A secondary goal is to help organizations improve their project management capability, so they'll build up institutional learning about what works best in their own circumstances.

The standard is intended for use by senior managers, project practitioners and anyone who interacts with the project team. It's written to apply to any kind or size of organization, and projects of any size and duration.

• The standard's also clear on the fact that how it's applied should be proportional to the circumstances and requirements of the organization or project. In other words, it doesn't ask for sledgehammers to be deployed to crack nuts."
  
  https://www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/blog/Organizational-Resilience-Blog/bs-6079-project-management-blog/

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

While the above responses answer the question, I thought it might be interesting to learn
who else has, once project performance turned sour, turned to the art & science of systems for the management of quality.

Some quite reputable places to go for such content include, but are not limited to:

• asq.org[1]
• https://deming.org/[2]
• https://www.pmi.org/[3]
• Juran Institute Management Theory[4]

I look for to the dialogue this suggestion will excite.

Stay Healthy!

Cheers,

Bill

[1] https://asq.org/

[2] https://deming.org/

[3] https://www.pmi.org/

[4] https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=juran+institute%E2%80%99s+management+theory&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart

This BSI document provides some options to consider for improving project outcomes.

• Introducing BS 6079:2019ii

What's the aim of BSI's newly revised standard? Well, BS 6079:2019 Project management - Principles and guidance for the management of projects exists to help project managers achieve the desired outcome of a project efficiently and effectively. A secondary goal is to help organizations improve their project management capability, so they'll build up institutional learning about what works best in their own circumstances.

The standard is intended for use by senior managers, project practitioners and anyone who interacts with the project team. It's written to apply to any kind or size of organization, and projects of any size and duration.

• The standard's also clear on the fact that how it's applied should be proportional to the circumstances and requirements of the organization or project. In other words, it doesn't ask for sledgehammers to be deployed to crack nuts."
  
  https://www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/blog/Organizational-Resilience-Blog/bs-6079-project-management-blog/

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

While the above responses answer the question, I thought it might be interesting to learn
who else has, once project performance turned sour, turned to the art & science of systems for the management of quality.

Some quite reputable places to go for such content include, but are not limited to:

• asq.org[1]
• https://deming.org/[2]
• https://www.pmi.org/[3]
• Juran Institute Management Theory[4]

I look for to the dialogue this suggestion will excite.

Stay Healthy!

Cheers,

Bill

[1] https://asq.org/

[2] https://deming.org/

[3] https://www.pmi.org/

[4] https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=juran+institute%E2%80%99s+management+theory&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart

------------------------------
William M. Hayden Jr., Ph.D., P.E., CMQ/OE, F.ASCE
Buffalo, N.Y.

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot 1819 - 1880

Original Message:
Sent: 05-26-2021 11:50 AM
From: William Hayden
Subject: Q. Why Projects Fail Due To Four Common Causes

This BSI document provides some options to consider for improving project outcomes.

• Introducing BS 6079:2019ii

What's the aim of BSI's newly revised standard? Well, BS 6079:2019 Project management - Principles and guidance for the management of projects exists to help project managers achieve the desired outcome of a project efficiently and effectively. A secondary goal is to help organizations improve their project management capability, so they'll build up institutional learning about what works best in their own circumstances.

The standard is intended for use by senior managers, project practitioners and anyone who interacts with the project team. It's written to apply to any kind or size of organization, and projects of any size and duration.

• The standard's also clear on the fact that how it's applied should be proportional to the circumstances and requirements of the organization or project. In other words, it doesn't ask for sledgehammers to be deployed to crack nuts."
  
  https://www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/blog/Organizational-Resilience-Blog/bs-6079-project-management-blog/

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

------------------------------
William M. Hayden Jr., Ph.D., P.E., CMQ/OE, F.ASCE
Buffalo, N.Y.

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot 1819 - 1880

Original Message:
Sent: 04-27-2021 04:16 PM
From: William Hayden
Subject: Q. Why Projects Fail Due To Four Common Causes

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

ROLE AMBIGUITY……………………____
Lack of PROBLEM VALIDATION. . . . _____
Lack of PROCESS VERIFICATION. …- ____
ABSENCE OF A VISIBLE PROACTIVE
CONFLICT PROCESS. . . . . . . . . . . ________

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

------------------------------
William M. Hayden Jr., Ph.D., P.E., CMQ/OE, F.ASCE
Buffalo, N.Y.

