The End Is Not the Point. The Value Is. We love to see the end of a project. Go-live is one of the most important dates in any project. It is discussed in the business case, in the steering committee, in the corridor and in every update to the executive. Everyone...
We Are Shown What We Want to See People follow the path of least friction, mental energy and hassle. That is not a criticism. It is how most of us get through a working day. We read the room, we work out what is expected, and we give it. Not because we are dishonest,...
Complex Problems Don't Need Complex Solutions Complex problems don't have complex solutions. Solutions are simple. Or rather, they must be simple to be effective. That runs against instinct. When a problem is large, tangled and has been around for years, we assume the...
The Price of Speed Is Always Paid. The Question Is by Whom. "ERP projects can be delivered within months." Most executives have heard this line. It usually comes from a vendor presentation or an implementation partner's proposal, and sometimes from a peer who says...
Every Role in a Project Answers a Different Question Most project structures look the same on paper. A box at the top, a few boxes underneath, and a row of workstreams at the bottom. We have all seen the chart. Most of us have sat inside one. What we see less often is...
ROI Measures One Thing. Success Is Many Things. Ask an organisation how it knows its ERP worked, and the answer usually arrives as a number. Return on investment. It's a fair place to start. But it's only a place to start, and it's worth walking through, one step at a...
The Customer Who Pays Isn't Always the Customer Who Matters Every disaster in service and delivery starts the same way: someone picked the wrong customer. A doctor who prescribes based on what a pharmaceutical company favours, rather than what the patient actually...
Engagement Isn't a Communication Problem. It's an Exchange Problem. Every technology program has the same complaint eventually: business stakeholders won't engage. Steering committees where the sponsor skims their phone. Status meetings attended by a deputy who...