How to Create an Environment for Successful Projects

Studies have found that the majority of projects fail to meet their targets. This is true of projects in all fields, including construction, R&D, product development, and IT, and means that project are late, over budget, and fail to perform as required. This is usually because they have not been planned and managed properly.


This seems strange, in view of the fact that many of the individuals managing these projects have been provided with training and given scheduling software. Nevertheless, it is true, and the costs to organizations is staggering. Studies of IT projects alone indicate that companies in the United States lose up to 250 billion dollars a year on projects that don't meet their targets, with as much as 80 billion being lost on canceled projects.


Author Jim Lewis has worked in project management for over 40 years, first as a project manager, then as a seminar instructor and consultant to companies around the world. He has written 12 highly acclaimed books on the subject. His first book, Project Planning, Scheduling and Control is now in a fifth edition and has been in print for 20 years. This guide is written for executives and other senior managers who feel the pain of the economic loss of failed projects, and who are looking for a solution.