Projects get stuck despite good planning
It's probably happened to you before: the project plan has been carefully drawn up, the milestones are clear and everyone agrees. However, over time the project is progressing more and more slowlyDecisions are postponed, coordination takes increasingly more time, and the feeling of control… disappears.
👉 How is that possible? How can a project run late despite rock-solid planning?
⬇️ An example makes this clear ⬇️
An IT implementation is underway at a medium-sized bank. The technical design is rock solid, the supplier is reliable, and there's a generous budget. Yet, the project is delayed by more than four months! The planning is constantly being adjusted, but it doesn’t solve anything.
Only after a thorough evaluation will the real cause emerge. The two departments working on the project have completely different visions of what the new system should do. This tension was palpable from day 1, but no one expressed it. So the planning was never the problem, it was the conflicting visions.
Unspoken expectations and conflicting visions are a common problem in projects that stall. Does such a faltering schedule mean nothing at all? Absolutely! It could definitely be a sign that something is wrong beneath the surface.
Why projects fail: the causes lie beneath the surface
Let's delve into that "below the surface." If you look at why projects fail, you'll often find one of the following reasons. These are usually not in the tool itself, but in daily actions.
These are the common causes of project failure ⬇️
❌ Unclear roles and expectations. Who ultimately decides? Who maintains oversight? These questions often remain unanswered until something goes wrong.
❌ Implicit assumptions about responsibility. “Someone will pick it up” in practice often means that no one will pick it up.
❌ Interests that are not expressed. Different stakeholders have different definitions of success, but they just don't say it out loud.
❌ Behavior that changes under pressure. On paper and in quiet times, everything seems fine. But nine times out of ten, behavior changes under time pressure or political tension.
And no, these factors are often not included in the project plan, precisely because they are beneath the surface. But the same factors do determine whether the plan remains feasible.
⬇️ Yet another example ⬇️
A reorganization project within a healthcare institution clearly illustrates how disruption can arise. Formally, the project involves a steering committee, a project manager, and working groups. On paper, everything seems clear. But in practice, the steering committee makes decisions that the working groups can't implement because key departments aren't represented. The project manager has no authority to make decisions independently. As a result, working group members wait for direction that never materializes.
So 👉 the project is stuck. Not due to lack of planning, but due to unclear powers that were never made explicit.
Collaboration in projects goes wrong (while people do want to)
Look, there's bound to be a few snobbery types in the department who don't want to do anything. But generally speaking, people are eager to collaborate and believe in the project. So that's not the problem. Things go wrong because different perspectives are not discussed.
⬇️ Collaboration goes wrong because ⬇️
❌ Different disciplines view success differently. For IT, reliability matters, for marketing, speed, and for finance, cost. These perspectives clash, but are rarely discussed.
❌ Optimizing people from their own role. The lawyer wants legal certainty, and the project manager wants progress. Both act professionally, but it's a conflict.
❌ No one explicitly owns the whole. Everyone is responsible for their own piece. No one feels responsible for its coherence.
Especially in the more complex projects, noise is created. All professionals work hard, but they work past each other. So even if you have a top team – think of the Dutch national team with all those big names – things can still go wrong.
Adjusting is difficult; no one is "against." Because oh, how we would have loved to win the 2010 final against Spain... But the whole thing isn't moving; it just won't.
Consider a construction project. The architect delivers drawings according to the agreements. The contractor builds according to those drawings. The installer follows the specifications. Everyone does their part. However, technically it does not fit together, because no one has done the integral coordination. The architect says, "I provide designs, not construction management." The contractor responds, "I build what's there; I'm not a designer." The installer then says, "I follow the specifications; the rest is not my responsibility." Uh, well…
Everyone is right in their role. But meanwhile, the project is stalling from the ground up. 🤯
Behavior under pressure: the tipping point in many failed projects
The human brain is sensitive to pressure and tension. Although some people will say “I work so well under stress,” your brain probably doesn't agree with you. Your brain subconsciously qualifies stress and pressure as "danger." This increases the risk of your primal brain taking over.
The primal brain makes different choices, it only looks at: where is the threat and where can I get something? As a result, you see how people's behavior changes under pressure. Some retreat into their own expertise and take less initiative outside their role. While others take charge of everything, the "if I do it, at least I know it'll go well" mentality.
And look, this behavior is very human, but it does reinforce the causes of project failure. What was initially a minor glitch, suddenly becomes a structural blockage.
Tinkering with the schedule won't solve the underlying problems. However tempting it may be sometimes. 😉
Getting a grip on projects doesn't start with replanning
Tight deadlines! Work harder! And guess what, let's create even more detailed reporting. That's often the first thing you see happen when a project gets stuck.
That may help temporarily, but rarely structurally. Getting a grip on projects requires something different: insight into how people collaborate, make decisions and take responsibility. In short:
⬇️What does help to gain control ⬇️
Instead of focusing more on output, it helps to focus on:
🧩 Creating role clarity. Explicit discussions about who's responsible for what, who makes decisions, and who coordinates. Not as an organizational chart, but as a lively agreement.
🧩 Expressing expectations. Different stakeholders have different interests. Identify these before they collide, not afterward.
🧩 Recognizing behavioral patterns. What behaviors work here? What behaviors worked in previous phases but no longer work? And what does this context require of us?
🧩Organizing coordination. You don't need more meetings; the trick is to meet differently. Create space for what's truly happening, not just what's on the agenda.
A shared language also helps to identify the causes of failed projects
In addition to these 4 points, there is something else that will help you regain control of your project, namely speaking a common language to explain what you see happening.An example of such a language is IPMA.
Topics such as leadership without formal authority, dealing with complexity, behavior under pressure, or interest management in multi-stakeholder environments become tangible thanks to IPMA. This makes it easier to identify and discuss the causes of failed projects, without placing blame. It helps to say, “I recognize this pattern from the framework, can we talk about it?” instead of “You're doing it wrong.”
Lagant offers IPMA certificationand to help you master that language. And by giving you words to describe what's happening in the project, you can also turn it into a success together with your colleagues.
Learning to look at behavior and context
Speaking a common language is one thing. A second aspect we see at Lagant is that many professionals experience greater control when they learn to look beyond planning and structure. As you've read, nine times out of ten, a project stalls due to behavior and context. Our e-learning and training help to recognize these patterns and discuss them, especially before projects get stuck.
Our e-learning and training courses are focused on your daily practice. We'll certainly guide you through the methodologies and processes, but that's always in the service of the bigger picture: professional conduct. We'll help you with questions like ⬇️
- How do you conduct conversations about role division?
- How do you make implicit expectations explicit?
- How do you recognize patterns that block projects?
- How do you adjust steering without pushing harder?
These skills make the difference between projects that stall and those that keep moving, even under pressure.
Want to know how we can help you or which certification best suits your career at this point? Submit your question to us via ln.tnagal@ofni or call Patricia on +31 (0)85 050 9742.
