failed project management case study

10 Failed Projects: Examples and How You Can Avoid Making the Same Mistakes

Looking at these famous failed projects examples through the lens of a project manager , we can learn how to spot issues before they have a chance to derail our plans — and avoid our own project failures in the future.

From Betamax to Crystal Pepsi, here are some high-profile projects that didn’t turn out as planned.

In this failed projects guide you will discover:

• Ten famous projects that failed
• Five ways to spot project failures before they happen
• Frequently asked questions

10. Sony Betamax

Sony launched its cassette recording device known as Betamax in the mid-1970s. It lost the battle for market share to JVC’s VHS technology, but Sony didn’t stop making Betamax tapes until 2016. In the age of online streaming, very few us realized it was still in production.

Lessons learned:

The story of Betamax has become nearly synonymous with failed marketing because while it was innovative and hit the market before its competition did, other products proved to be cheaper and better.

The lesson learned here is that project management doesn’t end when a project is launched, or a campaign has run its course. To stop your idea from hitting the ashpile of failed projects, remember to keep analyzing, and evaluating your products. That way, they can maintain their velocity and continue to benefit your bottom line.

9. New Coke

After testing a new recipe on 200,000 subjects and finding that people preferred it over the traditional version, Coca-Cola unveiled New Coke in 1985. That sounds like a safe move, right? Wrong.

Product loyalty and old-fashioned habit got in the way and people didn’t buy New Coke as expected, costing the company $4 million in development and a loss of $30 million in back stocked product it couldn’t sell and becoming one of the most famous failed project case studies in history.

While Coca-Cola certainly did market research, they missed the mark when it comes to assessing customer motivations. Customer input is imperative in development and for your project to be successful, you need to ensure you have a way to gather comprehensive customer insight that gives accurate and realistic information.

8. Polaroid Instant Home Movies

With the Polavision you could record video, develop it in a matter of minutes, and then watch it immediately! It was groundbreaking at the time, but the two-and-a-half-minute time limit, lack of sound, and the fact that you couldn’t watch the videos on your regular TV meant this project lasted just two years .

The Polavision was revolutionary, but Polaroid dropped the ball when they failed to stay abreast of developing marketing needs. When you keep your finger on the pulse of your market, you’re ready to innovate to meet its needs and avoid project failure.

7. Crystal Pepsi

Crystal Pepsi was a hit at first, and people were excited about the new version of an old favorite. But people soon lost interest and the novelty wore off, making it impossible for Crystal Pepsi to gain a strong market share.

David Novak was the COO of PepsiCo during the project and didn’t listen when bottlers told him the Crystal Pepsi flavor wasn’t quite right. “I learned there that you have to recognize that when people are bringing up issues, they might be right,” he later said .

6. McDonald's Arch Deluxe Burger

In 1996, McDonald’s put more than $150 million into advertising — more than it had ever spent on an ad campaign — for its new Arch Deluxe Burger, only to find out its customers weren’t interested in the more grown-up, sophisticated menu option.

This is another case that highlights the importance of letting customer data drive product strategy. If McDonald’s had a more accurate picture of what its customers wanted, it could have saved millions in advertising and resources.

A great way to stay on top of data is to choose a handful of key metrics to track , make sure your tools can accurately track them in as close to real-time as possible, and then always strategize based on the numbers.

5. Apple Lisa

Lisa, the first desktop with a mouse, cost $10,000 (almost $24,000 today) and had just 1 MB of RAM. Consumers weren’t as interested as Apple anticipated, and it was a case of overpromising and under-delivering , as the 1983 ads — featuring Kevin Costner — depicted the Lisa as much more than it really was.

Transparency matters. It may feel like a buzzword you hear all the time, but there’s no better way to describe the lesson learned here other than to say that Apple was not transparent enough about the Lisa.

We no longer live in an age where you can falsify the capabilities of a product because social media makes it easier for the truth to come out and word of mouth will eventually catch up to — and destroy — projects that lack transparency

4. Levi Type 1 Jeans

While we don’t know what Levi’s project management processes are like, one way to avoid confusion is to improve internal communications so the final product has a clear message and is easily understood by end-users.

To stop your project becoming a failure case study, avoid email and spreadsheets and instead, try an operational system of record to communicate, get status updates, and track document versions.

3. IBM PCjr

IBM released its PCjr in 1983 in an attempt to attract home computer users, but the PCjr offered fewer features than its competitors and was twice as expensive as an Atari or Commodore. After customers complained about the low-quality keyboard, IBM offered an alternative, which had its own issues, and couldn’t revive interest in the PCjr

IBM had the right approach when it listened to users and provided what they were asking for: a new keyboard. Unfortunately, its response wasn’t quite enough because the product was low quality and didn’t help improve users’ experience with the PCjr.

When you listen to your market, especially in times of crisis, it’s imperative that you hit it out of the park with your response in a way that not only saves your project but inspires even more brand loyalty with extremely satisfied customers.

2. The DeLorean DMC-12

Even the futuristic shape, gull-wing doors, and gold-plated models weren’t enough to save the DeLorean DMC-12, which experienced problems throughout production, giving it a rough start.

Then, John DeLorean, the company’s founder, was arrested in 1982 on drug trafficking charges he incurred while trying to raise money to save the business. Even though he was found not guilty, it was too late for the Marty McFly-famous car.

This one is still playing out but is a great example of leveraging nostalgia and coming back bigger and better. Or in this case, faster and more powerful.

In 2016, a new DeLorean was announced and then delayed due to some legal issues. However, things are back on track for an early 2019 release with an updated interior, more powerful engine, and faster speeds. In some cases, a do-over can tap into a niche market and bring a project back from the brink of failure for a successful refresh.

1. The Ford Edsel

The Ford Edsel is the perfect example of the importance of speed to market and how even a major brand and product can fail if a project loses velocity. Things like poor communication, inaccurate deadlines, and out-of-touch project managers can majorly slow a project down, to the point that it’s no longer relevant or valuable.

Robert Kelly , services solution executive, global accounts at Lenovo and project management expert explained the importance of maintaining an accurate project schedule: “Even with the best planning and collaboration, things happen. Make sure your project schedule reflects the actual and current reality of the project.”

Five ways to spot project failures before they happen.

When you read about project management failure case studies like these, it’s hard to see how the creatives and strategists who hatched the plans dropped the ball.

While the market is unpredictable and hindsight is always 20/20, there are a few common factors in failed projects that we can all learn from.

1. Low interest

People stop showing up for meetings. Stakeholders stop participating or giving timely feedback. Tasks stop getting completed on time. All of these are signs that interest in a project is flagging.

How to stop it: Keep communications as up to date as possible. Track all assignments. Hold all assignees accountable . If stakeholders stop caring about a project, hold a sit-down to determine the current perceived value of your project to the organization.

2. Poor communication

The team doesn't know when things are getting done, what's not getting done, or why it's not getting done. The project lead isn't communicating changes to the rest of the team. When communications do go out, they are either late or inaccurate.

How to stop it: While email and spreadsheets are okay for getting basic information out, they tend to be slower and more cumbersome than the typical fast-moving team needs. Consider purchasing tools like Adobe Workfront that automate communications as much as possible.

3. Lack of velocity

Assignments are long past due, stalled on the approval of an elusive stakeholder. Maybe team members are spending more and more time on other projects. At any rate, contrary to your best projected completion dates, your project has come to a full stop.

How to stop it: See the solution to lack of interest. Accountability is especially key here. Ensure that everyone is aware of their assignments and their due dates and then press them to meet them. If stakeholders are holding a project up, call them, if possible, to find out if there are any issues.

4. A “no bad news” environment

Individual reports in meetings are especially rosy and don't match the chaos that seems to be engulfing a project. Staff members avoid questions asking for progress updates and project leaders seem to be in the dark about why tasks are being done late, or not at all.

How to stop it: Let numbers rule. Your team should be guided by a handful of key metrics that you can track, such as on-time delivery rate. And then make sure your tools can accurately track those metrics in as close to real time as possible.

5. Scope creep

The project starts to barely resemble the requirements as they were given at its outset. Timelines have stretched beyond the original projections. The phrase, "You know what would be really cool would be if we added ________," is uttered during the review and approval phase. This is scope creep — and you need to avoid it.

How to stop it: Use an airtight requirements gathering process before the project starts. In fact, don't even allow the project to start until you, your team, your stakeholders, and your requestor are all on the same page. And then treat that requirements doc like a binding contract.

In the end, the best way to avoid project failure (and embarrassing flops) is to stay one step ahead of your project and keep safeguards like these in place, so you can quickly pivot, producing a successful outcome regardless of what obstacles may arise.

Frequently asked questions about project failures.

What is a failed project?

A project can be seen as a failure when it doesn’t achieve its objectives. This doesn’t just mean overall goals – a failed project could be something that went overbudget, over deadline or lost the support of its staff and stakeholders. By thoroughly planning your project and monitoring from start to finish, you can help ensure your project is a success.

