I often hear Project Managers complaining (and I have done it myself) about the fact that clients haven’t given us the right specifications for a project, they haven’t told as everything they need, or they say things like “oh i thought it would do/look like/have …….”
We complain about this but is it really the clients fault for not telling us, or is it our fault for not asking the right questions. After all we are supposed to the the specialists,we are supposed to be the people who know what they are doing. If we don’t ask the right questions and enough of them to satisfy ourselves and the client that we are both on the same page then I believe that it probably more our fault than theirs.
This is not to suggest that it is always the Project Managers fault in these kinds of cases of course there are times when the clients image or idea of what they were going to get is so far outside the box they we could never have conceived of it.These cases are in the minority though.
The other issue here is one of not checking with the client regularly to ensure that whatever is being produced does actually map onto the clients expectation. This is something that Agile does very well and a lesson that more traditional models of Project Management would do well to take onboard. The more you consult with the client during the project, the more you communicate the design and build, the more likely it will be that the end product will be what is desired by the client and will lead to a successful end to the project, hopefully on time and on budget. The idea of taking the clients specifications, building the product and then taking it back to the client without any consultation in between is one that is sure to lead to trouble.
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