When working on a project missing a milestone is a possibility, due to technical issues, environmental causes, or human errors. what are some ways to overcome and get back on track after missing a milestone?
If the team were to miss a milestone, the project would need to understand the time and resources needed to get to the point that they were aiming for. Most projects miss the initial deadlines set and there are always areas of time and resources that were allocated for the project to be able to recover from. The best way for a team to get back on track is to understand how large of an issue they are facing and what road blocks are still ahead due to this. If the problem is large enough, they may need to explain to upper leadership on the need to spend X amount of dollars to either test a prototype, hire a contractor, or let them know that the team wasn't able to foresee this design issue. The team also needs to work on hastening some areas of the project to make sure that they aren't deviating too far from the initial as project phases aren't solidified where items can be worked on in advance before the project is ready to move on to its current phase. If the issue is too large and the project does not seem profitable if continued (this is a worst case situation), then it can be cancelled, but this will only happen in extreme cases. For environmental causes like the pandemic we are in, delays are to be expected and the only thing the team can do is become efficient in dealing with tasks in a virtual environment that would be similar as if they were in the office. These are all pretty broad examples, so it may not cover what can happen fully when missing project milestones.
Sometimes milestones are missed when there is project scope change, in this case, it is vital to start realizing that the defined scope should be reclarified and roles and responsibilities should be reiterated to make sure that there is no misunderstanding. Sometimes scope reduction can be considered to make sure that the project is a success. At times a contingency plan has to be developed to make sure that in case a risk becomes a reality the project can still survive through a plan B. Revising the project plan and introducing more control measures can help too.
The best way to overcome missing milestones is to plan in advance for potential issues and failures. The best plans always have backup plans, and in situations where a milestone is missed, it's often essential to implement a pre-planned backup plan.
It also depends on why the milestone was missed. In some cases, a team may have just improperly estimated their schedule and overestimated how long a task would take to complete. In those scenarios, it is essential to review the following tasks and to analyze if the timeline proposed is actually possible. The timeline will most likely need to be modified and the appropriate people must then be informed of the change.
In terms of emergencies, backup plans must be put in place in order to ensure that the emergency does not continue to limit or slow down the project.
If milestones are missed, the first step is to get the team together to investigate why deadlines weren't met. During this process, as with any process, communication is essential. In this case, the project's Gantt chart could prove extremely beneficial in trying to get back on track. As we learned last week, the Gantt chart outlines the tasks in the projects, task deadlines, and how the completion of each tasks relates to the entire project. The team can look at how the missed deadlines affect the project's timeline and come up with the plan to rectify it. This could include reassigning responsibilities or consolidating tasks.
I believe some missed milestones may be out of the projects teams control and that it may not be possible to make up for the lost time. However, I think these delays make it more essential to adequately plan the remaining tasks to ensure that the remainder of the project runs as smoothly as possible. If changes are made to try and rush or catch up on the lost time, additional delays may be more likely, but focusing on the remainder of the project rather than unavoidable delays may make the remainder of the project the most efficient and successful.
I believe some missed milestones may be out of the projects team's control and that it may not be possible to make up for the lost time. However, I think these delays make it more essential to adequately plan the remaining tasks to ensure that the remainder of the project runs as smoothly as possible. If changes are made to try and rush or catch up on the lost time, additional delays may be more likely, but focusing on the remainder of the project rather than unavoidable delays may make the remainder of the project the most efficient and successful.
A milestone is a significant point or event in a project, also milestones have zero duration because they represent a specific point or event. It’s inevitable that not all milestones are going to be met on time every time due to a plethora of issues. In terms of environmental issues I think about natural disasters that have taken place like hurricane Katrina or even recently the snowstorm in Texas which disrupted businesses and efforts by project managers across many different landscapes from accomplishing tasks because of this inclement weather. I’m also reminded of the vaccine rollout by AstraZeneca who otherwise given the research has shown has been a successful vaccine but the rollout on the part of the project manager was not executed properly and may have affected the perception of the public. There are several ways to overcome these setbacks but ultimately involves putting on blinders, believing in yourself. Setting realistic goals is a plus. Planning for realistic pitfalls may become even more necessary. Conflict management may help stakeholders bring into alignment objective requirements and summary milestones and help reschedule specific milestones so those objectives can be met in a timely manor. This can be prevented by setting a project schedule that is acceptable with a planned start and planned finish for milestones and project activities based on the best available information.