What can we learn from a failed project?

Plenty! The main thing to take away is that these projects fell mainly because of poor communication along the way. Setting up your projects to automate as much of your communication as possible is key, and having everyone aware of certain key metrics will ensure positivity and morale is always high.

How do I recover from a failed project?

Having one failed project does not mean your company or idea is a failure. Learn from the mistakes made in the project that failed and start from the beginning, making those all-important changes along the way.

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12 Notorious Failed Projects & What We Can Learn from Them

Failure is an unavoidable part of any project process: it’s the degree of failure that makes the difference. If a task fails, there are ways to reallocate resources and get back on track. But a systemic collapse will derail the whole project.

Why Is It Important to Analyze Failed Projects?

What good can come from failure? A lot, actually. Sometimes a project reaches too far beyond its means and fails, which is unfortunate but can also serve as a teaching moment. If project managers don’t learn from their mistakes, then they’re not growing professionally and will revisit the same problem in future projects.

Project managers can learn as much, if not more, from failed projects as they can from successful ones. A post-mortem analysis should be part of any project plan, and especially so when a project crashes and burns. There are valuable lessons in those ashes.

One lesson is that project management software decreases the chance of a failed project. ProjectManager is award-winning project management software that allows you to monitor your work in real time to make more insightful decisions that can keep failure at bay. Use our real-time dashboards to track the health of your project, including such important key performance indicators (KPIs) as time, cost and more. There’s no time-consuming setup required as with lightweight software. Our dashboard is ready when you are. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

12 Top Failed Projects from History

Let’s look at the most notorious failed projects, not to gloat, but to see what they can tell us about project management .

1. Sony Betamax

The word Betamax has become almost synonymous with failure. But when it was first released, Betamax was supposed to become the leader in the cassette recording industry. Developed by Sony, Betamax was introduced in the mid-1970s but was unable to get traction in the market, where JVC’s VHS technology was king.

Surprisingly, Sony continued to produce Betamax all the way into 2016. Long before it discontinued the technology, Betamax was already irrelevant.

Betamax was an innovative product, and it even got to market before VHS. But soon the market had options that were cheaper and better than Betamax, making it a failed project. Sony’s mistake was thinking that the project was complete once the product went to market . Project managers need to always follow up on their work, analyze the data and make an evaluation about what needs to be done to keep the project relevant.

2. New Coke

Coca-Cola is one of the most iconic brands in the world. It’d take a lot to tarnish that reputation. But that’s just what happened when New Coke was introduced in 1985. People didn’t know why the Coke they loved and drank regularly was being replaced.

The company knew why. They were looking to improve quality and make a splash in the marketplace. The fact is, New Coke sunk like a stone. It wasn’t like New Coke was just released without doing market research , though it might seem that way. In fact, the new recipe was tested on 200,000 people, who preferred it to the older version.

But after spending $4 million in development and losing another $30 million in backstocked products, the taste for New Coke evaporated. Consumers can be very loyal to a product, and once they get into a habit, it can be very difficult to break them off it in favor of something different.

It’s not that Coca-Cola neglected market research to see if there was a need to develop a new product, but they were blind to their own customers’ motivations. New Coke was a failed project because the researchers needed to do more than a mere taste test.

They needed to understand how people would react when the familiar Coke they loved would be discontinued and replaced by a shiny new upstart. Market research must be handled like a science and an art—and worked into the project plan accordingly.

3. Pepsi Crystal

In 1992, Pepsi launched Pepsi Crystal. It was a unique soft drink in that there was no color. It was as clear as water. Pepsi hoped to take advantage of the growing trend for purity and health. Pepsi marketed the new drink as pure, caffeine-free and an alternative to the unhealthy traditional colas.

At first, sales looked good. The first year saw about $470 million in sales. Consumers were curious to find out if the taste was the same as Pepsi, which it was. Other colorless soft drinks started to introduce themselves to the market, such as 7Up and Sprite. But what Pepsi and the copycats didn’t take into account was how much sight influences flavor. Consumers found the product bland and sales tanked.

Pepsi Crystal was mocked on Saturday Night Live and Time Magazine listed it in its top-10 marketing failures of the 20th century.

Pepsi made the mistake of ignoring all the senses that are involved in the consummation of their product. They should have done more testing. If so, they would have realized the importance of the look of the product. Pepsi Crystal thought that a clear-looking liquid would indicate a healthy one, but what was registered by the majority of users was a bland one.

4. Ford Edsel

Ford released its Edsel model in 1957. Since then, the name has become synonymous with project planning failure. That’s an accomplishment, but not the type that Ford was hoping for. This was supposed to be the car for the middle class and Ford invested $250 million into the Edsel.

Ford ended up losing $350 million on the gas-guzzler that the public found an unattractive alternative to other cars on the market. Part of the problem was that the first Edsels had oil leaks, hoods that stuck, trunks that wouldn’t open and more issues that soured consumer confidence in the product.

The Ford was a lesson in egos at the company ignoring what the research was telling them. Ford conducted many polls to find out what Americans wanted in a car, including a name. But executives went with Edsel. The design of the car didn’t even consult the polls.

If you’re going to do polling on what the public wants, it is a poor decision to ignore that data . So much time and effort went into coming up with the name, even hiring modernist poet Marianne Moore (who came up with nothing marketable), that Ford neglected to determine if there was even a market for this new car.

5. Airbus A380

Boeing’s Airbus A380 was viewed as a way for the company to outdo the 747. It spent more than $30 billion on product development in the belief that the industry would embrace a bigger plane that could hold more passengers and increase revenue.

In fact, the Airbus A380 has sold well short of its predicted 1200 units. The plane was headed for the scrap heap as it faced obstacles such as airports having to build special infrastructure and gates to accommodate that massive plane. Those project costs would be handed back to the airlines. That’s going to sour the deal and it did.

Then there were the technical issues. Qantas had to ground its entire A380 fleet after an engine blew up. You’d think that engineers would have thought beyond having more passengers seated on a bigger plane. But they didn’t.

The biggest lesson is that just because you build it doesn’t mean that anyone is going to want it. There wasn’t the demand Boeing believed there to be. Industries and markets are fickle. Just because airlines say they want something today doesn’t mean they’ll want it tomorrow. Boeing should have hedged its bets.

6. World Athletics Championships 2019

Doha is the capital of Qatar and the site of the World Athletics Championships in 2019. The world’s best athletes went there to compete against one another, but the big event turned out to be an even bigger dud.

The problem was that the host nation was unable to sell most of the tickets to the event. Some of the greatest athletes in the world were forced to compete in stadiums that were nearly empty. It was a failure and an embarrassment.

Money is needed to plan for an event , but that investment is no guarantee that people will show up. The mistake was thinking there was a large enough fanbase to sell all the tickets. We keep coming back to this, but it deserves to be mentioned again: research is critical. It wouldn’t have taken much to determine if there were enough interested people to bring a return on the investment.

7. Garden Bridge

Vanity projects tend not to care about success or failure. They’re driven by ego and such was the case with the Garden Bridge. It was the brainchild of Boris Johnson when he was Mayor of London.

This construction project cost 53 million pounds, which is a lot of money, especially when considering it was never even built. The idea of a bridge made of gardens for city dwellers to enjoy is fine, but the over-optimistic fundraising targets and the ballooning costs led to its spectacular failure.

Projects must be realistic. It’s good to remember SMART goals , which is an acronym for specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound. If the project followed those constraints it might have been built or passed on before all that money was spent.

8. Apple Lisa

Before Apple became synonymous with the personal computer (and long before popular products such as the iPhone), it released Lisa. It costs $10,000 with a processor of 5 MHz and 1 MB of RAM. The first model sold only 10,000 units.

Lisa was fated to fail because it was really a prototype. It was marketed as a game-changer in 1983 from its popular, but command-line-based Apple II. The price is certainly one reason why this was not a realistic personal computer, but there were technical issues. It had an operating system that could run multiple programs but was too powerful for its processor. Lisa ran sluggishly.

The truth is Lisa was less a failure than an expensive lesson. Lisa led to the Macintosh, which was basically a less expensive and more effective version of Lisa. The lesson here is that one can learn from failure if it doesn’t bankrupt the company, that is.

9. Dyson Electric Car

After four years and millions of dollars, James Dyson canceled his electric car project. It took that long to realize it wasn’t commercially viable. There is certainly a growing market for electric cars as the industry is motivated by consumers and government regulations to move from fossil fuels to more energy-efficient and sustainable alternatives.

There’s a boom in the production of electric cars, from major manufacturers such as Chrysler and Ford to startups such as Tesla. But sometimes the time isn’t right and no matter how good the idea is, it’s just not meant to be.

Timing is everything. But it’s also important to note how difficult it is to penetrate a market with established players. It takes a lot of capital and manufacturing expertise to start a car company and be competitive.

