Projects, Implementation & Failure
Keep a project’s boundaries, promised outputs and progress markers distinct. Describe implementation without implying that a launch proves success, and distinguish an obstacle, a pause and abandonment. When reviewing failure, specify what can be recovered and what should change next time.
Defining the work
the agreed extent of the work, including what it covers and excludes
Common use: define / extend the scope; within / outside the scope
The survey’s scope covered public entrances but excluded private service areas.
an identifiable output that a project is expected to provide
Common use: a project deliverable; specify / submit deliverables
A searchable catalogue was a deliverable, whereas holding weekly meetings was an activity.
a significant stage or event used to mark progress
Common use: reach / miss a milestone; a project milestone
Securing permission to enter the site was the first major milestone.
a relationship in which one task or outcome relies on another
Common use: identify / manage dependencies; a dependency between tasks
The roof inspection had a dependency on the scaffolding being ready.
the sequence of dependent tasks that determines the earliest possible project completion
Common use: identify the critical path; a task on the critical path
The specialist fabrication remained on the critical path because no later stage could start without it.
gradual expansion beyond agreed project requirements, often without matching time or resources
Common use: prevent / manage scope creep; a risk of scope creep
A written agreement about excluded tasks helped protect the team against scope creep.
- Scope defines the work’s extent. A deliverable is a promised output; a milestone marks progress. Delivering an output can also constitute a milestone.
- A dependency connects tasks. The critical path is the linked sequence controlling the completion date; a task can matter greatly without being on that path.
- Scope creep usually criticises unmanaged expansion. An openly agreed extension with revised resources is not automatically the same problem.
Putting plans into operation
put a plan, decision or method into effect
Common use: implement a plan / recommendation / procedure
The club implemented the agreed booking rules at the start of the season.
introduce a product, service or system for use, often across locations or groups
Common use: roll out a service / system; a nationwide rollout
The library rolled out the new borrowing system across its smaller branches first.
test a proposed approach on a limited scale before deciding on wider use
Common use: pilot a scheme / approach; a pilot project
The council piloted a night bus for three weekends, then withdrew it because demand was too low.
introduce something gradually in stages rather than all at once
Common use: phase in a requirement / change; phase something in over time
The orchestra phased in the new seating arrangements over three rehearsals.
position or put resources, people or equipment into use for a purpose
Common use: deploy staff / equipment / resources
The organisers deployed extra stewards at the narrow entrance.
bring newly installed equipment or a facility into working service after preparation and checks; also order work
Common use: commission a plant / system; commission a report
The new ventilation system was commissioned after its controls had been checked.
- Implement puts a decision into effect; roll out foregrounds introduction to users or locations. A rollout can happen in stages, but the expression alone does not specify the schedule.
- Pilot makes a limited introduction a test. Phase in describes staging; a staged adoption need not be an experiment whose results determine whether adoption proceeds.
- Deploy puts resources to use. In an equipment context, commission concerns bringing a new system into service; in “commission a report”, it means order the work instead.
When progress falters
an event that delays progress or makes success harder without necessarily ending the effort
Common use: suffer / overcome a setback; a temporary setback
Losing access to the archive was a setback, but the biographer continued with interviews.
movement beyond a planned timetable or target, especially delay
Common use: schedule slippage; monitor / prevent slippage
The producer built extra time into the schedule to absorb limited slippage.
an excess beyond a planned amount of money or time
Common use: a cost / budget overrun; project overruns
Unexpected groundwork produced a substantial cost overrun.
disrupt an activity so seriously that it leaves its intended course; figurative
Common use: derail a project / plan / negotiation
A disagreement over ownership threatened to derail the restoration project.
stop making progress, often with the possibility of resuming
Common use: talks / progress stall; a stalled project
Progress stalled while the teams waited for access to the shared files.
initial practical difficulties when something new begins operating
Common use: experience / resolve teething problems
The new ensemble had teething problems as the musicians learnt one another’s cues.
- A setback is an adverse development. To stall is to stop progressing; a setback can occur while other work continues.
- Slippage foregrounds drift against a plan. An overrun foregrounds exceeding a time or cost allowance; the same delay can support both descriptions.
- Derail suggests serious disruption to the intended course. Teething problems frames difficulties as initial ones, so the label can understate persistent structural faults.
Stopping, recovering and learning
stop a process or attempt before completion
Common use: abort an attempt / launch / operation
The rehearsal launch was aborted when the control signal failed.
set a proposal or activity aside, often without a definite date for returning to it
Common use: shelve a proposal / plan; shelve something indefinitely
The organisers shelved the extension until they could discuss access with neighbours.
discard or abandon something judged no longer worth using or pursuing
Common use: scrap a design / plan / scheme
The first enclosure design was scrapped because it could not meet the agreed dimensions.
recover something useful from a damaged, unsuccessful or threatened situation
Common use: salvage material / a project / something from a failure
The team salvaged several usable interviews from the otherwise unusable recording session.
put an error or unsatisfactory situation right; relatively formal
Common use: rectify an error / omission / discrepancy
Adjusting the hinges rectified the problem with the sticking door.
knowledge gained from experience, especially about what to change in future work
Common use: record / apply lessons learned; a lessons-learned review
The team recorded lessons learned about briefing contributors before the next issue.
- Abort stops an attempt before completion. Shelve puts work aside; scrap more clearly presents it as discarded. Context, rather than the verb alone, determines every future possibility.
- Salvage recovers value from difficulty and need not restore the whole project. Rectify corrects a specified fault, without necessarily repairing every consequence.
- Lessons learned should identify what experience changes about future action. Recording them is different from applying them.
Language for planning, rollout, execution, scope, setbacks, delays and failure.
Choose the correct option to complete each sentence below.
Choose the correct option to complete each sentence below.