Missing a milestone is very normal nowadays for many reasons that can be controlled or cannot be avoided sometimes. The first thing that has to be done is investigating why the milestone was missed. Based on the investigation, the team then puts a plan to avoid that kind of delay in the future. Then this has to be communicated to the business if the milestone is on the critical path or would delay launch. Nowadays, missing a milestone is lightly taken considering all the delays caused by COVID-19 implications, but the teams still have to come up with ways to get back on track. The team now has to find a way to cut some of the timeline and fit that missed milestone back in the timeline. Sometimes missing a milestone is really fine as long as the end result or the end goal is still met which is the case almost all the time. For example, missing the milestone of submitting a 510(k) can be lightly taken if the 510(k) gets cleared around the same time it was expected due to faster FDA clearance. Executing tasks in parallel is definitely another way to reach the next milestone with no delays. The team's plan should really depend on the importance of the milestone and what is dependent on it. Stakeholders might be aligned on the investigation that the team had done and communicate that to the business and sometimes the results can be accepting the delay caused by missing the milestone.
The first way of getting the project back on course is to understand what caused the project to miss the milestone. With the new understanding, precautions can be taken to ensure that it is not moving forward. The next step may be to evaluate the remaining task that is remaining to complete the project. Reiterate the object of the project and reset milestones and objectives to meet the new deadlines. Roles and responsibilities should be reassigned or restated, confirming everyone understands their part and timeline. You must also identify a risk management plan for the remainder of the project.
There may be a range of causes that lead to missed milestones, including technical issues, environmental issues, or even improper planning. Sometimes milestones can be missed for reasons that are completely out of the project team’s control. I think these types of situations are easier to fix and manage, with adequate planning throughout the remainder of the project. You could possibly go the route of tweaking the project to still get everything done, but I think the best thing to focus on moving forward would be making sure that the remaining milestones can be completed without delays. Additional planning can help, especially if you find a way to implement changes that will work around technical, environmental issues, etc. if they were to occur.
When working on a project missing a milestone is a possibility, due to technical issues, environmental causes, or human errors. what are some ways to overcome and get back on track after missing a milestone?
When milestones are approaching and it seems that there is a possibility that the team is not going to reach that goal, it is the duty of the project manager to begin to brainstorm ideas of how this will not set them back. They should put it to the team that their is a small possibility that this goal will not be reached with the current work rate and ask if there are some changes that could be made to ramp up production as well as brainstorm for the plan B: How to still reach this milestone while preparing for the next without overworking their people. Maximizing project development.
A milestone is a significant point or event in a project, also milestones have zero duration because they represent a specific point or event. It’s inevitable that not all milestones are going to be met on time every time due to a plethora of issues. In terms of environmental issues I think about natural disasters that have taken place like hurricane Katrina or even recently the snowstorm in Texas which disrupted businesses and efforts by project managers across many different landscapes from accomplishing tasks because of this inclement weather. I’m also reminded of the vaccine rollout by AstraZeneca who otherwise given the research has shown has been a successful vaccine but the rollout on the part of the project manager was not executed properly and may have affected the perception of the public. There are several ways to overcome these setbacks but ultimately involves putting on blinders, believing in yourself. Setting realistic goals is a plus. Planning for realistic pitfalls may become even more necessary. Conflict management may help stakeholders bring into alignment objective requirements and summary milestones and help reschedule specific milestones so those objectives can be met in a timely manor. This can be prevented by setting a project schedule that is acceptable with a planned start and planned finish for milestones and project activities based on the best available information.
@llefevre you made some points that I didn't consider yet are very true. There's always a chance of a project not running as smooth as one may plan. Many things can occur throughout the timeline of a project that could lead to missed milestones, and environmental issues was one that first came to mind for me as well. You spoke on the value of conflict management, which can really help with rescheduling of certain milestones so that objectives are still met in a timely manor. In all, planning for these types of senarios will allow you to be prepared.
@k-faulk You raised some good points in your response. I think the team as a whole, or at least the tasks managers and the PM, should come together to see which completed and future tasks can connect given the missing milestone and form a new critical path to follow. Effective communication between the task group is needed if this new plan is going to work. A way to avoid too much stress if this were to occur in a project is to plan around the calculated slack time if you can. I agree speeding up production to meet the Late Finish deadline would be needed. Still, effective communication through the team to have this amped-up production run as smoothly as possible is the best solution to make up for a missed milestone.
During a project, we set milestones to achieve. It can be unavoidable to miss these milestones. Different things can come into play that can cause a team not to meet the deadline; missing a milestone can be a failure by the group or ensure that the overall project is better by providing the product is safe to release in the market.
An example I can think of right now is the company Emergent Biosolutions. They were supposed to deliver vaccines for johnson and johnson; however, there were issues during the vaccine production that caused an error that caused 15 million doses to be messed up. However, that will delay the company's milestone; however, the error was caught before the vaccine was released. So as much as they ate postponed, it will ensure a safer release of the vaccine.