Related: 10 Free Manufacturing Excel Templates

10. Stretch Project

The Stretch project was initiated in 1956 by a group of computer scientists at IBM who wanted to build the world’s fastest supercomputer. The result of this five-year project was the IBM 7030, also known as Stretch. It was the company’s first transistorized supercomputer.

Though Stretch could handle a half-million instructions per second and was the fastest computer in the world up to 1964, the project was deemed a failure. Why? The project’s goal was to create a computer 100 times faster than what it was built to replace. Stretch was only about 30-40 times faster.

The planned budget was $13.5 million, but the price dropped to $7.8 million; so the computer was at least completed below cost. Only nine supercomputers were built.

While the project was a failure in that it never achieved the goal it set, there was much IBM could salvage from the project. Stretch introduced pipelining, memory protection, memory interleaving and other technologies that helped with the development of future computers.

Creative work is rooted in failure specifically because of the serendipitous discovery that occurs. This was a creative project, which might not have met its paper objective, but created a slew of useful technologies. So, aim for your goal, and who knows what good things you’ll discover along the way.

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11. Challenger Space Shuttle

The worst failure is one that results in the loss of life. When you’re dealing with highly complex and dangerous projects like NASA, there’s always a tremendous risk that needs to be tracked . On January 28, 1986, that risk became a horrible reality as the space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after launch.

The cause was a leak in one of the two solid rocket boosters that set off the main liquid fuel tank. The NASA investigation that followed said the failure was due to a faulty designed O-ring seal and the cold weather at launch, which allowed for the leak.

But it was not only a technical error that NASA discovered but human error. NASA officials went ahead with the launch even though engineers were concerned about the safety of the project. The engineers noted the risk of the O-ring, but their communications never traveled up to managers who could have delayed the launch to ensure the safety of the mission and its astronauts.

Managers are only as well-informed as their team. If they’re not opening lines of communication to access the data on the frontlines of a project, mistakes will be made, and in this case, fatal ones.

12. Computerized DMV

No one loves the DMV. If they were a brand, their reputation would be more than tarnished, it’d be buried. But everyone who drives a vehicle is going to have some interaction with this government agency. Unfortunately, they didn’t help their case in the 1990s when the states of California and Washington attempted to computerize their Departments of Motor Vehicles.

In California, the project began in 1987 as a five-year, $27 million plan to track its 31 million drivers’ licenses and 38 million vehicle registrations. Problems started at the beginning when the state solicited only one bid for the contract, Tandem Computers, locking the state into buying their hardware.

Then, to make things worse, tests showed that the new computers were even slower than the ones they were to replace. But the state moved forward with the project until 1994 when it had to admit failure and end the project. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that the project cost the state $49 million, and a state audit found that the DMV violated contracting laws and regulations.

The problem here is a project that isn’t following regulations. All projects must go through a process of due diligence, and legal and regulatory constraints must be part of that process. If the state had done that and the contract bidding process invited more than one firm to the table, then a costly mess could have been avoided, and our wait at the DMV might actually have become shorter.

How ProjectManager Prevents Failed Projects

ProjectManager keeps your projects from failing with a suite of project management tools that shepherd your project from initiation to a successful close. Plan, schedule and track work, while managing teams, with our online software.

Plan Every Last Detail

Successful projects begin with a strong plan. But it can be hard to keep all those tasks and due dates working together on a realistic schedule. What if some tasks are dependent? It gets complicated. But ProjectManager has an online Gantt chart that plots your tasks across a project timeline, linking dependencies and breaking projects into digestible milestones.

Track Progress as It Happens

ProjectManager keeps you on track with high-level monitoring via its real-time dashboard and more detailed data with one-click reporting . Now when projects start to veer off-track, you can get them back on course quickly.

While we didn’t have an example, there are many projects that fail because they’re not equipped with the right tools for the job. ProjectManager is online project management software that gives project managers and their teams everything they need to plan, monitor and report on their project. Don’t let your next project fail; try ProjectManager with this free 30-day trial .

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Project Management and Productivity

10 Project Failures That Stunned the World

The world has witnessed its fair share of project failures in the ever-evolving landscape of innovation and ambition. These grand endeavors, often pursued with the utmost determination, have sometimes crumbled in the face of unforeseen challenges.

Let’s embark on a journey to explore the stories of these failures. From the iconic Sydney Opera House, a modern architectural masterpiece fraught with budget overruns and structural challenges, to the Betamax, Sony’s once-revolutionary but ultimately defeated video format. And then, consider the bold decision by Coca-Cola to change its sacred recipe.

These projects have left an indelible mark in the annals of history. Join us as we delve into the riveting tales of these and more, examining the lessons they impart in the volatile world of innovation, ambition, and, sometimes, spectacular project failure.

1. Sydney Opera House

the Sydney Opera House is one of the icon architecture pieces in the world however it also one of the biggest project failures in history.

 In project management there are three significant constraints to any project that need to be considered. They are the triple constraints of time or scheduling, the cost of the project and the scope. The time and cost constraints are self-explanatory, however what is meant by the scope of a project are the deliverables required to make the project come to life. Essentially it provides the vision for the project. What is important to remember is that changes in one constraint will have a ripple effect on one or both of the other constraints.

Unfortunately, in the case of the Sydney Opera House there was no defined scope. No clear deliverables in place led to a massive blow out in both time and cost. In fact the cost of the project ended up being 15 times more than was originally budgeted and took 10 years longer. It serves as one of history’s greatest project failures.

The Betamax device was an analogue video recording device that was first brought to the United States in 1975. It enjoyed a first to market advantage for around 12 months before the Japanese Company JVC introduced the VHS version. It was the VHS version that began to take the market share due to its cheaper pricing. In fact, by 1980 JVC had 60% market share in the U.S. which enabled economies of scale that allowed VHS units to flood the European market at greatly reduced pricing.

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The Betamax project is a great example of a project that didn’t know when to close. In fact it was still producing consoles in 2002 and only stopped making cassettes in 2016. The unwillingness to let go of this product was one of the reasons for Sony losing overall market share to its competitors.

Further Reading| PMBOK Principle 8 -BUILDING QUALITY |

3. New Coke

In an effort to turn around the declining sales of Coca Cola, and a series of blind taste tests indicating that consumers preferred Pepsi, the decision was made to change the coke recipe.

The project was very secret and was code named ‘Project Kansas’. A significant red flag that was ignored during the testing phase was that 10-12% of survey respondents said they would be angry if Coke changed their recipe and that they may stop drinking the brand all together.

It was also the decision by management who didn’t want to release the product as alternative to Coke rather replacing the original all together.

Their was some initial success as consumers wanted to try the new recipe. This was quickly replaced by resentment particularly in the Southern states of the U.S. It was viewed by many in those regional areas as part of their identity and there was a feeling of surrendering to the enemy.

It took just 79 days after the New Coke was introduced for the old recipe to be re-instated. Less than 6 months later the original formula Coke was increasing its sales by more than twice as much as its main competitor Pepsi. In terms of project failures, the change of the Coke recipe served as one its greatest lessons.

Further Reading | Project Quality Management |

4. Delhi Commonwealth Games Bridge Collapse

The XIX Commonwealth Games were to be held in Delhi India in 2010. The lead up to the event saw major concerns from officials and competing countries regarding the slow pace of work. Problems such as corruption from Games Organising Committee officials, infrastructure compromise, the threat of terrorist attack and poor ticket sales. A significant concern were the delays in the construction of the main Games venues.

The response from the Organising Committee six weeks out from the opening of the games was to increase the workforce significantly. This resulted in a huge increase in tasks completed but also with a lack of training mistakes were bound to occur.

The concerns regarding the poor workmanship materialised on September 21, 2010 when a footbridge joining the Athletes village with the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium collapsed injuring 23 people. This provides a classic case study of a project management scheduling strategy called fast tracking. Essentially to get tasks completed quickly the amount of labour is increased significantly. The problem is that quality reduces and disasters like the Delhi Bridge collapse can occur.

Further Reading | How to manage a saboteur in your team |

5. Waterworld

The Water World movie is a post-apocalyptic film starring Kevin Costner and distributed by Universal Pictures.

The most expensive movie ever made at the time, Waterworld is a great case study on how scope creep can impact time and cost on a project.

At the time the film was due to begin a completed script had not been authorised. This gave rise to many re-writes and changes which continued to raise costs and extend the timeline. Universal had initially authorised a budget of $100 million however the final cost of the film was pushed out to $175 million.

Unfortunately the film was not well received at the box office and ticket sales were not enough to recoup expenses.

Further Reading | How to Promote Team Collaboration in Your Organisation |

6. European Super League

In one of the biggest blunders in football administration history twelve of the top European football clubs announced they were breaking away to form a new competition. The competition was announced on April 18, 2021 and was withdrawn just two days later due to a huge outcry from the club’s biggest stakeholders its fans.

