What Causes Software Projects to Fail?

The Four Most Common Causes

Unclear Goals

"We are digitizing the order processing" is not a goal, but a project. Without measurable goals, it cannot be determined in the end whether it has worked – and more importantly, what is important during the process.

No One Decides

If every question ends up in a committee, compromises arise that benefit no one. A project needs a person who can say, "this is how we will do it."

Scope Increases, Budget Does Not

Every single additional requirement sounds reasonable. In total, they exceed the limits. Without a place to collect and prioritize wishes, it reliably happens.

Users Are Asked Too Late

Software built for people without asking them is bypassed by those people. This is only noticed after the launch – then it is expensive.

Early Warning Signs

• After four weeks, there is still nothing to see
• Follow-up questions remain unanswered for more than a week
• The requirements catalog is getting longer instead of shorter
• No one from the specialist department has ever used the system
• When asked, "what is the most important goal?" there are three answers

What Helps

Early functional prototype. Nothing clarifies requirements as quickly as a system that can be interacted with.

A contact person with a mandate. The single most effective factor.

Collect wishes instead of implementing immediately. A list that everyone can see and that is regularly prioritized.

Users from day one. Not as opinion givers at the end, but as testers from the very beginning.