ABSTRACT

Humans have conducted projects for thousands of years: erecting settlements, villages, towns and cities; building rafts, then boats, then ships for exploration, migration and warfare; building stone circles, pyramids, cathedrals and temples; constructing roads, railways, bridges and factories; assembling printing presses; and even going to the moon. Over those years, we have changed little in our urge to build, change, innovate and develop, though the pace at which things happen today has accelerated beyond the imagination of our ancestors. The human race has acquired millions of person-years of project experience, and developed approaches, techniques and tools that should help us manage our latest projects successfully. So why do projects continue to be so troublesome? Have we forgotten lessons learned from project history, or do we think we have nothing to learn? Do we run into trouble because we fail to recognize the true nature of projects, and the special skills needed to manage them successfully? What is so extraordinary about projects?