One of the immediate concerns from the football community was that in the new league relegation would not take place. This would remove one of the key elements in European leagues. Concerns came from fans, governing bodies and even European government leaders.

The project failed miserably because the owners of the clubs missed a key component of any project – stakeholder consultation. Engaging with the stakeholders early would have prevented the embarrassment that came with this decision and the cringeworthy apologies that came afterwards. Notably it was the German clubs that did not opt in to the new competition and underscores the close relationship they have with their most important stakeholders.

Club owners still have not learned from one of the most significant sporting project failures as rumours of a new model continue to swirl.

Further Reading | What is the difference between a leader and a project manager? |

7. The Delorean DMC-12

Made famous in the Back to the Future movie franchise the Delorean is still an iconic car today.

The Delorean company was in trouble even before the first car rolled off the construction line. After the company was given a great deal to setup their manufacturing plan in Belfast, a Northern Ireland consulting company gave Delorean a 1 in 10 chance of surviving.  

Design issues were the first problems to surface with the original rotary being replaced by a Peugeot V6. The larger engine couldn’t fit into the tiny space and significant changes were required.

With an inexperienced factory workforce, increasingly delayed production schedules and a CEO that has been arrested on drug charges the car stopped production after 9,000 units were made. This may seem like a large number however it wasn’t enough to save the company and it was wound up in the early 1980s.

Further Reading | The importance of setting goals |

8. IBM’s Stretch Project

The IBM 7030 which was also known as stretch was the world’s first fully transistorized supercomputer.

At the design stage the thought was to make a computer that was 100-200 times faster than its nearest competitor. Unfortunately the complexity of the project and delays in production meant it was only 30 times faster than its competitors. This was seen as project fail at IBM.

The lessons learned were absorbed into IBM and this project fail helped launch other successful products such as the IBM System/360 which were shipped to customers in 1964.

9 The Dyson Electric Car

A team of around 400 people were working on a very secretive electric car project that was due to be released in 2021. Seen as a possible competitor to Tesla the project was pulled before a unit had even been constructed.

The Dyson company is famous for producing a range of high end good value home appliances. The company is privately owned by James Dyson and he took a different approach to the project development.

Building cars is quite different to building vacuum cleaners and a lot of due diligence is required to move into this completely new challenge. This was lacking and an email to all his staff – numbering in the range of 7,000 were informed then that the project wouldn’t be going ahead.

Although close to getting it mass-produced, the cost of the inputs would have meant a price that made the car commercially unviable. It is understood that James Dyson personally absorbed the cost of the project failure and would continue to work on the battery technology developed through the development phase. This shows that lessons learned from project failures can be incredibly valuable.

Further Reading | PMBOK Principle 9 – NAVIGATING PROJECT COMPLEXITY |

10. London City – Garden Bridge

A design originally submitted by Joanne Lumley from Absolutely Fabulous fame, the Garden bridge was designed to be an elevated garden footbridge crossing the Thames joining Lambeth in the South and Victoria embankment in the North.

The project gained traction when Mayor and later Prime Minister Boris Johnson took some interest in it. However, when Boris Johnson’s successor Sadiq Khan replaced him as Mayor the true nature of the fragile financial foundation funding the bridge became clear.

The project was stopped before even a piling had been driven into the ground. One of the problems with this project was the unclear vision for what the bridge was for. Everyone agreed it would look nice but nice wouldn’t cut it when millions of pounds were at stake.

The lack of clarity of the project meant that stakeholder consultation was minimal and there was no real clear business case or consideration of ongoing maintenance of the bridge.

Before the project was quashed by the Mayor costs were already rising significantly with 1.7 million pounds being paid to a board and also significant website costs.

Another project where due diligence and clarity of scope were missing.

Further Reading | PMBOK Principle 8 -BUILDING QUALITY |

In the end, these project failures serve as more than just cautionary tales; they are invaluable sources of insight and wisdom. They remind us that even the most audacious dreams can falter when faced with unexpected challenges. The Sydney Opera House, Betamax, and Coca-Cola’s recipe change all echo the resounding message that innovation carries both the promise of greatness and the potential for missteps.

As we conclude our exploration of these project failures, we’re left with a profound appreciation for the resilience of the human spirit. We learn from these setbacks, adapt, and move forward, ever more determined to push the boundaries of what is possible. In the world of projects and initiatives, project failures, though stunning, are stepping stones to future success.

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4 Famous Project Management Failures and What to Learn from Them

October 8, 2018 | by greg bailey.

Every project begins with a single idea or goal, and the best of intentions. But as they progress, mistakes are made, communications break down, and deadlines and budgets change. It’s these problems that mean, even when projects are started for the right reasons,  55% of businesses experience failed projects. In fact, 17% of large-scale IT projects  go so badly that they threaten the very existence of the company.

Why do projects fail? And what leads to a failed project? This post will look at some project failure examples, including the worst-case scenarios, to identify the root cause of the problem, in the hope that we can ensure project managers don’t make the same fatal mistakes.

1. Ford Edsel

Ford Edsel is one of the most spectacular project failure examples in automotive history. Ford ’s team did extensive market research before it released the Edsel , even doing studies to make sure the car had the right ‘personality’ to attract the ideal customer . They spent 10 years and $250 million on research and planning—but by the time all this was completed, and the car was unveiled in 1957, Ford had missed its chance. The market had already moved on to buying compact cars, which didn’t include the Edsel.

Lessons learned: The Ford Edsel is the perfect fail project example that emphasizes the importance of speed to market and how even a major brand and product can fail if a project loses velocity. Poor communication and inaccurate deadlines can slow a project down to the point where it’s no longer relevant or valuable,  let alone successful.

Paying ultimate attention to areas like resource availability and utilization—ensuring project workers are working to capacity and to the best of their ability—creates more accurate project timeline estimations and stops projects from dragging.

2. NHS Civilian IT

Back in 2007, the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) looked to revolutionize the way technology is used in the health sector, through the introduction of electronic health records, digital scanning, and integrated IT systems across hospitals and community care. They called it the ‘Civilian Computer System. ’ It would have been the largest of its kind in the world. But it failed because of contractual changes—including changing specifications, supplier disputes, and technical problems. Estimates of the cost of the now-abandoned project hover around the £11.4 billion mark.

Lessons learned: Change is almost inevitable during the course of a project, especially with large and complex ones like the NHS undertook. This is one of the most talked-about project failure examples that shows the importance of flexibility for achieving great results. You need to be able to react to changes as they occur, but also preemptively identify potential problems in order to stop them before they wreak havoc.

Project and resource modeling allows project managers to create a model where they can test, in real-time, the effects of changing or modifying their projects to keep ahead of schedule. So even in the event of unexpected changes, you’re prepared for what’s next.

3. Airbus A380

Building the Airbus A380—the world’s largest commercial aircraft at the time—required production facilities from across the globe to build individual parts of the airplane. Unfortunately, these teams used different computer-aided design (CAD) programs. During installation, they discovered the parts designed by different teams didn’t fit together. This cost the company $6 billion to put right and set the project back two years.

Lessons learned: The Airbus A380 is one of those failed projects examples that teach you the importance of proper workforce coordination. Unexpected problems will always be a challenge, but there are added challenges when your workforce is based remotely or in silos. For instance, it can take longer to report problems and coordinate the right response. If Airbus’s dispersed project teams had better-prioritized communication, the problem could have been solved before the installation phase, before it was too late.

When teams work across geographies, it’s important to set goals and metrics to ensure everyone understands their tasks, like what they’re expected to achieve and when. Resource management allows you to manipulate resource data in real time, so, if something goes wrong, the problem can be resolved as soon as possible. Using remote workers makes it difficult to gather everyone in a room, explain the problem, and find the solution. Resource management tools provide real-time reporting for full visibility over your resources, so you can instantly enact change.

4. Knight Capital

In 2012, when Knight Capital was brought on to work on new code for a new SEC program, an over-optimistic deadline caused them to go to production with test code. After production, a glitch cost the company  $440 million within the first 30 minutes of trading , and company stock fell 75% within just two days.

Lessons learned: You need a granular-level view of your projects to forecast how long a project will feasibly take to complete and avoid setting unrealistic targets or deadlines. Resource management is crucial in analyzing and utilizing project resources, so projects can be completed as efficiently as possible without the need to rush work or take shortcuts.

Avoid famous project management failure with resource management

The project failure examples listed above were carried out on a monumental scale—involving a sea of moving parts and relied on a lot of people to complete. While no project can guarantee success, resource management can help measure and manage the moving parts of a project. The right resource management solution can help a project manager gain more control over their projects , providing insight into every step of the process .

Tempus Resource is a sophisticated resource management software that includes practical functionality like modeling, forecasting and ‘What-If?’ analysis. Tempus Resource can help organizations of any size and any level of project maturity reduce the risk of project failure.

