It is important to take note of the nature of the problem across industries about project management. Only 58% of organizations and 49% of employees fully understand the value of project management. Only 49% of organizations have Project Management training in place. Barely over 56% of Project Managers are certified. Only 2.5% of companies complete 100% of their projects. 34% of projects have no baseline. 64% of projects meet their goals. 33% of projects failed because of a lack of involvement from Senior Management. 9 out of 10 projects have a cost overrun. 57% of projects fail due to “communication breakdown”.

This article seeks to bring to light key points on learning to recognize underlying causes of some failed projects and discovering the power and passion of the Project Management Professional certificate.

What is a failed project?

A failed project is not delivered on time and or on budget, as well as the product, does not meet the required specifications.

However, the top seven (7) reasons why some projects fail are identified as follows:

1. Poor definition of project objectives or inadequate vision.

It is improper to start a project without a project charter. A proper definition of project objectives helps during quality assurance or manage quality and audit process thus preventing project failure. Project goals and objectives should be specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and tangible (SMART).

The key components of a project charter include project manager authority, scope, objectives, assumptions and restrictions, and measurements.

2. Lack of methodology or toolset.

So many organizations run their projects without having a formal methodology. Only 23% of organizations use standardized project management practices across the entire organization. 33% use standardized practices, but not across all departments. 7% of organizations do not use any standard practices at all.

3. Improper stakeholder management.

Stakeholders include individuals, groups, and organizations that could impact or be impacted either positively or negatively by the project decision, actions, and the deliverables or outcome of a project. Stakeholders will have a variety of understanding, power, interest, needs, functional department, educational background, expectations, ideologies, perceptions, and level of commitment.

Knowing your stakeholders gives you the ability to manage them. Timely dissemination of project information to all stakeholders according to their requirements minimizes risk and objections to project objectives.

4. Lack of a change control system.

Changes are bound to occur in a project. These changes could come in various forms, from the client, the management, consumers, the project manager, the government, or even from a member of the project team (Stakeholders). When a change request is initiated, it needs to go through a change control system before being implemented or rejected. Since change is the only constant thing, the change control system helps to define the processes required before a change is implemented i.e. who are the members of the change control board? What factors are required to approve the request? What level of risk and uncertainty does change bring to the project?

5. Accidental Project Manager/Halo Effect.

In this instance, an accomplished person is promoted to the position of project manager. He or she may have been successful in, say, a technical role but it does not mean he or she will be successful in the PM role. A technical role may have had him or her relating to machines. The PM role will require that he or she performs the delicate balance of interpersonal skills. The only solution here is the education of both management and PM.

6. Late involvement of a Project Manager.

We often get the commission as project managers for projects which are halfway through the implementation phase. Often, when we begin working on such a project, we spend more time trying to understand the existing situation and correcting the root cause of the errors. This leads to an extended schedule and cost. Some organizations do not even understand the need for a project manager and thus they believe the work of a project manager is overhyped.

7. Unrealistic timescales.

Project Managers will at some points have spent hours tirelessly creating project schedules. Scheduling is one of the most important foundations of any successful project. This is where you define the time frame, milestones, and key deliverables. Sometimes stakeholders will set unrealized time frames or goals to speed up delivery. As a project manager, you should be able to identify when these issues occur and act accordingly.

Project Management however has numerous benefits, especially to corporate bodies. They include:

• Providing a systematic approach to managing complexity, uncertainty, and risk.
• Attracting international recognition and adds credibility to the organization
• Ensuring higher profit margins by minimizing cost.
• Creating a healthy boniness environment as well as promoting internal coordination among functional departments.
• Promoting internal coordination among functional departments
• Increasing reliability and sustains continuous improvement in quality
• Improving customer relations and complaints management system.
• Facilitating better control of financial, physical, and human resources.

“The more well-trained, qualified project managers an industry possess, the more competent that industry is”. Roger Chuo.