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Related Experiment Videos

Why bad projects are so hard to kill.

Isabelle Royer1

  • 1DMSP Research Center, University of Paris, Dauphine.

Harvard Business Review
|February 13, 2003
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Organizational overconfidence in new product development, fueled by project champions, leads to costly failures. Diverse teams and rigorous review processes, alongside "exit champions," are crucial for mitigating these risks.

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Area of Science:

  • Business Strategy
  • Organizational Behavior
  • Innovation Management

Background:

  • Companies often invest heavily in projects based on optimistic projections, even when early indicators suggest failure.
  • The RCA SelectaVision videodisc recorder exemplifies a large-scale, 14-year, $580 million failure due to persistent belief in a flawed product.
  • Such failures are common, stemming from organizational overconfidence and a collective belief in project success, dismissing negative signals as temporary setbacks.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To analyze the psychological and organizational factors contributing to large-scale project failures.
  • To identify strategies for preventing costly product development blunders.
  • To highlight the role of organizational dynamics in decision-making regarding project continuation or termination.

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Main Methods:

  • Case study analysis of two prominent corporate failures: Essilor (corrective lenses) and Lafarge (building materials).
  • Examination of organizational behavior, including the influence of project champions and groupthink.
  • Comparative analysis to derive best practices for project management and risk assessment.

Main Results:

  • Fervent belief in a project's success, often initiated by a project champion, can blind organizations to negative feedback and market realities.
  • Both Essilor and Lafarge cases illustrate how internal optimism and a lack of critical evaluation led to prolonged investment in failing initiatives.
  • The study identifies a pattern of escalating commitment despite mounting evidence of impending failure.

Conclusions:

  • To avoid costly project failures, organizations should assemble diverse project teams that include dissenting voices.
  • Implementing and adhering to well-defined project review processes is essential for objective evaluation.
  • The concept of an 'exit champion' is introduced as a necessary counterbalance to project champions, guiding organizations to terminate failing projects.