Here's how you can analyze and understand the root causes of failure as a program manager.

It would be good to list down typical causes for failure side by side as you ask why multiple times. Lack of understanding of customer priorities, poor sizing, poor planning, not being able to negotiate, and many such typical reasons can serve as a ready reckoner, in the root cause analysis

Maintain Objectivity: Avoid assigning blame and focus on identifying systemic issues and opportunities for improvement. Encourage Open Communication: Create a safe space for team members to share their perspectives and concerns without fear of repercussions. Promote a Culture of Learning: Foster a culture that embraces learning from mistakes and continuously seeks improvement.

Understand the Problem: Clearly define what went wrong, e.g. missing deadlines or going over budget. Collect Information: Gather data and feedback from team members & stakeholders about what happened. Find Possible Reasons: Brainstorm reasons why the failure occurred, considering things like communication issues or lack of resources. Figure Out What Matters Most: Decide which reasons are most likely and had the biggest impact on the failure. Check Your Ideas: Make sure your reasons make sense by talking to people involved. Make a Plan: bring specific actions to fix the root cause, like improving communication or adding resources. Put Your Plan into Action: Make the changes and keep an eye on how well they work. Make adjustments if needed.

While finding the root cause, start from scratch. Please refrain from having any preconceived notion about the root cause. This will help in zeroing in on the exact causes using techniques either fish bone diagram or 5 whys or any other technique comfortable. Erasing preconceived notion and involving all stakeholders perspective adds value in this RCA process

In my experience, failure has different levels and sequences in a program cycle. root causes can be highlighted after the closure of a program cycle and mitigated if there is a re-start of the same program. Yet, all the root cause analysis tools are only as effective as extracting core lessons learned and reporting them to the program's senior leadership for mitigation. not to be confused with risk mitigation as sometimes failure happens to external elements or " Force-Majeure". in addition, root causes of failure can be linked to financial, technical, and governance. but understanding these failures in a data-driven mindset is crucial to have a comprehensive view of the root causes of these failures and assessments.

Collect data on the aspects of the program that have failed. This may involve reviewing project documentation, conducting interviews with team members and stakeholders, analyzing performance metrics, and examining any available reports or post-mortems: 1. Collect quantitative and qualitative data from project reports, metrics, and stakeholder interviews. 2. Ensure a comprehensive view of what happened and identify patterns or discrepancies. 3. Approach without bias to reflect the true nature of the program's performance.

Your root cause analysis should include not just the failures involved, however the data to support your analysis. Be sure the data you are collecting comes from reliable data sources. Validate data. Use SIPOC. I would advise understanding if the failure is a compliance concern as well. Take a comprehensive approach. The programs overall performance should be your focus. Break things down by outcomes. Look for patterns and signals in the data. Remember a thorough analysis of the failure will be the foundation for a meaningful analysis. Be open minded and remember even if you’re the expert be prepared to learn from the data and the failure. Failure is not the opposite of success, it’s part of the process. - Coach Kaizen Kenny

Gathering data is the first step towards finding the RCA of a problem. Also, make sure that you carefully analyse the data-sets and then choose the right one. It's good to often use the Test and learn approach by running experiments and analysing the data patterns and insights.

Diverse Sources: Collect both quantitative and qualitative data from varied sources like reports and interviews. Unbiased Collection: Approach data gathering without preconceptions to ensure accuracy. Pattern Recognition: Analyze data to identify trends and anomalies. Comprehensive Overview: Use the data for a holistic understanding of issues. Gathering data is like assembling pieces of a puzzle. Each piece (data point) helps form a complete picture of the situation, revealing what went wrong. Effective data collection is key to understanding failures and crafting precise solutions.

Collect data related to the failure from all available sources. This includes project documentation, performance metrics, communication logs, and team feedback. Quantitative data will help in identifying patterns, while qualitative data will provide context.

Ensuring genuine team engagement during retrospectives is vital for identifying and addressing root causes of program management failures. To achieve this, fostering a culture where team members feel comfortable providing unfiltered feedback without fear of repercussions is imperative. Encouraging open and honest communication from team leads can set the tone for others to follow suit. Additionally, implementing anonymous feedback mechanisms can further promote transparency and minimize concerns about backlash. Ultimately, prioritizing and establishing a structured process for retrospectives can enable teams to provide clear unfiltered data to effectively identify and address underlying issues.

I agreed for that, to seeking for reasons of failure. To carry out team collaboration is the best way to think with loud voices. Your team will be so motivated if you share responsibility with them . You will inspire them to do their best to provide you with the max to let you task easily.

This is a must! Be inclusive and transparent in your an analysis process. Taking the diverse perspectives can uncover insights that one expert alone will miss. Create an open and honest culture of trust and transparency. This will create a culture where people feel safe to speak up, share ideas, and experiences. This will open up our minds and deepen our understanding of the challenges we face. You will build the foundation of shared responsibility, continuous learning, and continuous improvement. Together is better

This is where knowing the process comes into play. If you know the process you know what stakeholders are involved. In manufacturing I like going down to the production floor and talking with Operators or Technicians that are intimately familiar with the process. I work my way up from there and gather information from statements and piece things together. I like to put all of this in an A3 format and get people in a room to go thru the data and get rid of outliers right from the start.

