Top 5 Reasons Projects Fail (Part 4)

It's been awhile since I last posted as I have been debating what really should be reason number four project failure....well not really, I just have been failing to met my own expectations with everything I have going on.  


In any case reason number four for project failure is adequately identifying, documenting and tracking requirements. Using documentation requirements does not eliminate the need for formal, well organized process for gathering requirements.  Sometimes people believe that a one page email with a wish list features is good enough.  Not so much! The good news is that most project owners/sponsors believe that requirements need to be documented.  Nailing requirement documents must be done very early in a project, wait till later and it's to late. Ambiguity is good for no one thus you must clarify that ambiguity as quickly as possible.  


There are various tools and techniques for defining requirements like codifying, progressive elaboration, interviewing, modeling and interviewing. You can use one or all these tools to help you to define your requirements.  

TechFuse Presentation Follow-up

A few weeks ago I spoke at the TechFuse event in Minnesota at Mystic Lake Casino. As I mentioned in the
I am posting the content from my session "My Relationship With My Project Manager"

If you have questions, feel free to leave a comment. If you would like to see this presentation or others on related topics at your user group or company, you can comment or contact me via email – amaaraba@digineer.com

When Motivational Factors Don't Exist

In most organizations there are traditional motivational factors that exist such as a monetary performance bonus, job title recognition, promotion into a different role, etc. When managing projects a key to success is having motivated project team members.

In my experience when the the standard motivational factors don't exist, you need to get personal with project team members.  You need to find out what motivates each individual on your team and then find how you can create the motivational situation.  Unfortunately, in some instances you just wont' be able to accommodate everyone and that's when other the other skills of a project manager will need to be engaged to ensure the success of your project. 

What do you do when the traditional motivation factors don’t exist on your project?

I have also started a discussion this topic on the Inside Consulting group on LinkedIn.
http://www.linkedin.com/groups/Project-Manager-Network-1-Group-37888?trk=myg_ugrp_ovr

What Is The Million Dollar Question When Implementing Change?

Throughout my career I have been involved in projects that affect people and processes in many different ways. During project initiation the project requestor or manager would talk about all the great things that the project was going to do to benefit the organization. But often there was one thing that was lacking that should have been prior to initiating the project. In my mind that one thing is the million dollar question, “What is going to motivate people to get on board with this project?" If that question has not been answered, then without a doubt there will be an uphill challenge for the project to be successful.

So to sum it up before I start any project and preferably before the project request is submitted for approval from a sponsor or governance team, I always ask the million dollar question.