Why do projects fail?

Projects do not fail because of poor planning, the wrong people, or a bad idea. All of these can be remedied over time with dedication, time, and resources. Projects fail when we give up, “run out of time”, or have no money left.

These items break down into two basic elements:

1. the will
2. the way

Projects fail when either the resources to achieve success run out (the way), or the motivation to continue falls away (the will).

Last week while attending the Marketing 2.0 conference in Paris, I had the pleasure of dinner and few beers with a fellow speaker, Scott Foe from Nokia’s game division. Over a pint of Guinness (tragically, from a can), Scott mentioned to me that his greatest business mentor was a graduate of West Point and had imparted to him that business really was war.

Attack the way and the enemy can’t fight back; attack the will, and the enemy won’t want to.

The military strategy of “shock and awe” is a perfect example of combining the two: simultaneously removing the capability and desire to fight, in a show of rapid dominance. Modern wars are fought not only with guns and tanks, but also with pamphlets, instructions on how to surrender, and subversive radio.

One missing element:

To the list of two ingredients above, we should add a third:

1. the will
2. the way
3. a definition of “success”

Without evil, we cannot define good; unless we define success, we are doomed to failure. America’s involvement in Vietnam ultimately failed because America’s leadership failed to define a compelling vision of success and ultimately lost the support of the people.

(On a side note, success was perhaps specifically not defined, as to do so would have been admitting that it was an anti-communist proxy-war. Also, our traditional methods of warfare were completely unsuited to destroying “the way” of a military infrastructure that had limited structure.)

Success and failure the business world.

In the business world, our projects fail and succeed for the same reasons. Either we run out of time or money, the business ultimately decides to shut it down, or there is no possibility of success because success has never been defined. When sitting down to a new project (and throughout the project’s progression), ask yourself and your superiors three questions:

1. “is there a desire within the company to continue this project?”
2. “do I have the time/resources” to achieve my goals?”
3. “what does success look like?”

If you start hesitating on any of the three questions (or the answer is no), your project is in serious jeopardy.

Rescuing “failing” projects:

Luckily, the three elements of success are interrelated. Fixing one often means tweaking another.

Resources (time, money, people) are ultimately the most concrete of all three elements. These are allocated on balance sheets by people who count numbers. If your resources are running out, this can often mean that your primary concern should actually be your support. Why isn’t the company willing to invest in this any longer? Why has the will failed? Hint: there is always more time and money, you just need people to help you look.

Motivation and Support (recognition, impetus, desire) controls the purse-strings on your project. If the company has no desire to continue your project, they won’t. Maybe you screwed up and blew your budget, or maybe the market has changed, and the will has focused on other priorities. Without securing support, securing resources is impossible. To secure support, you need to present the vision of why supporting you is a good idea.

Your Vision of Success (possibilities becoming realities) is the foundation upon which all support and resources for your project is built. If this compelling vision hasn’t been defined outside your team (from above), this is the most critical element to focus on. This vision will carry you through the hard times and serve as your yardstick to success in the good times. If you want management to believe in your project, tie it into their definitions of success, then give them something to believe in and deliver it. If they can’t commit the resources to attain your grand plan, let them know how they’re knocking down their own vision of success.

Any war stories to share about your encounters of success or failure?

former colleague fmbillwatt points us towards this very amusing segment attempting to explain the Twitterverse: “The Twouble with Twitters”

The confusion between the haves and have-nots is essentially one of savvyness: the old-guard incorrectly assumes the content has decreased while the initiation cost has stayed the same.

This is akin to yelling,

“stop Twittering, you’re WASTING all THAT PAPER with your mindless drivel!!”

It’s only been in our recent history of written and correspondence that we’ve felt the need to make communication it “worth it”. The Ten Commandments were only carved into stone tablets announced with a brushfire because they set the foundations of Western society.

Detractors of Twitter also think that just 140-character snippets of daily life are somehow going to “devalue” all communication. The main refrain is not a new one:

” doesn’t making something this short ultimately dilute all experience? ultimately leading to ruin, chaos, and alienation?”

If you think that 140 characters is too little space to say anything meaningful, we’ve forgotten that the beauty of the tribe is built on short grunts, cries, hoots, and hollers.

The noise of the tribe, is fundamental to who we are.

(and now we’re getting it back.)

Every battle worth fighting needs a good enemy. Who is your enemy?

MySpace has Facebook.
Chevy has Ford.
Luke Skywalker has Darth Vader.

If you’ve failed to define the enemy, whether it’s “Competitor X”, or “boring mediocrity”, you’re robbing yourself and your employees of vital motivational energy.

Enemies clarify goals and focus energies. Now, the extra hour in the office polishing your PowerPoint deck isn’t about pride, it’s about sticking it to the man.

We tend to forget that our companies are made of individuals, each needing some type of motivation. The notion of “us vs. them” is core to how we have evolved as humans, only slightly less important than “I’m hungry” and “I’m tired.”

Tribes instinctually need something to fight for, and something to fight against. It’s what defines the tribe and guides their decisions, and it has to be something more than “better next quarter” or “15% YoY growth”. Without a cohesive, visceral message about the battle you need won, what’s to keep them on the battlefield?

For bonus points: enemies don’t have to be people or competitors, they can be “ideals” or notions. Apple’s enemies are: mediocrity, confusion, and apparently, “buttons“

The new Pepsi logo has generated a stir among those people who pay attention to such things. Among the various opinions, most of the negative comments tend to converge around the idea that it is “too generic”, or looks downright “cheap”. Moogy.org has a nice overview and collection of links.

At this point, it may help to invoke the great Wayne Gretzky:

“I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.”

I believe that Pepsi has succeeded in skating to where the puck is going to be.

Maybe the new logo doesn’t match the current aesthetic of today’s world but that is because they are already marketing to tomorrow’s world. In two years, Pepsi’s new logo will simultaneously be both contemporary AND familiar. In twenty years, their logo will be cherished as an emblem of “simpler times”.

Maybe in the downturned economy, buying generic cola will be equivalent to creating a wartime victory garden or making mayonnaise cake?

On a side note: even if their logo proves to me a miserable failure, it shows that Pepsi has the balls to fight for their brand and make choices they believe to be best for their business.

While at eBay, I’ve had the opportunity to cut my teeth being a “designer” on various projects, initiatives, and explorations. Over time, I’ve learned that (like many other things), design looks like fun and is actually hard work.

Here are 5 tips that I wish someone had given me before I started designing anything:

1. know what you’re solving
   Design is the process of creating solutions to problems. More often than not, the problem is actually something different than what it at first appears. Probably, those asking you to do the design are phrasing the question incorrectly. As a designer, it’s up to you to figure out what they’re really asking for. Once you know what you’re solving for, then you can begin researching all the use-cases which you’ll incorporate into your successful design. (And there will be plenty of use-cases that weren’t initially mentioned.)
2. someone has already designed this
   The world seems like a blank slate. Never has a designer encountered these problems before, and you have the chance to create something truly new! Wrong. Your “entirely new” problem is likely one of the age-old problems many systems or products have approached before. The circumstances may be new, but looking to the past at how other designers have solved something like this will help you learn from someone else’s mistakes. If you can’t find something like this before, ask around, and read some books; the truth is out there.
3. this is not a meritocracy
   In the end, your design will not evaluated solely on its merits. Any design you deliver to a committee or team will have to pass their own special set of requirements. Their perception is your reality, and if it looks complicated to them, it is. There is no sense or joy attempting to convince them they are wrong, it’s your job to explain the rationale behind your design decisions and how they solve the problem. At times, you’ll need to educate about what the actual problem is. After you’ve done all this, you have to let it go and move on.
4. you are not designing for yourself
   You’re way deeper into this than you realize. By even thinking about this design problem in the first place, you have already become a power-user. There are plenty of edge-cases to explore, don’t get wrapped up in them, just because you know they exist. Focus on delivering the functionality in priority order by solving most users biggest problems first. Also, remember that the users of this product are not designers. Namely, your users probably don’t have a few of the luxuries you have: LAN connection, two 1600×1200 monitors, really good eyesight, an hour of undivided attention. I always think of this way: imagine this design as if I were trying to hold a baby in one hand and still accomplish my task. Does the design still work?
5. the better the design, the less people will talk about it
   Secretly in your heart you long for fame and fortune as a designer. A sad truth to design is that the better something works, the less publicity you’ll probably get. Inspired design is invisible, subtle, and elegant. To achieve any sort of notoriety, your design must be so invisible that its invisibility is noteworthy! Also, designers are like authors or actors: for every super-star, there are 1000 nearly-as-good who will never see their name in lights.

Any additional thoughts? I’d love to hear from any readers who are designers themselves!