Why Resolutions Fail

Introduction

We have been engaging in resolutions for much of our history, when and how has varied with the calendars.

But it has now become the normal to resolve to do better in the new year.

This is a convenient transition time – “Out with the old and in with the new”.

However, like may rituals, they are, well, rituals.

They are often vague and to be done “next year”.

That leaves plenty of wiggle room, and by March most are forgotten.

Today 31st December I gave my final presentation of the year,” Why Projects Fail”, to a group of Professional Engineers.

Given the date, what I realized was that much of the material from the presentation can equally be directed towards our New Year Resolutions.

Let’s look at that by first outlining project success.

Defining Project Success

To determine if a project has failed one must first define success.

I view the concept of project success from three aspects:

Project Management Success

For this we can use the standard metrics of:

  • On Time.
  • On Budget.
  • On Scope.
  • Meets quality standards.

But that is not the end of the story.

Functional Success

  • Does it work?
  • Is it used?
  • Is it liked?

Of course it works, but does it work as the end user intended or desires?

If not, it may simply be set aside and left to wither.

If it works and is used surely it is liked. Not necessarily, the end user may have no alternative.

Business Success

  • Is it sustainable?
  • Does it enhance your reputation?
  • Have you achieved the desired ROI?

Despite being successful in the first two aspects, the deliverable may prove unsustainable, damaging your reputation and fail to produce the planned returns.

Causes of Project Failure

I chose four potential reasons for failure, from the countless possible reasons.

  1. Poor Communication
  2. Lack of strategic alignment
  3. Scope creep
  4. Poor risk management

So! What does all that have to do with reflection and New Year Resolutions?

Time frame

Firstly, should we be planning great and grandiose things for “2025”?

Well; Yes!

But do we have the timescale wrong?

I am a great believer in Moran and Lennington’s 12 Week Year.

They argue that planning for a year is too long and allows too much wiggle room. By June we are so far behind that we simply give up.

But if you have a 12-week year you have a short enough timeframe to ensure focus.  (That is 12 weeks to execute with a week 13 to plan the next 12-week year).

In addition, I have borrowed from Agile to structure my personal planning.

I divide the 12 weeks into three phases of two 2-week sprints.

With daily review and a sprint retrospective, to keep on track.

Yes, we may have grandiose ideas, but what are the Epics and Stories, in the backlog, and what are the deliverables for the first sprint?

Epics and Stories

How can we use the ideas from the presentation to develop the backlog?

Whatever our resolution the first questions are:

  • What level of scope do we need?
  • What level of Quality do we need
  • Can we afford the cost? ($)
  • Can we afford the time?
  • Communicate with the other stakeholders (Significant other/ Family; can they live with it?)
  • Is the resolution aligned with our strategic values? (What are your strategic values? Think about it)

Next Look at functionality

  • Will it work? (During your retrospective ask if something similar worked last cycle?)
  • Will you use it? (During your retrospective ask if you used something similar last cycle.)
  • Will you like it or like doing it? (We all have grandiose ideas, but if our hearts are not in them, we are unlikely to stick to it.)
  • Communicate with other stakeholders and a mentor.
  • Assess the risks, are they justified?
  • What mitigation and/or contingency do you have in place?   
  • Have you assessed the scope correctly?

Next look at business or personal success

  • Is it sustainable (The classic example is weight loss – many people have great success only to gain it all back again)(Based on the cost, scope and time requirements in (1) are they sustainable over a long period of time?)
  • Does it enhance your reputation? (If not, is it still worth the cost?)
  • Will it really deliver the ROI you expect? (Be rigorous)
  • Assess the risks, are they justified?
  • What mitigation and/or contingency do you have in place?
  • Have you assessed the scope correctly?

Once you have analyzed your resolutions and determined the practicality

Determine your backlog using some form of user story mapping and then start populating your first sprint

Conclusion

As project managers we spend a lot of time planning and monitoring our professional life, but we do not always use the same rigor in our personal life.

A quick internet search (and I accept it is not scientific) points to the fact that most resolutions are abandoned within the first few months and only a small percentage are realized.

This probably relates to the wide-open nature of the resolutions – “Lose weight in 2025

But if we use more rigor by:

  • Clearly defining scope
  • Analyzing Risk
  • Communicating with stakeholders
  • Breaking it down into stories
  • Using sprints

Wishing you all a Happy and Prosperous New Year, with many successful resolutions.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

  • The 12 Week Year – Brian P. Moran and Michael Lennington.
  • User Story Mapping – Jeff Patton

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