2009 APM East of England Chapter

CITI presented at the APM East of England Chapter on the topic of 'forensic project management'.

Forensic project management

Presented by Geoff Vincent, CITI Principal Consultant

Forensic project management involves the application of systematic tools and techniques to analyse why projects fail – and why they succeed. The forensic approach looks not only at the immediate (or ‘proximate’) causes of failure, but also at the underlying factors that lead projects to fail. Some of these factors arise from how well or badly an individual project manager does his or her job, but many derive from the way a project is set up, the support it receives, or the way it is governed.

Forensic pathology, popularised by TV shows such as CSI and Silent Witness, uses scientific tests to determine key facts about what happened. Are there any similar ‘scientific’ tests that can be applied to a project (‘alive’ or ‘dead’)? Can a project be dissected piece by piece, or is a more holistic approach needed to understand what is going on? What recommendations can be made to rescue a project, or to prevent the same problems from occurring again?

The session also looked at how forensic analysis can be used to create not just a healthy project, but a healthy project environment, where projects are set up and managed in ways that are most likely to lead to success.

Geoff has worked in leadership and advisory roles in many different industries and on a wide range of projects, some of which have involved ‘world firsts’ and have had a significant global impact. He has advised organisations in both the public and private sectors At CITI he provides project consultancy to leading organisations, including delivery roles, assurance and ‘forensic’ consulting.