To find out more on how resource management can reduce the risk of project failure,  get in touch with ProSymmetry today .

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The Anatomy of a Failed IT Project: Case Studies and Lessons Learned

Failure is an uncomfortable word. However, it's important to remember that failure is not the end but rather a learning opportunity , in IT and Project Management, understanding what went wrong can often be as valuable as knowing what goes right. This blog post aims to dissect my real-world cases of failed IT projects to extract actionable lessons for future endeavours.

The Importance of Studying Failures

Before diving into my case studies, let me address a crucial question:

Why should we study failures?

The simple answer is to avoid making the same mistakes, when we understand the reasons behind a project's failure, we're better equipped to mitigate those issues in future projects; the goal is not to blame nor point to anyone but to understand, adapt, and improve.

Case Study 1: Scope Creep

Let's start with a project that was initially scoped to develop a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system for a mid-sized company within six months.

What Went Wrong

As the project progressed, additional features were requested, the client's demands changed and suddenly the team was overwhelmed. Deadlines were missed, and the budget ballooned.

Lessons Learned

The primary lesson here is the importance of a well-defined project scope. Any changes to the scope should be carefully considered , involving all stakeholders, and adjustments to resources and timelines should be made accordingly.

Case Study 2: Poor Communication

This case involves a project aimed at implementing a new security infrastructure for a financial institution.

The project suffered from a lack of clear communication. Requirements were misunderstood, leading to incorrect implementations and eventual rework. Critical updates were not effectively communicated to all team members for “watertight compartments“ causing further delays.

Effective communication is the backbone of any successful project. Regular team meetings, clear documentation, and established communication protocols can prevent many issues related to misunderstandings or lack of information.

Case Study 3: Inadequate Risk Management

This case study focuses on a software development project for a healthcare provider.

The project did not have a comprehensive risk management plan. When the team encountered issues like third-party API limitations and unexpected data privacy concerns, there were no contingency plans in place.

Risk management is not a one-time activity but a continuous process. Always have contingency plans for identified risks and update your risk assessments as the project progresses.

Common Themes

After examining these case studies, some common themes emerge, lack of planning and foresight, poor communication and inadequate risk management, but actually there are different common reasons:

Scope Creep

The project starts with a well-defined scope, but as it progresses, additional features or functionalities are added, usually without sufficient adjustments to the budget or timeline.

Poor Communication

A lack of clear, effective communication among stakeholders, team members, and clients can lead to misunderstandings, delayed decisions, and ultimately, project failure.

Inadequate Requirements

Often, project specifications are either too vague or incomplete. This ambiguity can result in a final product that does not meet the needs of the end-users.

Lack of User Involvement

Ignoring the needs and feedback of the end-users during the project can result in a product that is misaligned with market needs.

Technical Debt

Cutting corners in coding or design and/or project management might save time initially but usually leads to more work in the long term , as these issues need to be resolved later.

Overconfidence

Underestimating the complexity of a project or overestimating the team's capabilities can set the project on a path to failure from the outset.

Launching the project at a time when the market or the organization is not ready can doom even a well-executed project.

Resource Constraints

the worst one, the final conclusion: running out of time, money, or manpower can halt a project in its tracks.

My suggestions

To avoid the pitfalls highlighted in these case studies, consider the following recommendations:

Effective Planning: Ensure the project scope is well-defined and agreed upon by all stakeholders.

Clear Communication: Establish robust communication channels and protocols.

Continuous Risk Assessment: Regularly update your risk assessments and have contingency plans in place.

Remember, the goal is not to blame but to learn. As Project management giant Harold Kerzner once said:

Project management is not about managing projects but about managing expectations.

Understanding the reasons behind failures helps us set realistic expectations and equips us to manage future projects better.

Literature and more info

- Project Management Institute (PMI)

- Scrum Training

- Risk Management Guidelines

Gustavo’s The Business Automator is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

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Lessons Learned from Project Failure at Denver International Airport: Why Checking Bags is Still a Pain

October 30, 2021 - 7 min read

We regularly review major projects to  extract valuable lessons and pass on the knowledge so that everyone can benefit. One failed project we recently took an interest in is Denver International Airport's luggage handling system.

I was compelled to study this project because checking bags at the airport is still one of my biggest fears. My eye twitches just thinking about it. You can never predict how long check-in lines will be, suitcases are lost daily, and human baggage handlers have a tendency to manhandle their wards. We have probably all wondered why airports haven't come up with a better system by now.

The Failed Project of Denver International Airport

It's not that airports haven't tried to fix the baggage system. When construction started on the new Denver International Airport, it was supposed to come with a brand-new automated system for handling luggage travel and transfers. The goal was to replace the standard reliance on manual labor with a fully-automated baggage system that would also integrate all three terminals. It would reduce aircraft turn-around time for faster service to travelers.

But the project went 16 months past its hard deadline, cost the city $560 million over budget, and performed just a fraction of its original automation goals. Instead of integrating the three concourses and all airlines, it was only used at one concourse, for one airline, for outbound flights only. The project team had to resort to building a second, manual labor system for all other baggage operations. And after valiantly attempting to use the system for 10 years, the only airline that actually adopted the system finally bowed out due to high maintenance costs.

The project ended in spectacular failure — and from their mistakes,  we stand to learn a lot about project communication, scope creep , and poor project definition .

Want a tool to improve your project management ? Start your free Wrike trial today!

3 Lessons We Should Learn from Denver

1. Listen when people say, "This isn't going to work."

Warning #1: After airport construction started, the City of Denver hired Breier Neidle Patrone Associates to evaluate if the proposed baggage system project was feasible. The company flat-out stated that  the plan was too complex . The city decided to pursue the possibility anyway.

Warning #2: A similar, simpler project in Munich took a full two years to be completed, followed by six months of 24/7 testing prior to the actual launch. The larger, much more complex Denver International Airport system was due to open in a little over two years. Which means that Denver International Airport was trying to  cram a very complicated project into a very short timeline . The Munich airport advised that it was a project set up to fail. Despite the worrying outlook, the City of Denver decided to proceed without altering their schedule.

Warning #3: When the airport began accepting bids on the new luggage system project, only three companies submitted proposals. Of those proposals, none of them predicted they'd be able to finish the project within the allotted timeframe. The city rejected all three bids, and instead approached a fourth company, BAE Systems, to convince them to take on the superhuman project; again,  without changing the proposed timeline .

Warning #4: Senior managers at BAE Systems expressed initial misgivings about the project's complexity. They estimated a 4-year timeline instead of 2 years, but the  concern was ignored and the project went on with its 2-year deadline still in place.

Four ignored warnings later, nothing had changed. If the City of Denver or the project team had heeded any of these caution flares regarding project complexity and tight deadlines, they would have changed their timeline or scaled back their goals. Instead they barreled ahead, and as a result their project went far past deadline, cost millions of extra dollars, with the final product a disappointing shadow of its original design.

 If the project failure of Denver International Airport teaches you only one thing, it's this:  pay attention to the flashing red lights . Listening to project advice keeps us from dedicating ourselves to impossible projects.

2. Don't wait to involve all parties affected by the project

While BAE Systems and the airport's larger project management team were the steamrollers on the project, they were ultimately not the parties affected by the outcome. Airlines renting space in the airport would be most impacted by the outcome of the automated baggage system. Yet they were not brought into the planning discussions. These  key stakeholders were excluded from the initial decision-making — an open invitation for failure.

Once the airlines were finally asked for their opinions,  they required major changes from the project team: adding ski equipment racks, different handling for oversized luggage, and separate maintenance tracks for broken carts. The requests required major redesign on portions of the project — some of which had already been "completed." But these requests were not optional features for the airlines, and the project team was forced to redo their work.

By waiting to approach stakeholders, the project team  wasted time and money . Had they approached the airlines right away, they would have been able to incorporate these requests into early project plans. They would have shaved off months of extra labor if they didn't have to redo completed work; not overshooting their deadline by 16 months would have saved them a good chunk of the extra $560 million spent. 

It is essential that we include stakeholders from Day 1 to avoid wasting time and money. Don't make the same mistake of waiting until halfway through a project to collect vital requirements.

3. Beware of "Big Bang" projects meant to change the world

Another project complication was the decision to go with an  all-at-once "Big Bang" rollout to all three concourses, as opposed to slower, incremental rollout. In an  article dissecting the problems with Denver International Airport's baggage system project plan , Webster & Associates LLC, an IT consulting company, said that this was one of the biggest project flaws. BAE Systems  should have tested the new automated system in sections to make sure it would work before implementing it throughout the rest of the airport.

This project was the first attempt at an automated system of this size and complexity, and was meant to change the way that airports handled baggage. They wanted instant, large-scale success. Instead, the final product fell short of everyone's expectations.

The best way to get big results is to first ensure you can  create a successful minimal viable product . Once your MVP works well, repeat the process on a larger playing ground, slowly scaling efforts until you reach the end goal.

