In the world of projects, we constantly struggle for success and one of the longest, most difficult, and time consuming battles we face in that struggle is defining what we mean by "success."
Over many decades managing a wildly diverse collection of projects and project types for clients large and small, one way of defining what success means has proven most useful. It can be described in the form of an equation.
Success = Results - Expectations
Results (functional, non-functional, quality, and more) and expectations (financial, technical, political, etc) are so important that, in our human attempt to "manage," we try to define them in greatest detail as the first step in starting a project. We "set them in stone" and then expect great kudos when we achieve them. But, we are fully human, and when that approach fails to achieve success and those kudos never appear, we always ask, "Why?"
The idea that clients, customers and users can know everything about what they need 6-9 months before they get their hands on it is simply a fallacy for most businesses. On the contrary, it is the act of getting their hands on it that defines and refines those needs.
So, the way to success lies not in fallacy or fantasy but in reality... Putting real, working pieces of the project in the hands of users constantly and adapting based on their continuous feedback. Expectations and results, therefore, are aligned in both an incremental and iterative manner throughout the project.
Posted by: William W. (Woody) Williams
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