What do you do if your client's expectations are unrealistic in project management?

Imagine you're driving a car with your client. They want to reach a destination within an hour, but the traffic is heavy. Instead of arguing or getting angry, you acknowledge their expectation, explain the situation, and work together to find an alternative route or adjust the timeline.

When faced with unrealistic client expectations in project management, it's essential to address the situation promptly and effectively. First, engage in open and transparent communication with the client to understand their expectations fully. Then, diplomatically manage their expectations by setting realistic goals and timelines based on the project's scope and constraints. Provide clear explanations and offer alternative solutions or compromises where necessary to align expectations with project realities while maintaining a positive client relationship.

Having transparency in the client relationship can go a long way to building trust and creating realistic timelines and expectations. Clients expect a lot and usually a faster than possible turnaround. Balancing quality and high standards with expectations for deadlines can be sufficiently controlled by clear and direct communication. Proactively reinforcing the benefits to a client as to some common obstacles throughout the design process can create a strong understanding. Anticipating these design obstacles before the process begins sets a trusting tone and calms your clients fears about uncertain design circumstances.

In my experience, having worked as an architect earlier in my career, many clients have unrealistic expectations. It is very difficult to express this to them without turning them off to your advice. Often they prefer to be told want they want to hear. But doing this of course would be a terrible disservice to them, and would most definitely lead to problems later in the project. The only option that you have as a designer is to do your best to educate the client on your own work processes. In this way you are building trust with the client which is very important.

The first thing you should do when negotiating a new project is, before all burocracy, payments, etc... Is establish whether you can do the job or not. And in order to do that, you need to talk with them about scope and budget. You need to understand their needs and they need to understand the limitations of what they can afford and your process, above all. They need to be on board with your style, your process, your communication requirements. I never start any project without talking with clients about it. Sometimes, it means I'm not the right person for the job, and it's ok. It saves everybody's time and increase your reputation as an honest and professional person.

When we find ourselves as managers of a design project with higher expectations that are not realistic and may possibly bring problems to the project, our responsibility is to explain, expose, and bring them to light. This is sometimes not done for fear of annoying, offending, or contradicting the client. But from my experience, it's better to identify problems in the early stages than in the final ones. Thus, whenever there is a conflict, setting boundaries and clearly indicating what is outside and what is inside is fundamental.