The Familiar Explanations
Search for “why projects fail”, and you’ll find plenty of reports. They nearly all conclude with the same high-level observations:
“Not enough planning.”
“Weak communication.”
“Insufficient resources.”
“Lack of methodology.”
Sound familiar? These conclusions are sober and academic, but rarely useful. “Plan better” is not a solution.
The Real Problems I See
After delivering programmes across banking, insurance, telecoms and technology, I’ve seen the same issues play out – again and again. And they’re not about planning tools or Gantt charts. They’re systemic:
- Sponsors who don’t “speak project.” Senior leaders often don’t understand the delivery dimensions – scope, time, cost, quality, risk. Expectations start unrealistic, and everything downstream suffers.
- Generic job adverts. “Must deliver on time and budget” is not a job description. It’s a punchline.
- Flawed hiring. Interviews are poorly designed, so candidates who look confident on paper are hired, while competence is never properly tested.
- Unqualified PMs/BAs. Too many drift into roles without training or accreditation, leaving frameworks applied in name only.
- Dogmatic change frameworks. Off-the-shelf templates often block delivery more than they help.
- Wasted internal capability. Firms don’t map their existing skills, so they overspend on contractors.
- Little connection to professional standards. Memberships, qualifications and CPD exist – but are often ignored.
The result? Bloated costs, missed deadlines, and misplaced blame on delivery teams – when the problems are structural.
There are some ‘simple’ solutions to these issues, although the details and implementation are a little more complex; however, if approached the right way, these solutions can be implemented cheaply, quickly, and efficiently. On my site, I have covered each of these topics with practical remedies organisations can act on immediately:
- When Sponsors Don’t ‘Speak Project’ – Teaching the Business Delivery Literacy and Sponsor Accountability
- Stop Writing Generic JDs – Competency-Based Job Design That Predicts Delivery
- Interview for Delivery, Not Vibes – PM-Led, Structured Assessment that Filters for Competence
- Raise the Bar on Professionalism Qualifications – Memberships and Continuous Development
- Tailor the Change Framework, Don’t Worship It – Context-Specific Methods, Playbooks and Continuous Improvement
- See the Talent You Already Have – Capability Maps, Capacity Planning and Smarter Resourcing
- Make Professional Standards the Default – Mandatory Training and Partnering with Professional Bodies
I also cover linking executive bonuses to project success. Because accountability belongs at the top as much as it does in the delivery team.
Why read my thoughts?
If you’ve worked in delivery, none of this will surprise you. But if you’ve sponsored or overseen projects, these are uncomfortable truths worth hearing. My aim is to cut through the generic advice and share what actually works – drawn from years of rescuing failing projects and leading major transformations.
This isn’t about theory. It’s about what I’ve seen deliver value, and what I’ve seen waste millions.
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