Written by Never-ending projects are like a cancer that you should treat immediately, and not just when implementing the strategy. Find out how to do this or how to avoid it in the first place.
‘Project’ and “endless” contradict each other by definition. A project is characterised not only by its uniqueness but also by a clearly defined start and finish. However, in practice, I repeatedly encounter projects that do not meet this simple basic requirement.
Problem 1: “Falsches Verständnis von Agilität”
It becomes particularly worrying when a misunderstanding of agility is added – then the patient #strategy implementation immediately needs to be taken to the intensive care unit.
The statement ‘We don't do “classic waterfall” #project management here, but are completely agile and “stray forward”,’ is widespread and is used as a justification for idly watching the cancerous growths of strategy implementation!
Problem 2: “Moving Targets”
Projects often start without clearly defined expectations. The question of the ‘definition of done’ is often neglected: When is the project considered successful? What should have changed by the end?
Without clear answers to these questions, projects chase after undefined expectations (moving targets) that grow like cancerous tumours and slowly eat away at the project. This is because, as expectations grow, so does the time required to fulfil them. The more expectations rise, the longer it takes to fulfil them.
Problem 3: “Lange Laufzeiten”
Even when expectations and success criteria are clear, projects should not take forever. Any duration of more than six months should be critically scrutinised.
Wenn wie beim Hockey-Stick alle Ergebnisse erst am Ende des Projekts vorliegen werden und sich das vermeintlich zum Kontrollwahn neigende Management bis dahin bitte gedulden soll, ist das für mich ein Indikator, sofort genauer hinzuschauen.
This is not to say that there are no strategic projects that take significantly longer than six months to implement. However, to avoid having to abandon them after a year or two of unsuccessful attempts, after vast amounts of resources have often been wasted and frustration has built up, a simple method is recommended:
“Chunking” als Therapie
The solution is simple: break down complex projects into small, manageable parts that demonstrably deliver results in three months (at best) and six months (at the most). Instead of ignoring the elephant in the room, we cut it into slices – or, in more modern terms, we rely on ‘chunking’.
Chunking is not only easy to communicate within a company or to spread as a rumour, but, if the ‘rumour’ in your company is currently called ‘OKR’ (Objectives & Key Results), it is, if used correctly, the latest and greatest in modern ‘strategy implementation medicine’ for successfully treating the cancerous tumour of ‘endless projects’.
Conclusion
Endless projects are toxic to strategy implementation. But with clear goals and a breakdown into manageable parts, the therapy can begin and your strategy implementation can thus be set up for success.