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot 1819 - 1880
------------------------------

While the above responses answer the question, I thought it might be interesting to learn
who else has, once project performance turned sour, turned to the art & science of systems for the management of quality.

Some quite reputable places to go for such content include, but are not limited to:

• asq.org[1]
• https://deming.org/[2]
• https://www.pmi.org/[3]
• Juran Institute Management Theory[4]

I look for to the dialogue this suggestion will excite.

Stay Healthy!

Cheers,

Bill

[1] https://asq.org/

[2] https://deming.org/

[3] https://www.pmi.org/

[4] https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=juran+institute%E2%80%99s+management+theory&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart

This BSI document provides some options to consider for improving project outcomes.

• Introducing BS 6079:2019ii

What's the aim of BSI's newly revised standard? Well, BS 6079:2019 Project management - Principles and guidance for the management of projects exists to help project managers achieve the desired outcome of a project efficiently and effectively. A secondary goal is to help organizations improve their project management capability, so they'll build up institutional learning about what works best in their own circumstances.

The standard is intended for use by senior managers, project practitioners and anyone who interacts with the project team. It's written to apply to any kind or size of organization, and projects of any size and duration.

• The standard's also clear on the fact that how it's applied should be proportional to the circumstances and requirements of the organization or project. In other words, it doesn't ask for sledgehammers to be deployed to crack nuts."
  
  https://www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/blog/Organizational-Resilience-Blog/bs-6079-project-management-blog/

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

While the above responses answer the question, I thought it might be interesting to learn
who else has, once project performance turned sour, turned to the art & science of systems for the management of quality.

Some quite reputable places to go for such content include, but are not limited to:

• asq.org[1]
• https://deming.org/[2]
• https://www.pmi.org/[3]
• Juran Institute Management Theory[4]

I look for to the dialogue this suggestion will excite.

Stay Healthy!

Cheers,

Bill

[1] https://asq.org/

[2] https://deming.org/

[3] https://www.pmi.org/

[4] https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=juran+institute%E2%80%99s+management+theory&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart

This BSI document provides some options to consider for improving project outcomes.

• Introducing BS 6079:2019ii

What's the aim of BSI's newly revised standard? Well, BS 6079:2019 Project management - Principles and guidance for the management of projects exists to help project managers achieve the desired outcome of a project efficiently and effectively. A secondary goal is to help organizations improve their project management capability, so they'll build up institutional learning about what works best in their own circumstances.

The standard is intended for use by senior managers, project practitioners and anyone who interacts with the project team. It's written to apply to any kind or size of organization, and projects of any size and duration.

• The standard's also clear on the fact that how it's applied should be proportional to the circumstances and requirements of the organization or project. In other words, it doesn't ask for sledgehammers to be deployed to crack nuts."
  
  https://www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/blog/Organizational-Resilience-Blog/bs-6079-project-management-blog/

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

While the above responses answer the question, I thought it might be interesting to learn
who else has, once project performance turned sour, turned to the art & science of systems for the management of quality.

Some quite reputable places to go for such content include, but are not limited to:

• asq.org[1]
• https://deming.org/[2]
• https://www.pmi.org/[3]
• Juran Institute Management Theory[4]

I look for to the dialogue this suggestion will excite.

Stay Healthy!

Cheers,

Bill

[1] https://asq.org/

[2] https://deming.org/

[3] https://www.pmi.org/

[4] https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=juran+institute%E2%80%99s+management+theory&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart

This BSI document provides some options to consider for improving project outcomes.

• Introducing BS 6079:2019ii

What's the aim of BSI's newly revised standard? Well, BS 6079:2019 Project management - Principles and guidance for the management of projects exists to help project managers achieve the desired outcome of a project efficiently and effectively. A secondary goal is to help organizations improve their project management capability, so they'll build up institutional learning about what works best in their own circumstances.

The standard is intended for use by senior managers, project practitioners and anyone who interacts with the project team. It's written to apply to any kind or size of organization, and projects of any size and duration.

• The standard's also clear on the fact that how it's applied should be proportional to the circumstances and requirements of the organization or project. In other words, it doesn't ask for sledgehammers to be deployed to crack nuts."
  
  https://www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/blog/Organizational-Resilience-Blog/bs-6079-project-management-blog/

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

Dean, thanks for even more evidence of the frustration of working with people, given our misunderstanding of "How to play nice with others." Moving towards attempts to substitute people's interactions with computer-mechanized tools may seem attractive. However, people will still be involved prior to, during, and after machine, output arrives.

