Top 7 Delivery problems in IT Projects
1. Not Enough time
Whether it’s a misunderstanding of the
complexity of computer system designs or some other reason, many times
little time is devoted to gathering the necessary data. Because this is
one of the first steps in the process, when adequate time isn’t given to
data collection, everything else suffers.
Likewise, enough time is rarely allotted
to creating a good design. While the planning stage may not offer the
excitement that development does, it is equally, if not more, important.
Lack of planning in the design phase almost always leads to ongoing
changes during the development phase. When this happens, budget dollars
and man-hours are eaten away.
2. Open the lines of Communication
It sounds like a cliché, but
communication is absolutely vital to the success of any project. The
communication between the development team and the users, and also the
communication inside the development team must be crystal clear. Does
everyone understand you? Do they know exactly what’s expected of them or
have you assumed they know? Do they communicate well with each other?
With users? With other departments?
3. Testing a new program in Production Server
Testing in the production server leads
to a breach of security, which can lead to “immediate” release without
testing which can ultimately disrupt the production environment.
4. Inadequate Testing
Experience and studies show that testing
is almost always pushed to the end of the development cycle. Since the
development is usually bad, the testers run out of time. The result?
Running over schedule and over budget. Not to mention the release of an
inadequate product.
5. Pressing the button too tight
When you have unrealistic goals for a
project’s budget to start with, chaos is bound to set in. Departments
fall behind, resources are slow to arrive, and – because of budget
constraints – the project, once again, runs off the road.
6. Never/Rarely checking the progress of the project
As the project goes along, the
unexpected happens. Various people implement their ideas as to how to
fix these challenges and – when launch day comes – you’re surprised with
an entire list of challenges that need your immediate attention.
7. Not reviewing existing standards
Do most or all of your projects run late
and over budget? Do you keep the same standards in place time after
time? How’s that working for you? If you keep doing what you’re doing,
you’ll keep getting what you get. Let’s face it, things change, and if
you want to keep pace, you have to change, too.
