Is this not true in project also. I am often challenged by people, business processes, expectations, non performance, attitudes…just to mention a few ..when running a project. To be honest, these are things I really could do without, but still they are part of running projects. The success of a project lies not in the fact that we do not have these challenges, but more oftentimes in the manner in which we address the challenges we do have.
On the other hand I tend to want stuff that I really do not need. We look at projects and focus on the 80% that really delivers the 20% of value. If we plan properly before we start we should realize that some bells and whistles can really be dropped. Getting the priority things addressed first would remove a lot of pressure from the team and ensure that value to the client is produced early in the development life cycle. The success of a project therefor also lies in getting the balance right between what I want and what I truly need. This balance talks to performances optimization and in more layman’s terms being able to do more with less.
So this seemingly paradoxical statements both seems to be building blocks towards project success. It is therefore necessary that we are consciously mindful that we will get what we do not need, and so must take care how we handle these unwelcome guests to our projects. On the other hand we will want things for ourselves, our teams and our clients, that we can do without and so should not place an unnecessary burden on the delivery team and so jeopardize the outcome of the entire project.
Written By: Lizette Venter