Thanks, Alexander for the reference, and the opinion you shared below.

"offered me states that human communication is designed to fail[1]: that sharing of ideas and values will not work as either party planned, and it will take more to construct a truly mutually beneficial creation. To that end, human behaviors and biases do pose a bigger obstacle to fulfilling the plan."

Actually, the four examples presented in the original post for common project failure were purposely selected for this ongoing dialogue:

1. Role ambiguity,
2. Lack of problem validation,
3. Lack of process versification, and,
4. The absence of a visible proactive conflict process

The above four processes have the same LCD, i.e., people who believe their opinions make them the owner of "Truth". . .which initially must be defended at all costs.

Attempts to replace human interactions with machines will suffer from the same challenges, unless and until the engineering profession reaches out and accepts the challenge of first, learning more about ourselves, and then others who may not "Suit" out style. And coming to realize that we have to stop naming those assigned to a project a "Project Team" until there is evidence to support that assertion.

Perhaps we might start by "Engineering The Art & Science of Listening.™"

Stay Healthy!

Cheers,  Bill p.s. Please consider taking your thoughts on these subjects into the ABET posting area in ASCE Collaborate.

[1] Each person brings the same "Stuff" to each opportunity for any type of communication. The challenge to one's beliefs begins when they first realize that their "Stuff" is the "Truth" and needs to be defended.

------------------------------
William M. Hayden Jr., Ph.D., P.E., CMQ/OE, F.ASCE
Buffalo, N.Y.

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot 1819 - 1880

Original Message:
Sent: 10-10-2021 12:03 PM
From: Alexander Granato
Subject: Q. Why Projects Fail Due To Four Common Causes

I concur. Using books, pdfs and videos to learn about engineering factors and trends is largely a norm. What it really takes to start and end projects as planned is many people who did these things staying a working group.

One of the e-books The National Society of Leadership and Success offered me states that human communication is designed to fail: that sharing of ideas and values will not work as either party planned, and it will take more to construct a truly mutually-beneficial creation. To that end, human behaviors and biases do pose a bigger obstacle to fulfilling the plan.

------------------------------
Alexander Granato A.M.ASCE
Student
Bexley OH
<maskemail>granato.3@...</maskemail>

Original Message:
Sent: 06-21-2021 04:18 PM
From: Mitchell Winkler
Subject: Q. Why Projects Fail Due To Four Common Causes

Not to sound like a broken record, but I think the underlying causes have less to do with book knowledge and experience and much more do with human behavior as i posited in my first reply. I'm not implying bad intentions but humans have a tendency for overconfidence, as a prime example. Resource constraints and competition  don't help. I also think the limitations of a forum like this need to be considered. I don't think anyone is going to self-identify as not book knowledgeable and experience in the art of project management or subject to cognitive biases :)

------------------------------
Mitch Winkler P.E., M.ASCE
Houston, TX

Original Message:
Sent: 06-18-2021 03:02 PM
From: William Hayden
Subject: Q. Why Projects Fail Due To Four Common Causes

While the above responses answer the question, I thought it might be interesting to learn
who else has, once project performance turned sour, turned to the art & science of systems for the management of quality.

Some quite reputable places to go for such content include, but are not limited to:

• asq.org[1]
• https://deming.org/[2]
• https://www.pmi.org/[3]
• Juran Institute Management Theory[4]

I look for to the dialogue this suggestion will excite.

Stay Healthy!

Cheers,

Bill

[1] https://asq.org/

[2] https://deming.org/

[3] https://www.pmi.org/

[4] https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=juran+institute%E2%80%99s+management+theory&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart

------------------------------
William M. Hayden Jr., Ph.D., P.E., CMQ/OE, F.ASCE
Buffalo, N.Y.

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot 1819 - 1880

Original Message:
Sent: 05-26-2021 11:50 AM
From: William Hayden
Subject: Q. Why Projects Fail Due To Four Common Causes

This BSI document provides some options to consider for improving project outcomes.

• Introducing BS 6079:2019ii

What's the aim of BSI's newly revised standard? Well, BS 6079:2019 Project management - Principles and guidance for the management of projects exists to help project managers achieve the desired outcome of a project efficiently and effectively. A secondary goal is to help organizations improve their project management capability, so they'll build up institutional learning about what works best in their own circumstances.