Project Failure is Not Fatal

Although the automated baggage system failed, today the Denver International Airport is fully functional. I've even taken my skis through their airport without issue. And as long as we learn valuable lessons from their mistakes, we shouldn't consider this project a complete failure — just a painful boo-boo.

Next time you're working on a project, remember these three lessons and avoid facing the same fate as Denver International Airport:

1. Watch for red flags, and heed the warnings of experts. 2. Involve all project stakeholders from Day 1. 3. Take small steps to successfully reach the end goal.

 Good luck on your next projects and next flights!

Related Articles:

•  10 Reasons Projects Fail: Lessons from the Death Star •  3 Kinds of Data to Help Avoid Project Management Failure

Sources: http://calleam.com/WTPF/?page_id=2086 ,  http://calleam.com/WTPF/content/uploads/articles/DIABaggage.pdf ,  http://www.computerworld.com/article/2556725/it-project-management/united-axes-troubled-baggage-system-at-denver-airport.html ,  http://archive.gao.gov/t2pbat1/154219.pdf ,  http://www.eis.mdx.ac.uk/research/SFC/Reports/TR2002-01.pdf

Ashley Coolman

Ashley is a former Content Marketing Manager of Wrike. She specializes in social media, dry humor, and Oxford commas.

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How 5 PM Experts Create a Fail-Safe Project Management Plan

Poor planning can doom your project before work even begins. Changing expectations, shrinking budgets, and frustrating miscommunications can derail even the simplest project—and make life stressful for everyone involved.  A thorough project plan can prevent scope creep, overblown budgets, and missed goals. But actually sitting down and planning a project can be an overwhelming task. How do you accurately predict how long tasks will take? How do you translate stakeholder expectations into concrete deliverables? What if something goes wrong? We’ve collected advice from 5 seasoned project management experts who understand exactly what's needed to create a successful project management plan.  Essential Components of a Project Management Plan  What should be included in your project management plan? For award-winning project management blogger Elizabeth Harrin, a thorough project plan includes these elements: Project Definition Statement: This is the ‘what’ and 'why' of your project: a short statement summarizing the purpose, goals, and final deliverable(s).  Execution Strategy: Explain the 'how' of your project. What methodology will you use? Will delivery happen in a single launch, or released in stages?  Scope: What is (and isn't) included in your project? Include your work breakdown structure and key deliverables.  Schedule: Depending on how well defined your project is, this can be either a high-level overview of when specific items will be completed, or it can include your detailed Gantt chart complete with milestones and delivery dates.  Organization Chart: An overview of the hierarchy of your project team, roles, and responsibilities. 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If the list gets long, sort it into major and minor players.  Step 2: Components. This is your WBS. List all significant work items and suggestions (save evaluating them for later— just record them for now). Limit to 30 items, and if your team is starting to sound like they’re searching for items to add, stop this step and move on.  Step 3: Objectives & Outputs. Write down the project’s objective, then define what the output or results should be. Check your work by asking, “If we did all of the work items listed in Step 2, would we accomplish our objectives?" Step 4: Possible Alternatives. What alternatives would also satisfy the project’s objective? Is there a more effective way to accomplish your goals?  Step 5: Economics & Issues. What’s the project’s funding strategy? How is it prioritized among other projects? What resources will you need? What issues will you encounter?  Step 6: Plan of Attack. Look at your list of work items and decide which should be done first. Label that A. 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Project managers need to be able to respond to customer and stakeholder requests quickly, and that means executing, not sitting around a conference table hashing out timelines and budgets.  Your project isn't doing anyone any good on paper, so streamline the planning process as much as possible. Only include what's essential in your project plan, and then just get going!  Vargas uses a consolidated version of the planning guide outlined in the PMBoK, and you can learn more about the specifics of each aspect of his planning process on his blog.  Keep It Simple Project plans can get unwieldy fast, especially once stakeholders and project sponsors start weighing in. To ensure you're not over-complicating things, project management blogger Kiron Bondale suggests starting with the 5 Ws to provide context and perspective for the details of your project plan.  Why: What are the fundamental business benefits of undertaking this project?  What: What is included in the project scope?  Who: What are the critical roles required to deliver the What?  When: When must the What be delivered, in order to achieve the Why?  Where: Where is the best place for the work to be performed? Where will the What be used by customers and end users?  Only after you’ve stopped to answer these questions should you move on to the "How" of the project.  Project Management Planning Best Practices As you can see, even among project management experts there are a few different approaches to creating a project plan. There's no one right way, but one best practice experienced PMs agree on: take the time to define and agree on the main objectives with the project's stakeholders before you start executing.  Another best practice to follow: hold a project kickoff meeting. Take the opportunity to align your team around project goals, clarify roles and responsibilities, establish standards for success, and choose your project management methodology and tools. Get our tips for hosting the perfect project kickoff that will set the right tone for your team.  Finally: document as much as possible. Recording your project’s progress will help you analyze your performance and make more informed decisions.  More Project Planning Resources Project Management Basics: 6 Steps to a Foolproof Project Plan Essential Elements of the Perfect Project Plan (Infographic) 10 Steps to a Kickass Project Kickoff: A Checklist for Project Managers Project Management Basics: Beginner’s Guide to Gantt Charts Project Management Plan Template

7 Mission Critical Things to Consider When Building Your Project Plan

You’ve just been put in charge of a big project. Before it starts to spiral into chaos, you need to introduce some structure and order — fast. What you need is a project plan.

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THE TITANIC - A FAILED PROJECT MANAGEMENT CASE STUDY REPORT

The sinking of the Titanic took only 2 hours and 40 minutes. The failure of this project can be traced back to a series of project management related issues. This paper will delve into the what, why and how of the disaster from a project management standpoint. Understanding the project dynamics that resulted in the liner sinking should provide one with lessons relating on the importance of meticulousness where project management is concerned. This paper provides a project manager’s perspective of the different factors that caused the sinking of the ship. Therefore, understanding the different perspectives from a project management view point provides one with an opportunity to derive appropriate lessons.

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Sunday, January 20, 2019

• Labels: Case Studies , Project Failure

Case Study 1: The £10 Billion IT Disaster at the NHS

If you want to make sure your business critical project is off to a great start instead of on its way on my list with project failures? Then a New Project Audit is what you are looking for. If you want to know where you are standing with that large, multi-year, strategic project? Or you think one of your key projects is in trouble? Then a Project Review is what you are looking for. If you just want to read more project failure case studies? Then have a look at the overview of all case studies I have written here .

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What went wrong, how nhs could have done things differently, closing thoughts.

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HBR Case Study: A Rush to Failure?

A complex project for the space station must come in on time and on budget—but the push for speed might be its undoing.

There is absolutely no reason why the contractors shouldn’t be able to give us rapid product development and flawless products—speed and quality both,” David MacDonagle said as he tried to light a cigarette. The warm wind, portending rain, kept blowing out his matches. Finally he gave up and slipped the cigarette back in his pocket.

• TC Tom Cross is a senior director in executive education at the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, where he develops executive learning programs for Department of Defense leaders. Previously he was a senior executive at such firms as KFC and Office Depot.

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How to Turnaround a Failing Software Project

By Aran Davies

8 years of experience

Aran Davies is a full-stack software development engineer and tech writer with experience in Web and Mobile technologies. He is a tech nomad and has seen it all.

Do you want to explore learnings from failed software projects’ case studies to prevent your software from facing the same failures?

There are huge sums of money to gain by launching a successful software project. Naturally, all product owners and developers hope to succeed with their software development project, however, as the data on actual success rates show, often, things go wrong.

A PMI report found a 14% failure rate for software development projects. Even disregarding the entirely failed projects, 31% don’t meet their objectives, while 43% of projects see a budget overrun.

When this happens, you need to take decisive action to turn around your project. When DevTeam.Space recently successfully turnaround one such stalled project, the software development project to develop DentaMatch , we noticed that this requires distinct competencies that some might overlook.

As an entrepreneur or an enterprise software development project leader, are you trying to turn around a failing project? If so, then you need to know about these competencies. This guide will show you how to prevent software failures .

How to Prevent a Project Failure as Assessed From the Failed Software Projects’ Case Studies?

Failed software projects’ case studies show that you need to perform the following on time to turn around a project and prevent its failure:

1. Assess what went wrong with the project

You need to assess what went wrong with the software project, and this requires you to take a deep dive. The project might already be in the news in your organization due to scope creep, budget overruns, or the quality management reports showing too many reds.

The common reasons that might cause a project to fail are as follows:

• Inaccurate requirements;
• Insufficient involvement of the project sponsors;
• Frequently changing project objectives;
• Poor development lifecycle planning. i.e wrong estimates resulting in lack of time, etc;
• Risks that no one could foresee;
• Delays caused by dependencies;
• Poor use of any new technology that might help streamline the process, improve functionalities, etc.;
• Under-staffed project teams;
• Poor project manager;
• Delays caused by the project team members.

