Project History: 10 Warning Signs

Starting the journey - The real world challenge: 

10 Project Warning Signs to Look out for

1. No business case or budget approved
2. No clear and strong sponsorship from senior management in IT and/or from the business
3. More than one previous PM involved in running the project
4. Limited or no handover documentation and the previous PM is now on another project
5. Vendor Contracts not signed off and no LOI (letter of intent) in place.
6. Approval to implement has previously been refused. Sure sign that the previous PM had got things seriously wrong eg. A key dependency missed, requirements not fully gathered or other planning inaccuracies.
7. Recent senior management changes
8. A long gap between when the project was halted and you beginning your role as PM
9. Budget not verified properly and looks light when compared to the deliverables and scope
10. A rift between the business and IS (IT) which could be to do with the project drivers, the benefits, scope or availability of downtime to carry out the work. This can also be seen by comparing the business calendar with other project calendars or looking at the Ops team calendar / their pipeline of work.

Author: Hassib Mirza