The standard is intended for use by senior managers, project practitioners and anyone who interacts with the project team. It's written to apply to any kind or size of organization, and projects of any size and duration.

• The standard's also clear on the fact that how it's applied should be proportional to the circumstances and requirements of the organization or project. In other words, it doesn't ask for sledgehammers to be deployed to crack nuts."
  
  https://www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/blog/Organizational-Resilience-Blog/bs-6079-project-management-blog/

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

------------------------------
William M. Hayden Jr., Ph.D., P.E., CMQ/OE, F.ASCE
Buffalo, N.Y.

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot 1819 - 1880

Original Message:
Sent: 04-27-2021 04:16 PM
From: William Hayden
Subject: Q. Why Projects Fail Due To Four Common Causes

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

ROLE AMBIGUITY……………………____
Lack of PROBLEM VALIDATION. . . . _____
Lack of PROCESS VERIFICATION. …- ____
ABSENCE OF A VISIBLE PROACTIVE
CONFLICT PROCESS. . . . . . . . . . . ________

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

------------------------------
William M. Hayden Jr., Ph.D., P.E., CMQ/OE, F.ASCE
Buffalo, N.Y.

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot 1819 - 1880
------------------------------

Dean, thanks for even more evidence of the frustration of working with people, given our misunderstanding of "How to play nice with others." Moving towards attempts to substitute people's interactions with computer-mechanized tools may seem attractive. However, people will still be involved prior to, during, and after machine, output arrives.

Thanks, Alexander for the reference, and the opinion you shared below.

"offered me states that human communication is designed to fail[1]: that sharing of ideas and values will not work as either party planned, and it will take more to construct a truly mutually beneficial creation. To that end, human behaviors and biases do pose a bigger obstacle to fulfilling the plan."

Actually, the four examples presented in the original post for common project failure were purposely selected for this ongoing dialogue:

1. Role ambiguity,
2. Lack of problem validation,
3. Lack of process versification, and,
4. The absence of a visible proactive conflict process

The above four processes have the same LCD, i.e., people who believe their opinions make them the owner of "Truth". . .which initially must be defended at all costs.

Attempts to replace human interactions with machines will suffer from the same challenges, unless and until the engineering profession reaches out and accepts the challenge of first, learning more about ourselves, and then others who may not "Suit" out style. And coming to realize that we have to stop naming those assigned to a project a "Project Team" until there is evidence to support that assertion.

Perhaps we might start by "Engineering The Art & Science of Listening.™"

Stay Healthy!

Cheers,  Bill p.s. Please consider taking your thoughts on these subjects into the ABET posting area in ASCE Collaborate.

[1] Each person brings the same "Stuff" to each opportunity for any type of communication. The challenge to one's beliefs begins when they first realize that their "Stuff" is the "Truth" and needs to be defended.

------------------------------
William M. Hayden Jr., Ph.D., P.E., CMQ/OE, F.ASCE
Buffalo, N.Y.

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot 1819 - 1880

Original Message:
Sent: 10-10-2021 12:03 PM
From: Alexander Granato
Subject: Q. Why Projects Fail Due To Four Common Causes

I concur. Using books, pdfs and videos to learn about engineering factors and trends is largely a norm. What it really takes to start and end projects as planned is many people who did these things staying a working group.

One of the e-books The National Society of Leadership and Success offered me states that human communication is designed to fail: that sharing of ideas and values will not work as either party planned, and it will take more to construct a truly mutually-beneficial creation. To that end, human behaviors and biases do pose a bigger obstacle to fulfilling the plan.

------------------------------
Alexander Granato A.M.ASCE
Student
Bexley OH
<maskemail>granato.3@...</maskemail>

Original Message:
Sent: 06-21-2021 04:18 PM
From: Mitchell Winkler
Subject: Q. Why Projects Fail Due To Four Common Causes

Not to sound like a broken record, but I think the underlying causes have less to do with book knowledge and experience and much more do with human behavior as i posited in my first reply. I'm not implying bad intentions but humans have a tendency for overconfidence, as a prime example. Resource constraints and competition  don't help. I also think the limitations of a forum like this need to be considered. I don't think anyone is going to self-identify as not book knowledgeable and experience in the art of project management or subject to cognitive biases :)

------------------------------
Mitch Winkler P.E., M.ASCE
Houston, TX

Original Message:
Sent: 06-18-2021 03:02 PM
From: William Hayden
Subject: Q. Why Projects Fail Due To Four Common Causes

While the above responses answer the question, I thought it might be interesting to learn
who else has, once project performance turned sour, turned to the art & science of systems for the management of quality.

