Project, Vision, Execution (Kaizen?)
Having involved with many projects in various scales, I can see that in general there are 3 types of projects:
1. A project with no vision
A project with no vision is a bit like life without a purpose. The project exists for the sake of having the project itself. It is almost destined to be doomed even with enough resources to make it happen. There are too many IT projects failures, many of which are due to this problem. Of course no one wants to admit there is no vision, of course they can pretend they have a vision or basically borrow one from someone else - but normally they are just too abstract and meaningless.
2. Project with vision but no execution
Good, now we are one step closer. We have clear vision for the project but the problem is we don’t know how to execute it. Having a vision without plan and execution is just like having a good idea with no outcomes.
We know how hard it is to execute good idea, and a good idea remains just a good idea until it has been executed.
3. Project with vision and execution
Right, I think we nailed it this time; we’ve got the clear vision and know exactly what needs to be done to execute it. As we all know having a clear plan and the right resources to execute it is a great recipe to a successful project.
At the end of the day the outcome of successful project heavily depends on execution and control. We all know things aren’t work according to the plan. Determination, passion and continuous control is perhaps worth more than the vision itself in the real world. The Japanese called this “Kaizen” (Continuous Improvement).
