Delay 1: unclear ownership
A project can have many participants and still have nobody accountable. Assign one internal implementation owner and one customer project lead. For critical tasks, name the person responsible for the output and the person authorized to approve it.
- Confirm capacity, not just willingness, during kickoff.
- Replace team aliases with named owners for critical-path work.
- Escalate when an owner misses two commitments or lacks decision authority.
Delay 2: hidden security and integration work
Security, legal, identity, and data access often run on different organizational clocks. Start these workstreams at signature and provide complete documentation. Track them as first-class milestones rather than notes attached to technical tasks.
- Send architecture, data flow, subprocessor, and control documentation together.
- Validate authentication, network, environment, and test-data requirements early.
- Identify customer change windows and internal approval boards.
- Use sample data to discover quality issues before full migration.
Delay 3: expanding scope without tradeoffs
New requirements are normal. Unpriced, unsequenced requirements are dangerous. For each change, document the value, effort, dependencies, and effect on the launch. Offer options: replace existing scope, move the date, add resources, or schedule an expansion phase.
Delay 4: slow decisions
Maintain a decision log with an owner and needed-by date. When a deadline approaches, describe the default path and its consequence. Escalate based on impact, not emotion, and give the sponsor a clear choice.
Build an early-warning routine
Review critical-path tasks, blocked-task age, customer response time, milestone confidence, and scope changes every week. Ask implementation managers for the evidence behind project health. A green status with an overdue dependency is not green.
When a project recovers, record which intervention worked. Over time, recurring recovery actions should become template improvements, automated checks, or clearer entry criteria.