Common Project Management Challenges

​Project management is no walk in the park. There are several tasks to complete and elements and processes to track. When a project manager is not worrying about the different outcomes and the best route to get there, they are trying to anticipate the bumps in the road. Some challenges are universal, while others are project-specific.

One of the biggest project management challenges is the lack of clear goals. If more projects began with clearly defined goals and success criteria, there would perhaps be fewer challenges. Clear goal-setting ensures each process, task, and activity is aligned with the overall project goal. It also makes it easy to track progress, quantify success, and monitor and evaluate results.

To set clear goals, one may use the SMART and CLEAR approaches. SMART goals are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based. CLEAR goals are collaborative (brings all relevant stakeholders together), limited (has a start and endpoint), emotional (creates a sense of ownership among players), appreciable (broken into small, manageable objectives), and refinable (can be iterated as priorities and circumstances change.

Not having a clear set of objectives opens the door for several other project management challenges, like scope creep. Scope creep occurs when a project’s scope overshoots the intended reach. It’s characterized by such things as budget overshoot.

While scope creep is expected in any project, the extent and impact of it can be managed by having clearly set objectives. The “refinable” aspect of CLEAR goals anticipates scope creep, and “limit” ensures the changes in the initial project approach do not derail the project purpose and deliverables.

Communication can make or break the project. Miscommunication can derail a project because it affects workflow. As such, communication should be accurate and timely right from the start of the project.

To avoid miscommunication, project managers may rely on project management software, like Kissflow, to ensure everyone is up to date and aware of their duties and responsibilities at all times. For members working remotely, regular team meetings can go a long way toward ensuring everyone is on the same page.

Speaking of teams, another major project management challenge is a lack of accountability. Accountability tends to be easy when only one person is responsible for a project. But the more people are involved, the harder it is to keep tabs on all of them.

Lack of accountability exposes a project to risks such as delays, resource misuse, and budget overshoot. Some ways to improve accountability include assigning each team player clear and specific tasks and standardizing processes and tasks by having key performance indicators (KPIs). Having a clear leadership structure or hierarchy also makes managing scattered teams easier, as it identifies with whom the buck stops.

Project management is always going to entail surprises. Nothing ever goes exactly according to plan, not even with the best-designed and clearest goals in place. As such, poor risk management exposes projects to failure.

Savvy project managers bake risk management into their processes. They continually ask “what if” questions and devise contingency plans, all while hoping for the best. They break down a huge project into A, “appreciable,” small parts. This way, the failure of one part or process does not halt or significantly affect the entire project.

Some project management challenges have minimal impacts. Others can stop everything altogether, increase costs, or impact team performance. As such, project management comes down to managing risk by ensuring no event - foreseen or not - brings the entire project to a grinding halt.

Craig Teed

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