I use one simple tool, know by 3 different names. Ishikawa diagram, Fishbone diagram, Cause & Effect Diagram. Never failed in over 50 years.

As an experienced program manager, you will know which major problems arise that will lead to failure, and which minor problems arise that can be resolved without leading to failure. This completely depends on the context and importance of each specific issue that only the program manager knows. Thus, when reviewing the process, managers should only focus on important problems that, if they arise, lead to failure, rather than smaller problems.

Easy way to look at this is to spin up a Confluence Whiteboard, draw out your process, then use colour dots / post-it notes to flag: - What HELPED us - What HINDERED/HURT us You will quickly see where you need to double down and where you need to make improvements.

It's really important to take a close look at how things were done during the program. Check out the workflows, how we communicated, and how decisions were made. Did we follow the processes properly? Were they even the right fit for what we needed? Sometimes, the issue is just that our methods are outdated or too rigid, and we might need to shake things up a bit. Is the process current? Is the process compliant, is it measured, is it continuously improved, Do you have systems approach to track and monitor our programs performance. Build in your quality control system for your program.

Examine the project management processes and methodologies in place. Check for any deviations from established protocols, inadequacies in project planning, or execution. This review should also consider whether the processes in place were appropriate for the project scope and complexity.

At Atlassian we often document decisions using the DACI method - Driver, Approver, Contributors, and Informed. Because it documents the decision factors, those involved, the options proposed, and the rationale for making the decision it is relatively easy to look back at your decision making process with the benefit of hindsight to see where you might have gone wrong in your decision making process, such as: - Incorrect weighting of decision making factors - Missing contributors / poor consultation - Missing data - Biasing one option (unfairly) - Optimising an outcome for a team rather than the whole organisation (bias) - Overlooking risks / tricky parts of the problem

I always keep them in the program and master registers. Always feeding them through the delivery team as part of lessons learned etc.

Look closely at the key decisions made during the project lifecycle. Evaluate these decisions to understand if they were based on sound judgment and adequate information. This could involve revisiting the decision-making processes and the criteria used for major project milestones.

Making a decision on a complex issue is not easy. Of course, it is necessary to collect complete data about the problem and information from the parties involved in the problem. You must firmly grasp the legal regulations and the right goals to solve the problem. During the process of evaluation and judgment, it is necessary to look at the problem objectively. From there, we can make the best decision.

Microsoft has fostered a company culture centered around a "learn-it-all" mentality. This growth mindset, as opposed to a fixed mindset where intelligence is seen as static, emphasizes continuous learning and development. Employees are encouraged to embrace challenges, view mistakes as stepping stones, and actively seek out new knowledge. This fosters an environment of curiosity and innovation, where employees are empowered to take risks and learn from experience. Microsoft further fuels this culture by offering a variety of learning resources, including internal programs and access to platforms like LinkedIn Learning. By prioritizing continuous learning for its workforce, Microsoft ensures its employees have the skills and knowledge.

Implement a mechanism for learning from failures. This involves not only documenting lessons learned but also integrating these lessons into future project plans and processes. Encourage a culture where learning from failure is valued as a means to improve future performance.

Absolutely! Like in the military, debriefing failures is key to success. As program managers, we can use a similar approach. Analyze the "mission," aka project goals. Gather intel - talk to stakeholders, review data. Then, use the "Five Whys" - ask "why" repeatedly to peel back layers and find the root cause. Was it a communication breakdown (faulty intel)? Unforeseen obstacles (enemy ambush)? By learning from these "battles," we can adapt strategies and continuously improve future "campaigns" (programs).

Program management as life is frought with its own success & failures. Key is how to capture the biggest learnings from our fails. - the post program closure 'postmortems' will help us unearth issues methodically -analyzing data collected during the execution is gonna a play a major role in quantitative analysis - acknowledge equal weightage, if not more, to subjective feedbacks from team,stakeholders et al -be open to observations and critical feedback in terms of team morale, engagement, clarity -collate and analyze both quantitative and quantitative observations. Draw your inferences -Communication with your program sponsor, steerco on these learnings and chart an action plan and/or share learnings.

Recognizing project failure in project management can be difficult due to several factors intertwined with organizational culture: 1. Sunk Cost: Resources have already been poured into the project, creating pressure to see it through even if it's off track. 2. Confirmation Bias: Project managers and stakeholders may focus on positive information while overlooking red flags. 3. Optimism Bias: A tendency to underestimate challenges and overestimate success, leading to delayed decisions about course correction. These biases are often amplified by organizational culture. Without open communication and a culture that embraces learning from mistakes, project failures can linger, wasting resources and hindering potential for success.

As a Program Manager, let's not wait until the project/program concludes to understand and analyze failures. This feedback loop needs to be concise, occurring at each phase of the process, allowing for early identification of issues and proactive intervention before they escalate. While the specific approach may vary from project to project or program to program, the fundamental process remains the same: gathering data, conducting analysis, and implementing corrective actions. Adopting a strategy of collecting data as it occurs and promptly devising a plan to address any failures is the approach everyone should embrace. This proactive stance will minimize the occurrence of failures and significantly contribute to the success of the program.