Defining Success

[pmkb]

Is the judgement of success for the management effort necessarily tied to the success of the project in achieving its goals (on time and on budget deliverables with acceptable quality, safety, etc.)?

Or is it possible for management to be recognized for their efforts in mitigating force majeure (unforseeable or uncontrollable) events that prevent the project from achieving all its goals?

Do you have any stories/experience of a project gone bad where the management team was still credited for excellent work?

[romeo_elias]

Let me start by stating that the goal for any project management effort is to achieve the specified Results!

Now having said that, it is understood that projects never go as planned. Now, if you are in continuous communication with the client, then projects should never "go bad".

Good project managers set proper expectations, keep clients informed of status, readjust expectations continuously, gain buy-in for any changes that would impact the results or deadlines and work with the client as a partner and involve them in major decisions. Everyone's goal is the same: achieve a successful outcome and on time.

If these guidelines are practiced, projects never "go bad". One of two things can happen: The project is delivered as per the client expectation and they are satisfied, or the project is cancelled, again as per the client request and they are satisified.

In either case, assuming these guidelines are followed, I would credit the project manager for excellent work.

When projects "go bad" it is usually because expectations were NOT aligned or there were surprises. No one likes surprises in a project.

I hope this helps.

Romeo Elias
www.interneer.com

[norzul150667]

Hi,

In my opinion, what really matters to the stakeholders are the results i.e.

1. Quality
2. Schedule
3. Cost
4. HSE

That's why as a project manager, we need to ensure that the expected results are realistic and achieveable in the first place. To me it is a kind of negotiation with the management. I do believe in a win-win situation....

However, I don't deny that the mean to achieve the result is also important. How do we manage the "unexpected" problems or crisis during the project implementation is in fact another "project" by itself.

Thanks

norzul

[harrywaldron]

Good points are shared by all in what it means to be successful on a project. I'll add some of the following to the list:

1. User satisfaction -- not only must the project principals (stakeholders) be satisfied, but folks on the front-lines using the end results of the new project must also experience benefits in their day-to-day work.

2. Return on Investment -- Many projects have difficulty coming in on time, within budget, and with the originally defined resources. However, more importantly at the end the project endeavor should add key business value to the company. This includes achieving ROI objectives, as a project should "pay for itself" over a strategic time horizon.

3. Quality - I definitely agree with Norzul's excellent point. Quality has to be job #1 in any project or you'll have secondary projects afterwards to retrofit and make things right.

[harrywaldron]

If these guidelines are practiced, projects never "go bad" ...

... and when projects go astray, we know exactly what's gonna happen

[mulikrahul]

Dear All,

I gree with Mr. Romeo's veiw @ PROJECT PERFORMANCE, in addition to that Harry's point (End User's satisfaction)....................shall be the perfect answer to the querry.

As the project performance depends on THE INDIVIDUAL PROJECT's character, we can not generalise it. Generally it is observed to be SATISFACTION OF STAKEHOLDERS.

The team furnishing these deliverables, i believe, deserves appreciation.

[yola]

Last time my project was saved by the accurate planning and timing. I have out the hard way before how it is not to finish project on time. Time management was key to my success. A few books (and site readings) later, finally I have decided to use help of project management software. All project management software have a 30-day trial, so I knew that I am getting help and it depends on me if I want to purchase the software system. (www[dot]vip-qualitysoft[dot]com) Accurate planning and time management skills make my workflow much better. Good luck to all Project Managers.
BTW link: http://www.vip-qualitysoft.com/

[pmhut]

Here's an article discussing the issue of What is Project Success...

It's quite a long article (so I hope you have time), it's a very good one though, so it's worth the read...

[erikko]

that's a good read pmhut, and i like it how you highlight some keypoints in getting project success in project management