1 Understanding Success and Failure 1
1.0 Introduction 1
1.1 Success: Historical Perspective 2
1.2 Early Modifications to Triple Constraints 3
1.3 Primary and Secondary CONSTRAINTS 4
1.4 Prioritization of Constraints 6
1.5 From Triple Constraints to Competing Constraints 6
1.6 Future Definitions of Project Success 8
1.7 Different Definitions of Project Success 11
1.8 Understanding Project Failure 12
1.9 Degrees of Project Failure 13
1.10 Other Categories of Project Failure 16
1.11 Summary of Lessons Learned 17
2 Causes of Project Failure 19
2.0 Introduction 19
2.1 Facts about Project Failure 19
2.2 Causes of Project Failure 20
2.3 Schedule Failure 22
2.4 Failures due to Unknown Technology 23
2.5 Project Size and Success/Failure Risk 24
2.6 Failure due to Improper Critical Failure Factors 25
2.7 Failure to Establish Tracking Metrics 26
2.8 Failing to Recognize Early Warning Signs 26
2.9 Improper Selection of Critical Team Members 27
2.10 Uncertain Rewards 29
2.11 Estimating Failures 31
2.12 Staffing Failures 32
2.13 Planning Failures 34
2.14 Risk Management Failures 36
2.15 Management Mistakes 37
2.16 Lacking Sufficient Tools 38
2.17 Failure of Success 39
2.18 Motivation to Fail 41
2.19 Tradeoff Failures 42
2.20 Summary of Lessons Learned 43
3 Business Case Failure 45
3.0 Introduction 45
3.1 Changing Stakeholders 45
3.2 Revalidation of Assumptions 46
3.3 Managing Innovation 47
3.4 Examples of Changing Business Cases 48
3.5 PROLOGUE TO THE Iridium Case Study 52
3.6 Rise, Fall and Resurrection of Iridium 52
Naming the Project "Iridium" 55
Obtaining Executive Support 55
Launching the Venture 56
Iridium System 58
Terrestial and Space-Based Network 58
Project Initiation: Developing Business Case 59
"Hidden" Business Case 61
Risk Management 61
Collective Belief 63
Iridium's Infancy Years 64
Debt Financing 67
M-Star Project 68
A New CEO 69
Project Management at Motorola (Iridium) 69
Satellite Launches 70
Initial Public Offering (IPO) 71
Signing Up Customers 71
Iridium's Rapid Ascent 72
Iridium's Rapid Descent 74
Iridium "Flu" 78
Definition of Failure (October 1999) 79
3.7 Summary of Lessons Learned 84
4 Sponsorship/Governance Failures 87
4.0 Introduction 87
4.1 Defining Project Governance 88
4.2 Project versus Corporate Governance 88
4.3 Roles, Responsibilities and Decision-Making Authority 90
4.4 Governance Frameworks 91
4.5 Governance Failures 93
4.6 Why Projects Are Hard to Kill 94
4.7 Collective Belief 96
4.8 Exit Champion 97
4.9 When to Give Up 98
4.10 Prologue to the Denver International Airport Case Study 101
4.11 Denver International Airport 101
Background 101
Airports and Airline Deregulation 102
Does Denver Need a New Airport? 103
Enplaned Passenger Market 108
Land Selection 109
Front Range Airport 109
Airport Design 110
Project Management 112
Baggage-Handling System 114
Early Risk Analysis 115
March 1991 115
April 1991 116
May 1991 116
August 1991 117
November 1991 117
December 1991 118
January 1992 118
June 1992 118
September 1992 119
October 1992 119
March 1993 119
August 1993 120
September 1993 120
October 1993 121
January 1994 121
February 1994 121
March 1994 121
April 1994 122
May 1994 122
June 1994 123
July 1994 124
August 1994 124
September 1994 127
October 1994 128
November 1994 128
December 1994 130
Airline Costs per Enplaned Passenger 131
February 28, 1995 132
Appendix A 133
Introduction 133
Agreement between United and the City 134
Appendix B Jokes about the Abbreviation DIA 138
4.12 Denver International Airport Baggage- Handling System: Illustration of Ineffective Decision Making 142
Synopsis 142
Background 142
System at a Glance 142
Chronology of Events 143
Basic Mode of Failure 145
Key Decisions That Led to Disaster 145
Other Failure Points 151
Conclusion 152
4.13 Summary of Lessons Learned 153
5 Project Politics and Failure 155
5.0 Introduction 155