However, these are manifestations of deeper issues as learned from failed software projects’ case studies.

Your deep dive must focus on what went wrong structurally or systematically, which caused the above-mentioned slippages or overruns. You ought to study several documents, e.g.:

Hire expert developers for your next project

• The project requirements;
• The architectural decisions;
• The technical solution and the lower-level design documents;
• Test plans, test cases, and test results;
• Review records;
• Risks and issues logs.

You need to have several face-to-face meetings with multiple project stakeholders, e.g., sponsors, developers, testers, etc.

2. Analyze the root causes of the project challenges

Having assessed the extent of damage to your project, you should now analyze the root causes. You need to focus on empirical evidence and data over hypotheses and guesses.

A “Root Cause Analysis” (RCA) exercise involves going deep into the causes of failure, unearthing deeper reasons as you analyze.

The root causes typically belong to any of the following categories:

• The lack of project management competencies;
• Using an unsuitable SDLC model;
• The development team lacks the required capabilities;
• Choosing the wrong IT architecture pattern;
• Ineffective use of cloud services;
• Using unsuitable technology stack, development tools, and testing tools;
• The lack of collaboration impedes the productivity of the team;
• Measuring the wrong metrics.

We, at DevTeam.Space, are well-equipped for analyzing why software projects fail, and you can judge our capabilities in “ The 10 biggest challenges when developing an app ”.

3. Determine whether you have a capable team

You have just assessed what went wrong with the project. In some circumstances, the existing team might be able to resolve these issues, however, there are exceptions.

You need to meet the existing team and communicate the project’s challenges. Honestly communicate with them about where you hold them responsible for the issues, and why.

You will need to change the existing team if you see any of the following:

• The existing team doesn’t take accountability for the project issues.
• It communicates reasons why it shouldn’t be held accountable, however, the reasons don’t quite add up.
• The team understands their drawbacks, however, they’re at a loss about how to turn things around.

If you had hired a software development company for this project and it performed sub-optimally, then you ought to change the development partner.

Read our guide “ How to change your software development company mid-project ” for more insights.

4. Check whether you need to replace any developer

You could also have a situation where the larger development team is capable, but, one or more developers aren’t. In such a circumstance, you need to have an honest discussion with the underperforming developers.

You might find that the said developers might have performed below par due to specific reasons, and their performance would improve if you address the underlying reasons. At other times, you could find they aren’t capable of improving their performance.

In such a situation, you would need to replace the ineffective developers. Our guide “ Getting rid of bad developers during a project ” can help you to find a replacement developer.

5. Ascertain whether the project team has enough developers

At times, projects fail due to wrongly estimating the development manpower. While the team is perfectly capable, it might be understaffed.

In such cases, you should hire competent developers to address the lack of manpower. As I have explained in “ How to Find a Good Software Developer ”, consider the following when hiring developers:

• You need programmers with strong professional ethics.
• Developers you hire need to have decision-making capabilities.
• You need developers with sufficient knowledge of computer science fundamentals.
• Programmers you hire should have the skills that are hot in the market, e.g., Node.js for web development, Kotlin for native Android development, Swift for native iOS development, Python for AI/ML programming, etc.
• You need to hire developers with good knowledge of SDLC.
• Developers need to know enough about proactively mitigating software glitches and application security risks.
• They should be able to code in a way that aligns with your choice of architecture pattern.
• You need developers that know how to code scalable apps and have familiarity with managed cloud services.
• They need to know the market-leading development tools, moreover, they should have industry knowledge.
• You also need developers that can collaborate on rectifying a software error.

DevTeam.Space’s blog recently featured an article to help you hire such developers. For more on this read “ 7 essential tips for hiring the best developers for your project ”.

6. Plan to turn around the project

You have assessed by now what went wrong and ascertained the root causes. You have also dealt with underperforming teams/developers and/or bandwidth issues in the team. It’s now time to plan the recovery of the troubled software project.

The recovery plan might include several tracks of actions and the “Root Cause Analysis” (RCA) determines them. We, at DevTeam.Space, have the right expertise for such recovery planning, as I had explained in “ What is the best development approach to guarantee the success of your app? ”.

You might need to address one or more of the following aspects:

6a. SDLC model

Ensure that you are using the right SDLC model for the kind of project you have. E.g., if you are developing a “System of Engagement” (SoE) like a mobile app, then Agile is better than Waterfall, as I have explained in “ Waterfall vs. Agile: which methodology is right for your project ”.

You should also use the right approach that works with your chosen SDLC model, e.g., develop your “Minimum Viable Product” (MVP) in the right way in an Agile project. Our guide “ 5 Tips to Create a Sleek MVP ” can help you with this.

6b. IT architecture

Choose an architecture pattern that suits your functional and non-functional requirements and delivers the best user experience without a software glitch. There are several popular architecture patterns, e.g.:

• Layered (n-tier);
• Event-driven;
• Microkernel;
• Microservices;
• Space-based.

You can use our guide “ Large Enterprise Java Projects Architecture ” to make the right choice.

6c. Mitigating the application security risks

You ought to proactively mitigate the application security risks since this is crucial for the long-term success of your project. The key application security risks are as follows:

• Broken authentication;
• Sensitive data breach and exposure;
• XML external entities (XXE);
• Broken access control;
• Security misconfiguration;
• Cross-site scripting (XSS);
• Insecure deserialization;
• Using components with known vulnerabilities;
• Insufficient logging/monitoring.

Read the “ Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP) Top 10 Application Security Risks ” report for insights on mitigating these risks.

6d. “Managed Cloud Services” (MCS)

Plan to utilize managed cloud services (MCS) smartly so that you can focus on development instead of infrastructure management.

If you are developing a web app, then you should use a Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) platform since it offers many benefits, e.g.:

• PaaS platforms like AWS Elastic Beanstalk manage the cloud infrastructure, networking, operating system (OS), middleware, and runtime environment. You can concentrate on coding.
• You can easily integrate databases and APIs when using a PaaS platform.
• Reputed PaaS platforms offer robust DevOps tools and auto-scaling solutions.

Read our guide “ 10 Top PaaS Providers ” for more insights.

On the other hand, if you are developing a mobile app, then use a Mobile-Backend-as-a-Service (MBaaS) platform like AWS Amplify . The following advantages make it a smart move:

• MBaaS providers manage the cloud infrastructure and persistent storage, therefore, you don’t need to develop and manage the mobile backend.
• You will be able to scale your mobile app easily, moreover, you will find it easy to implement features like user management and push notifications.
• MBaaS platforms enable you to integrate APIs easily.

I have explained their advantages in “ How to choose the best Mobile Backend as a Service (MBaaS)? ”.

6e. Designing APIs

You will likely design APIs as part of your project, and you should keep the long-term success of your app in mind while doing so. While you might consider RESTful APIs, I recommend that you use GraphQL instead of REST (Representational State Transfer).

With RESTful APIs, you call an API endpoint to receive all data in it. On the other hand, GraphQL is a query language, therefore, you can specify the exact data elements you need. This has several advantages, e.g.:

• With REST, if you need more data than what the API endpoint contains, then you need to make more API calls. This is called “under-fetching”. You can avoid this with GraphQL since you can query the exact data elements you need.
• On the other hand, if you need less data than what the RESTful API endpoint can send, then you receive unnecessary data. This is called “over-fetching” and you can avoid it with the query capabilities of GraphQL.
• When using REST, you would design the API endpoint in line with the front-end view. If you change the view, then you would also need to modify the API. This slows down the front-end iterations, however, you can avoid this with the query capabilities of GraphQL.

Read “ REST vs. GraphQL ” for more insights.

6f. Choosing the right technology stack

Choosing the right technology stack improves your chances of turning around a project troubled by a software bug. The choice of technology stack will depend on the kind of project, e.g.:

• JavaScript will be a better bet for a web development project.
• If you are developing mobile apps, then you might want to create native apps since they deliver the best user experience. You should then use Kotlin for native Android development and Swift for native iOS development.
• PostgreSQL is a robust “Relational Database Management System” (RDBMS), whereas MongoDB is a popular option for NoSQL databases.

We, at DevTeam.Space, have the right expertise for choosing the appropriate technology stack, as I have explained in “ How to create a minimum viable product for your enterprise company? ”.

7. Execute the turnaround plan and track its progress

Now that you have come up with a pragmatic plan to turn the troubled project around, it’s time for execution. Use the appropriate PM techniques and tools to manage the execution.

We, at DevTeam., have AI-powered Agile processes , which are highly suited to turn troubled projects around. Our data-driven real-time dashboard helps clients track the progress of the project, as I have explained in “ How a real-time dashboard can revolutionize your eSports development process? ”.

How About Preventing Your Project From Failing?

