Something unexpected

For a project (or team) of any meaningful size, something unexpected is bound to happen.

This is probably not news to you.

Someone will make a mistake, or miss a meeting, or be out sick. Some component will need to be upgraded, or fixed, or replaced. It will rain, the power will go out, you’ll get a flat tire.

If it doesn't come, count yourself lucky.

But when it does, it will have an impact, usually at least one of these:

• increased cost

• Delayed launch

• Deceased functionality

So if it’s sure to happen, why is it even worth considering?

Because, while you can't predict the unexpected, you might be able to plan ahead and direct the impact.

Say, allow costs to increase in order to get full functionality on time. Or, accept a delay in order to conserve funds without sacrificing functionality.

It can be hard to make that decision under pressure. Much easier to decide when your mind is clear.

Sure, we all hope everything will go perfectly according to plan.

But when the unexpected happens, you can save yourself a lot of stress — and some regretable “didn’t have a choice” decision-making — by deciding ahead of time how you might like to handle it.

All the best,
A.