5.1 Political Risks 156
5.2 R easons for Playing Politics 156
5.3 Situations Where Political Games Will Occur 157
5.4 Governance Committee 158
5.5 Friends and Foes 159
5.6 A ttack or Retreat 159
5.7 N eed for Effective Communications 161
5.8 Power and Influence 162
5.9 Managing Project Politics 163
5.10 Prologue to the Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster Case Study 163
5.11 Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster 164
Background to Space Transportation System 166
NASA Succumbs to Politics and Pressure 167
Solid Rocket Boosters 169
Blowholes 171
O-Ring Erosion 173
Joint Rotation 173
O-Ring Resilience 174
External Tank 175
Spare Parts Problem 175
Risk Identification Procedures 175
Teleconferencing 176
Paperwork Constraints 176
Politics and O-Rings 178
Issuing Waivers 178
Launch Liftoff Sequence Profile: Possible Aborts 180
O-Ring Problem 184
Pressure, Paperwork and Waivers 189
Mission 51-L 191
Second Teleconference 194
Ice Problem 199
The Accident 202
NASA and Media 205
Findings of Commission 205
Chain-of-Command Communication Failure 209
Epilogue 210
Potential Cover-Up 211
Senate Hearing 213
5.12 Summary of Lessons Learned 214
6 Software Failures 217
6.0 Introduction 217
6.1 IT's Biggest Failures 217
IBM's Stretch Project 217
Knight-Ridder's Viewtron Service 218
DMV Projects-California and Washington 218
Apple's Copland Operating System 219
Sainsbury's Warehouse Automation 220
Canada's Gun Registration System 220
Three Current Projects in Danger 221
6.2 Software Bugs 222
6.3 Causes of Failure in Software Projects 224
6.4 Large-Scale IT Failure 225
Reader ROI 225
Out with the Old 227
Seeds of Failure 228
Early Warnings 230
Call for Help 232
6.5 W orst Possible Failure: FoxMeyer Drugs 234
Case Study: FoxMeyer Drugs' Bankruptcy: Was It a Failure of ERP? 235
6.6 L ondon Heathrow Terminal 239
History 240
Construction 240
Main Terminal Building 241
Satellite Terminal Buildings 241
New Heathrow Control Tower 242
Opening Day 242
6.7 Summary of Lessons Learned 243
7 Safety Considerations 245
7.0 Importance of Safety 245
7.1 Boeing 787 Dreamliner Battery Problems 245
7.2 Airbus A380 Problems 250
Configurations 251
Brief History 251
7.3 Summary of Lessons Learned 255
8 Scope Creep 257
8.0 Understanding Scope Creep 257
8.1 Creeping Failure 258
8.2 Defining Scope 259
8.3 Scope Creep Dependencies 261
8.4 C auses of Scope Creep 261
8.5 N eed for Business Knowledge 263
8.6 W ays to Minimize Scope Creep 263
8.7 Sydney Opera House 265
Performance Venues and Facilities 266
Construction History 267
8.8 Summary of Lessons Learned 273
9 Project Health Checks 275
9.0 Need for Project Health Checks 275
9.1 Understanding Project Health Checks 276
9.2 Who Performs Health Checks? 278
9.3 Health Check Life-Cycle Phases 278
9.4 Project Management Failure Warning Signs 279
"Instant Amnesia" and "Da Nial Ain't In Egypt" 280
Project Cost 280
The Lone Ranger Rides Again! 281
No Sale! 281
Arrogance Rules! 282
2 + 2 = 17! 282
Mao Didn't Have the Only "Long March" 283
What Risk? There's No Risk Here! 283
Where's Your Project Plan? 284
I'll Take a Booth without a Cell Phone! 284
Don't Bother Me with Details! 284
What Layoffs? 285
The Out-of-Towner Speaks: Distance Means Credibility 285
Disclaimer 286
9.5 Summary of Lessons Learned 286
10 Techniques for Recovering Failing Projects 289
10.0 Understanding Troubled Projects 289
10.1 Root Causes of Failure 290
10.2 Definition Phase 292
10.3 Early Warning Signs of Trouble 292
10.4 Selecting Recovery Project Manager (RPM) 294
10.5 Recovery Life-Cycle Phases 295
10.6 Understanding Phase 295
10.7 Audit Phase 296
10.8 Tradeoff Phase 298
10.9 Negotiation Phase 300
10.10 Restart Phase 300
10.11 E xecution Phase 301
10.12 Project Recovery versus Project Rescue 302
10.13 R ecovery Decision 302
10.14 Summary of Lessons Learned 304
Index 309
