The startup phase of project execution is critical for the success of the project. Not just because it is the moment where the project team has the most influence on the outcome and where small investments will yield the best returns. It is also because a sound setup will later give space to the team to concentrate on the inevitable issues arising during project execution and lead the project through them – which is invaluable. Yet we find that too many projects fail to show enough urgency at this stage. In our new White Paper “The Urgency of Project Startup: How to Ensure Success of your Project by Creating the Space to Lead” [2012-23] we investigate how to increase the project success by concentrating on the startup phase.

Project startup needs to be addressed with the appropriate urgency. It is important to achieve as quickly as possible a stable situation where all the important foundations of project execution are effectively in place. Actually, the aim of project startup is not just to plan the project. It is to create robustness to change.

Instead of focusing on the level of detail of the execution plan, it is more effective to concentrate on building an execution plan that is as resilient as possible to changes and natural variation.

One very important aspect of project startup is to setup the appropriate systems and processes that will allow to have an accurate view of the project situation and current course at all times. And these systems need to be designed to free the project team leaders as much as possible from running them so that they can concentrate on acting on the course of the project.

Throughout our extensive consulting experience in projects, we have found that most project teams fail significantly short of being successful in the project startup phase. And it is no surprise when later the overall project falls short of expectations!
The two main syndromes we observe are:

• No urgency
• Setup of insufficient systems & processes

Don’t fall into the trap: project startup is a critical moment. As a project leader, you need to setup a project configuration as quickly as possible that will free you from the mundane and repetitive tasks and allow you to steer your project through the unexpected.

Read our new White Paper “The Urgency of Project Startup: How to Ensure Success of your Project by Creating the Space to Lead” [2012-23] to know more about how to implement project startup properly.