How to Make Your Project Fail

Too many control projects fail to meet their cost or schedule targets, result in installed controls that fail to perform up to expectations, or simply leave the customer dissatisfied. When this happens the blame is usually placed on difficult technology, software and hardware performance issues, impossible customers, late changes, incompetent engineering organizations, or unreasonable cost and schedule targets. However, most project failures are really failures of project management to recognize and deal with the issues.

No project management effort can enable a project to be done for less money or in less time than is possible. But good project management can recognize staffing, technology, communication, cost, and schedule problems early and deal with them objectively while there is still an opportunity for good solutions. Good management plans for nearly all types of problems before they occur. Overall, good project management can deliver the project that is promised.

With more and more control projects being done lump sum (which shifts the cost risk to the engineering organization) and more done standalone rather than part of a larger, multi-discipline project (which eliminates the possibility of diluting control cost overruns), the pressure to deliver on commitments has increased substantially.

Many engineering organizations have seen much of their control project business change from reimbursable to lump sum only in the past few years; and they are still trying to adjust. Many industrial organization "customers" also are learning how to work under the competitive lump-sum concept.

Control projects are different from other types of projects. An earlier article ["What's So Special About Process Control Projects?" CONTROL--March '03, p43] covered some of those differences. However, like all projects, control projects require knowledge of basic project management tasks.

Control engineers who have held lead roles for years have learned how to do projects, possibly by trial and error, but many still need improvement. Less experienced engineers often have little clue as to the tasks necessary to lead a project. Unfortunately, little information has been published specifically on the management of control projects. Some of the best information is in short courses such as the one offered by ISA (www.isa.org).

Over years of experience in managing projects, I've devised a list of sure-fire methods to kill a control project. Doing even one of the things on the accompanying top 10 list (Table I) can cripple a project; doing several almost guarantees failure.

This list focuses on project and project management tasks and lifecycles rather than the equally important area of general management skills and techniques: things like leadership skills, relationship skills, team-building, conflict management, motivation, meeting facilitation, decision-making, and communications. These general management skills are very important, and lead control engineers should learn all they can about these areas using the books, articles, and short courses that deal with them.