Some quite reputable places to go for such content include, but are not limited to:

• asq.org[1]
• https://deming.org/[2]
• https://www.pmi.org/[3]
• Juran Institute Management Theory[4]

I look for to the dialogue this suggestion will excite.

Stay Healthy!

Cheers,

Bill

[1] https://asq.org/

[2] https://deming.org/

[3] https://www.pmi.org/

[4] https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=juran+institute%E2%80%99s+management+theory&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart

------------------------------
William M. Hayden Jr., Ph.D., P.E., CMQ/OE, F.ASCE
Buffalo, N.Y.

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot 1819 - 1880

Original Message:
Sent: 05-26-2021 11:50 AM
From: William Hayden
Subject: Q. Why Projects Fail Due To Four Common Causes

This BSI document provides some options to consider for improving project outcomes.

• Introducing BS 6079:2019ii

What's the aim of BSI's newly revised standard? Well, BS 6079:2019 Project management - Principles and guidance for the management of projects exists to help project managers achieve the desired outcome of a project efficiently and effectively. A secondary goal is to help organizations improve their project management capability, so they'll build up institutional learning about what works best in their own circumstances.

The standard is intended for use by senior managers, project practitioners and anyone who interacts with the project team. It's written to apply to any kind or size of organization, and projects of any size and duration.

• The standard's also clear on the fact that how it's applied should be proportional to the circumstances and requirements of the organization or project. In other words, it doesn't ask for sledgehammers to be deployed to crack nuts."
  
  https://www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/blog/Organizational-Resilience-Blog/bs-6079-project-management-blog/

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

------------------------------
William M. Hayden Jr., Ph.D., P.E., CMQ/OE, F.ASCE
Buffalo, N.Y.

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot 1819 - 1880

Original Message:
Sent: 04-27-2021 04:16 PM
From: William Hayden
Subject: Q. Why Projects Fail Due To Four Common Causes

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

ROLE AMBIGUITY……………………____
Lack of PROBLEM VALIDATION. . . . _____
Lack of PROCESS VERIFICATION. …- ____
ABSENCE OF A VISIBLE PROACTIVE
CONFLICT PROCESS. . . . . . . . . . . ________

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

------------------------------
William M. Hayden Jr., Ph.D., P.E., CMQ/OE, F.ASCE
Buffalo, N.Y.

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot 1819 - 1880
------------------------------

While the above responses answer the question, I thought it might be interesting to learn
who else has, once project performance turned sour, turned to the art & science of systems for the management of quality.

Some quite reputable places to go for such content include, but are not limited to:

• asq.org[1]
• https://deming.org/[2]
• https://www.pmi.org/[3]
• Juran Institute Management Theory[4]

I look for to the dialogue this suggestion will excite.

Stay Healthy!

Cheers,

Bill

[1] https://asq.org/

[2] https://deming.org/

[3] https://www.pmi.org/

[4] https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=juran+institute%E2%80%99s+management+theory&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart

This BSI document provides some options to consider for improving project outcomes.

• Introducing BS 6079:2019ii

What's the aim of BSI's newly revised standard? Well, BS 6079:2019 Project management - Principles and guidance for the management of projects exists to help project managers achieve the desired outcome of a project efficiently and effectively. A secondary goal is to help organizations improve their project management capability, so they'll build up institutional learning about what works best in their own circumstances.

The standard is intended for use by senior managers, project practitioners and anyone who interacts with the project team. It's written to apply to any kind or size of organization, and projects of any size and duration.

• The standard's also clear on the fact that how it's applied should be proportional to the circumstances and requirements of the organization or project. In other words, it doesn't ask for sledgehammers to be deployed to crack nuts."
  
  https://www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/blog/Organizational-Resilience-Blog/bs-6079-project-management-blog/

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

I don't think anyone will disagree with the importance of communication.  An irony that I see in many of these discussions – and I can be as guilty as the next – is that many times we (in the general sense) do not practice good communication.  An element of good communication is being open to and wanting to truly understand alternative viewpoints. Food for thought on a Saturday afternoon.

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill

In my experience, four causes for project failure are: 

                                                              100%

Q. In your specific project experiences what percentage of each of the four (4) attributes above would you assign, such that the total per project always adds up to 100% of its "Common Causes?"

Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill