What is a Problem Project?
A problem project is a project that has any or all of these characteristics: 
- it is behind schedule and not gaining any traction;
- everyone is working the 'fire hose' because things are not running smoothly, and you are putting out 'brushfires' all the time;
- the project team is frustrated and nobody can agree on where the project is headed and how long it should take;
- procedures are developed on the 'fly'; questions can’t be answered immediately;
- endless hours are spent jumping through hoops instead of progressing the project;
- the project costs are unknown; and
- requirements and the scope are constantly changing.
Our Offering
We take you through a process that assesses where you are, where you need to go, and what needs to be done to get the project back on track. We can then help with actually getting the project back on track if that is what you require. The steps are:
- Knowledge Deficiencies. Central to this approach is finding out the Knowledge Level of Maturity (KLOM) of your project. The KLOM assesses the level of maturity for a series of 'knowledge areas' within a project, and is based on internationally and nationally recognised principles of knowledge management, project management and systems engineering. It provides an insight into where the problems and risks for a project exist. The principle behind this is - the more you know about all facets of your project, the more pro-active you can be, and the less risk there is to a project’s successful completion. Plainly, you will never have perfect knowledge, but you will certainly know where your knowledge deficiencies are.
- Other Deficiencies. We then assess the non-knowledge areas to build a picture of your project, including all its deficiencies and strengths.
- Strategies. After this we look at strategies to address the deficiencies.
- Implementation. The next step is to implement those strategies.
- After Action Evaluation. The final step, particularly if you have more than one project, is to evaluate the project later in its life to identify progress, and help your organisation to not just learn lessons, but establish a robust framework to ensure problem projects™ don’t become problem programmes of projects.
We can do all these steps, or guide you through them. Another option might be the conduct of a knowledge and non-knowledge assessment of your project(s), with the deliverable being a report that identifies the deficiencies and suggests strategies to address those deficiencies. Whatever you choose to do, we always involve you in the process in a collaborative way.
