We normally define project failure in terms of time, money and specification. A typical end-of-project report will state that the project was late, cost too much or failed to meet the users’ requirements. The National Audit Office reports on public sector projects that fail to meet these criteria. In organisational change projects, however, this misses the...

Project management offices (PMOs) are becoming more critical to the midmarket during the recession, as they offer important IT governance in making sure all IT projects are aligned with corporate goals while also cutting out waste. Though often created during booming economic times to focus resources and priorities on the most strategic projects, PMOs are no luxury...

Just after I made my last post, several things came across my desk that said: Nope, you aren’t crazy after all. First, my colleague Matt Crawford sent me this link to coverage of the role of PMOs in the downturn. According to the CIO of the Baylor Health Care System, “Anytime you add what might appear to be a process, you always get a little bit of pushback,”...

Every organization wants to effectively execute strategies, but many struggle to implement a process for doing so. This struggle is one reason that the Balanced Scorecard has had such a wide following and impact on business. Simply put, the BSC emphasizes the linkage of measurement to strategy. For the first time, the details of the project portfolio (what the...

Whew! These are some challenging times. As I read the news daily I am struck by the fact that our economic woes are primarily management failures – failures in the areas of governance and strategy. This only inspires me to redouble my efforts to spread the word about integrating the strategic level of organizations with the task level via great project...

As I said last week, one positive aspect of the recession is that it makes employers reassess the basic principles of their business and streamline operations. As well as paying close attention to the balance sheet, however, employers should encourage innovative, entrepreneurial thinking. In the current economic climate, great ideas have the potential to make a big...

As an entrepreneur, you’ve probably set your sights high. You dream of a reality that others would brush off as, well, simply a dream. You envision creating a brand that crosses oceans and continents in its importance and recognition. You don’t think in multiples of one, but instead in hundreds, perhaps thousands. And you might even be calculating not...