This article focused on helping you turn around troubled projects. However, it is always better to prevent projects from failing in the first place by avoiding software bugs in the development and software testing phases.

The key to this is choosing a trustworthy and competent software development company for your projects. Our guide “ How to find the best software development company ?” can help you with this.

If you want to ensure project success, then get in touch with DevTeam.Space . Our community of top developers has years of experience turning around failing projects.

They are trained in our unique software project management process. Moreover, we match developers for your project according to experience in your required industry so that they perfectly understand your business needs.

Once you have brought us up to speed and allowed us to analyze your software project, we outline a reliable timeframe to undo the unrealistic expectations given to you by your past development team.

Within no time, we have helped you turn things around and have you back on course to completing a successful project.

Frequently Asked Questions on Learnings From Failed Software Projects’ Case Studies

Missed deadlines, broken promises, poor communication, and software errors are all examples of poor developers. If you have just fired your bad developer and need an experienced software development company to turn your project around, then contact DevTeam.Space.

The top software failures, such as of Bangladesh bank system show that poor management and bad developers are two main reasons for software development failures. Other reasons assessed from failed software projects’ case studies include unsuitable infrastructure, poor code quality where hackers take advantage of a software flaw, subpar marketing, and a badly chosen software development methodology.

DevTeam.Space is a company with lots of experience in saving failing projects. By first establishing the cause of the problem (often bad developers), DevTeam.Space will quickly implement the necessary changes to turn the project around in no time.

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Founder of DevTeam.Space

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Alexey is the founder of DevTeam.Space. He is award nominee among TOP 26 mentors of FI's 'Global Startup Mentor Awards'.

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Project Failure Case Studies

04 Nov Project Failure Case Studies

When a project has failed to deliver on its promises, it’s important to look at the hard data behind the project and the people working on it if lessons are to be learned from the mistakes made and those mistakes are not repeated.

All business analysts and project managers know that the only way to progress and have more project success in the future, is to learn from the mistakes of the past. But knowing and doing in the heat of a complex project and moreover, one that is not going to plan, are two different things. (PM360Consulting)

Henrico Dolfing research on  project failures and write case studies about them because it is a great way (for both of us) to learn from others’ mistakes.

>  Case Study 13: Vodafone’s £59 Million Customer Relationship Disaster

>  Case Study 12: Lidl’s €500 Million SAP Debacle

4 Lessons Learned from the Weirdest Cases of Project Failure

In our previous article in this series, we introduced you to lessons learned from top project failures in construction . But we also want to highlight the weirdest cases of project failure. We shouldn’t forget what can stall our projects, and we should be prepared for anything.

Lesson #1: You never know what will stand in the way

David Millward, a contributor to The Telegraph, recently reported that the stakeholders of a flagship German rail project, Stuttgart 21, have been plagued by yet another project controversy. It turns out that two endangered species of lizard were found on the potential construction site, delaying the prestigious $7.06 billion rail project in southern Germany. The plan was to build the Intercity Express line, a high-speed 35-mile line between Ulm and Stuttgart. But construction was put on hold the moment experts found out that the land on which the line was to be built is also the habitat for thousands of sand and wall lizards, both protected by European Union environmental law. This surprise is expected to cost Deutsche Bahn $16.3 million – this cost will go to relocating the species to a safe and appropriate place some miles away that will be conditioned as their habitat.

Kate Connolly from The Guardian points out that the “costs involved cover the rescue teams, transporting the lizards, planning their new habitats and monitoring their wellbeing.” The stakeholders in this project have already lost 18 months from their schedule, and it remains unknown how much longer they’re going to wait.

Read More:  What Questions Await You at the PM Door?

This eye-opening project delay once again proves that in project management we’re sometimes unable to predict uncertainties. Reality dictates the rules. It speaks to us in different forms of project delays and failures, challenges our budgets, and shifts our destinations. Reality can reach us in the form of cute, rare lizards found at the construction site and seemingly mock us. The lesson learned from this particular case is that reality can always surprise you. Albert Einstein used to say that reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one. Do you agree?

Lesson #2: An unlimited budget isn’t a silver bullet

In 2013, the world saw a presentation of the first augmented reality glasses, enabling users to surf the internet with a wearable optical display. Most likely, you’ve heard of this famous Google Glass project – and perhaps considered Google Glass truly expensive for a pair of glasses. 10,000 Glass units were sold in 2012 to professionals, explorers, and celebrities to test and later, in the fall of 2013, Google launched a referral program so people who already owned them could invite their friends. Google repeated the same campaign a few times and reached a broader audience of possibly one million. Expectedly or not, the sales then stopped less than two years after the release. What happened to this project with an unlimited budget and a cost-effective idea? Analyzing why the Google Glass project went downhill, Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez, a CIO contributor, points out that the project lacked many fundamentals despite its unlimited budget. The mavens behind Google Glass concentrated on high-end features but overlooked the need to report on the product’s benefits. In people’s eyes, Google Glass was a fuzzy concept without a definite launch date, clear benefits, or compelling use cases.

Read More:  13 Methods to Forecast, Analyze, and Solve Problems .

The failure of this project leads us to assume that there are many other things to consider apart from designing a technically interesting product. In fact, presenting that product to the target audience as a life-changing and transformational experience would be a plus. The Google Glass project lacked a proper business case. Google Glass never became a final product because it had the wrong marketing focus and because Google was overly optimistic about its technical appeal. Expecting an audience to evaluate benefits for themselves proved not to be a sound idea.

Lesson #3: One mistake in project orchestration is fatal

Mega projects are even more threatened by various factors. The release date of the Airbus A380 “superjumbo,” the world’s largest passenger airliner, was constantly postponed because management kept blundering. But what was the weirdest moment in this case? The development of the aircraft was a joint effort of four countries with teams spread across 16 sites, which resulted in a lack of supervision. It turned out that two different versions of the Aided Design CAD software were used to design electrical wires, cables, and connectors. The International Project Leadership Academy reported that German and Spanish designers had used one version of software (CATIA version 4), while British and French teams had upgraded to version 5. In the end, their designs were incompatible, and wires appeared too short to fit.

As a result, when it came time to install hundreds of miles of wiring cables into the fuselage of the aircraft in Toulouse, they failed to fit. Airbus was then left with no choice but to halt production, postpone deliveries of the aircraft for two years, and redesign the wiring system. The cost, expected to exceed $6 billion, would place the program over two years behind schedule. It was not until October 15, 2007 that the first aircraft was delivered to Singapore Airlines. – Global Project Strategy .

The entire world observed how a feat of engineering and construction transformed into a landmark project failure because management couldn’t make proper software configurations and decisions were made at a maddeningly slow pace. Scheduled for delivery in 2006, the project kept facing new looming deadlines. Puzzling over the true reason why culturally diverse teams continuously went astray, researchers concluded that there were a bunch of fateful decisions that dragged the A380 down . All of them boiled down to poor project coordination and lack of support from senior management. The teams were more reactive than proactive because their leaders overlooked the fact that it’s easier to set off with a list of priorities. Each flaw signalled the absence of initiative by senior management and too much weight being placed on employees’ shoulders.

Lesson #4: Don’t speak too soon

Don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched. This idiom is relevant when it comes to new projects and the buzz over them in the media. Let’s clarify the analogy. Projects become famous before they’re actually completed. After 13 years of waiting, the citizens of Hamburg were finally introduced to a new concert hall, the Elbphilharmonie .

I t’s no secret that the way to a construction of the Elbphilharmonie in a form of a big glass mountain was beset by obstacles. It was designed by Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron and was promised to be built by 2010, but the project was overdue for seven years and went ten times over the expected budget of €77 million. Both architects repeatedly indicated they were close to career failure because expectations were too high. The main cause of the delay and cost escalations were parliamentary disputes, conflicts between the architects, an over-optimistic budget, and the big dreams of designers who revealed a seductive design that wound up costing more effort and money than anybody had thought. The Guardian even called this project “ a national embarrassment .”

Another project that disappointed the public recently is Amazon Go grocery . Amazon Go was anticipated to be the first smart cashierless store in the world, but its opening was postponed because of technical glitches. It turned out that the machine learning algorithms couldn’t work properly if there were more than twenty shoppers in a store. In addition, the system had trouble tracking items that were moved from their place on the shelf according to Avery Hartmans of Business Insider . Last December, Amazon stakeholders showed the public a video of how Amazon Go was supposed to work. But for the time being, it’s a far cry from reality.

Are you satisfied with your team’s performance? Are your projects meeting deadlines? Does your current PM system give you up-to-date information so you can make appropriate decisions?  Sign up below for a live demonstration of Epicflow to learn how to finish your projects on time, find the perfect priorities, and improve your team’s performance based on real-time data.

We hope these lessons will help you in project planning. Have you heard about other weird cases of project failure? If so, share them with us in the comments.

Great, inspiring and learnfull article. Thank you.

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