Fail Fast

Projects fail! It is inevitable that some projects will fail. Perhaps there was not enough budget, requirements were misunderstood, key stakeholders were not engaged or another reason.  The reasons for failure are many and there are always multiple sides to any failure and success. I once had a Chief of Staff tell me that success has many fathers, but failure is an orphan. That expression has stuck with me over the years. As I continue to be involved with projects, of all types, across the country, I often think about why projects are failing and how they can be turned around. 

I am often asked to assess a project and determine if it can be salvaged and made into a success. I thoroughly enjoy this aspect of my job and want to make my recommendation as soon as possible. Failing fast is optimal. When I drop into a project, I start with meeting the key stakeholders and ask four simple questions:

1. Why was the project originally undertaken?
2. Who is the Executive Sponsor?
3. What is working well with the project?
4. What is not working well with the project?

The answers to these four questions typically point to the overall health of the project. However, it is the first two that lead to the initial assessment of the project. If the key stakeholders can articulate the intent of the project and succinctly talk about why it was started that is a great sign. However, if there are conflicting answers, long pauses, or no common themes in the responses something is not working and the project is not healthy. If there is an engaged Executive Sponsor, put a mark in the win column, the project is already doing better than some and has an advocate that can assist in all sorts of ways when turning around a project. If there is no Executive Sponsor you can note you have a problem. I see the lack of an Executive Sponsor as a leading cause in project failures. 

Taken together these two questions can help you quickly like assess the chances of a turnaround. You can typically course correct the original intent of the project if you have an Executive Sponsor. The Executive Sponsor can spread the message about what problem the project is solving, what efficiency it is bringing, or why it is needed for the future of the organization. The Sponsor will often know the original purpose because they were involved with getting the project off the ground. If you can get to the original intent you can find the right Executive Sponsor. Once the reason for the project is known the Executive Sponsor will become apparent. If the project is centered around hiring and promotions it is going to be someone out of Human Resources, if it is related to branding and communications the sponsor is likely the marketing officer.  If no one is able to come up with the original intent and there is no Executive Sponsor the job of a turnaround just got a lot harder. 

It is at this point, that I will go to my management or the individual who brought me in for the assessment and ask them if they would like to continue with the evaluation. Before I even get to the other questions, I ask if they want to continue. There are a lot of nuances to failing projects, but with the answer to these two questions an initial assessment should be given. The reaction you receive will allow you to know what support you have, how important the project is and why it must be continued. I also offer this assessment quickly, because it is less costly to fail fast. 

Failing fast allows an organization to save money, time, and energy on the distraction of a failing project. A number of years ago, I heard a pitch from a great technology company about how they were going to revolutionize the collection of forms by making them digital and allowing users to enter the information via websites. This would assist governments, healthcare organizations, financial institutions, and other companies that dealt with paper forms. While the idea had been around for some time the stars were aligning and the demand was at the tipping point. I was sold and agreed with their pitch. I saw the potential value and wanted to be part of this revolution. I quickly built the financial model, advocated the technology, recommended a direction to the board of directors, and made the purchase. Since this was early in my career, I lacked the experiences I have now, I did not thoroughly identify the intent of the project nor did I truly have an executive sponsor other than myself. This initiative was a complete bust, only one organization purchased the technology despite a ~60 percent discount. Within 3 months of purchasing the product, I realized my errors and discontinued offering the technology. 

I failed fast and it was the best decision I made. Free of those ongoing costs, the meetings around saving the initiative, and the distraction of explaining to my board and team members why it was not going well we are able to refocus and offer a service that led the organization to be the largest provider of email in our region.

Had we continued to waste time, treasure, and talent on a failing project we may have missed the opportunity in front of us. This project serves as an example of why you want to move past a failing project as quickly as possible.

If a project is not moving in the right direction take a moment to ask the questions above and think about what it would mean to the organization if you simply stopped the project. Oftentimes, it is less disruptive than you think and you may even be better off since you'll have time to refocus and pursue new opportunities.